Blog Entries

The last day of school is right around the corner.  Summer break is almost here.  We have lots of resources to help keep you busy this summer.

Our Middle Grade book spotlight this week is on more amazing nonfiction titles!

Our teen book spotlight this week is all about featuring some more amazing YA nonfiction titles!  It can be easy to think that nonfiction is boring but these titles are the complete opposite of that thought; we have everything from true crime to war history and

Looking for an epic summer adventure? Look no further than your local library! Here are 10 reasons why you should dive into the excitement at our library system this summer:

1. Youth Summer Reading Program: Join us for a summer of literary exploration with our Youth Summer Reading Program! Dive into captivating stories, embark on thrilling adventures, and earn exciting rewards along the way.

The Handley Regional Library System is excited to announce the "Rally for Reading" kickoff event for the 2024 Summer Reading Program, with the theme "Adventure Begins at Your Library." There are adventures to be had and unique celebrations at all three branches!

April is citizen science month! Citizen science is public involvement in the inquiry and discovery of new scientific knowledge. Community science, participatory research, DIY science, crowdsourcing, and public engagement in scientific research, among others, are also terms used to describe this movement. A citizen science project can involve one person or millions of people collaborating toward a common goal. Millions of citizen scientists are accelerating many areas of scientific research.

The Handley Library branch is introducing a new curbside pickup service through our MyLibro app!

Don't have the app? Click here to learn more about it!

Curbside appointments have five easy steps:

Persistence, grit, trying again, not giving up. There are many ways to put it and it is not an easy thing to teach to our younglings... but do we give up? No! Instead we keep going to model it and apply our problem solving skills. 

Kanopy Kids 

What is it? Thousands of streaming videos that are safe, educational, and parent trusted. Focused on children 2-8 years old. No view limits or monthly passes. Free with your library card.

What can you find? Old and new TV shows such as Little Bear, Sesame Street, Max & Ruby, Sarah & Duck, Blippi, T-Rex Ranch, Cocomelon, and Sid the Science Kid. Read along storybooks with new books by Mo Willems and old classics such as Where the Wild Things Are.

Maps are fascinating.  They can provide us with so much information about the people and places in history, all the while in a manner that is easy to understand and just visually beautiful.  We can learn where our ancestors and our community lived and how they lived through maps. 

Technology can aid in the search for ancestors in many ways.  A relatively new option to pursue is genetic genealogy testing.  How does this technology work?  What information can it tell you and what can’t it tell?  For answers, come to the Stewart Bell Jr. Archives upcoming talk, Genetic Genealogy with Shannon Combs-Bennett on Saturday, May 11 @ 2:00 pm.  Ms.

A HUGE part of reading is retention through memory. Are we remembering each letter sound? Can we recall the sound on the spot for both lowercase and uppercase letters?

Welcome to National Library Week, a time when communities across the nation join hands to celebrate the cornerstone of knowledge, inspiration, and community: libraries. At Handley Regional Library System, we're thrilled to be part of this annual celebration, and we invite you to join us in commemorating the incredible contributions libraries make to our lives. This year's theme, "Ready, Set, Library!" embodies the excitement and readiness to explore the myriad offerings libraries provide. Here are ten ways you can celebrate National Library Week with us:

Our middle grade book spotlight this week is all about books that have been nominated for the Virginia Reader’s Choice (VRC) Middle School award for the 2024-2025 school year!!  The VRC award was started back in the 1980s with the goal being that students across