Virtual Escape Room

Good luck!

 

Teen Hangout Returns!

Teen Hangout is back after an extended break due to Covid-19. The Dorris Van Doren Regional Library has a lot of fun things planned for young people between the ages of 12 and 18.

Our first Teen Hangout on July 15th brought in a bunch of new faces to join us in decorating tote bags. 

We've had a great time so far, and we have plenty of fun events coming soon! Next week, July 29, our group will be learning how to make felt animal plushies to fit our Summer Reading Club theme of Tales and Tails! Come join us and learn basic sewing skills!

Teen Hangout is every Thursday afternoon in the Dorris Van Doren Auditorium from 4:30-5:30pm. 

YALSA 2020 Teens' Top Ten Nominees

This week YALSA released the list for its 2020 Teens' Top Ten Nominees. Voting doesn't begin until August (it'll be available online from August 15 - October 12th). In the meantime, you can check out some of these titles on El Paso Public Library's Overdrive: https://elpaso.overdrive.com/ 

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Broken Throne by Victoria Aveyard

Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic by Sam Quinones

Frankly in Love by David Yoon

Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell

If you don't have a library card, you can request a temporary card for digital access here: https://elpasopl.ent.sirsi.net/client/en_US/default/search/registration/$N?pc=SYMWS

We'll keep you updated when voting begins! Keep on reading, and stay safe, El Paso!

Throwback Thursday

While all of our El Paso Public Library locations are closed, and our programming has moved online to our Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/ELPASOPUBLICLIBRARY, your favorite library workers are at home thinking of how we can make the library even more wonderful for our patrons when we return. We're also thinking of our past programs and how much we miss our amazing library guests.

Today we're looking back to this past January when our Teen Hangout group participated in a button art program. Each of them was given a blank canvas. They painted colorful backgrounds. Then they used tacky glue to stick strategically placed buttons on their canvas to create beautiful artwork!

This is a simple project that can be done at home! How can you replicate this project at home if you don't have all the materials?

If you don't have a canvas, a piece of cardboard would work as a makeshift canvas (for example, the inside of an empty cereal box). Any type of medium would work to color in your background: paints, marker, color pencils, even crayons! You can use spare buttons you have on hand to glue onto your creation, but this can also be done with other small items such as pebbles, shells, etc. Be creative!

We can't wait until you're back with us. In the meantime, don't forget to check out our social media accounts for updates! Stay safe, El Paso!

Passport Operations as of April 17, 2020

For passport information, please visit https://travel.state.gov/content/travel.html. You call also call 1-888-407-4747 for more information. 

Holiday Fun at Dorris Van Doren!

Christmas is here at the Dorris Van Doren Branch, and we have a number of fun activities for our patrons of all ages!

On Thursday, December 19th at 4:30 PM, our teens (ages 12-18) will be painting wood slices to make beautiful Christmas ornaments during their weekly Teen Hangout program.

Both Santa Claus and the Grinch will be visiting us on Friday, December 20. We'll begin at 1 PM with a family Christmas movie to get everyone excited for our special guests!

At 2 PM, we'll have a visit from Santa Claus! The Grinch will slink in at 3 PM.

On Saturday, December 21st from 3-4, the Johnson Trio will be joining us for a holiday concert. All ages are welcome to enjoy the show by these talented, young local musicians.

And after the holidays, don't miss our Tween STEM activities in January for kids ages 8-12.

Happy Holidays from the Dorris Van Doren Library!

TeenTober!

We're celebrating TeenTober all month long at the Dorris Van Doren Library! TeenTober is all about celebrating teens and highlighting the programs and services we provide to them. 

All month long, teens between the ages of 12 and 18 have a chance to earn instant win scratchcards. There are a lot of fun prizes to win including a free Whataburgers, stickers, pinback button packs, and pop sockets (courtesy of Whataburger). 

In order to get a scratch card, teens have to check out 5 books, write a review of a teen book, and/or attend Teen Hangout on Thursdays. If your ticket doesn't win, no worries! Non-winning tickets are eligible for a second chance drawing. We're giving away a gift basket with a $25 gift card, earbuds, Uno Dare!, pens, and stuff to snack on. The basket was purchased with funds donated by our Friends of the Westside Libraries. 

Teen Hangout takes place every Thursday from 4:30 to 6:30 PM year-round, but we have some seriously fun activities planned for TeenTober, including a breakout room and a chance to make a mini-altar for dia de los muertos. Check out this list of all our TeenTober programs: