Achieving Financial Success for 2025 (The S.M.A.R.T Way)
The Pew Research Center found that right behind health, exercise or diet, people are most likely to make a New Year’s resolution to improve their finances. The study also found that those who make resolutions are more likely to keep them. One of the best ways to stick to a financial goal is by using the S.M.A.R.T method. 1) Ask yourself: what is your financial goal? Here are some examples of financial goals you may be hoping to achieve: Saving for a vacation Growing your emergency fund Saving for school or to buy a house Paying off debt…
One Minute with George Kong, a 2024 PowerUp Winner!
On the evening of November 13th, the Business and Career Center announced the 2024 PowerUP Winners at our Annual Awards Ceremony. Check out the livestream on Youtube if you missed it or want to experience it again.Since 2003, the Business and Career Center has nurtured 10,900 individuals with over 1,800 business plans and awarded more than $650,000 in cash and in-kind gifts to Brooklyn entrepreneurs. Our success stories include more than 100 companies with passion for food and drink, health and wellness, arts and crafts, media and fashion, education, social justice, and cultural…
Get On the Fast-Track to In-Demand Jobs with Brooklyn Public Library
The Business & Career Center (by way of our LevelUP program) recently received a grant to provide Google Career Certificates to the public, exploring UX Design, IT Support, Digital Marketing, Project Management, Data Analytics and Cybersecurity. Participants must live in Brooklyn and have an active Brooklyn Public Library. To apply for a scholarship spot, fill out the Brooklyn Public Library's Grow with Google Scholarship application.Maybe you are unsure of which program is right for you? Maybe you find it hard to commit to just one course? Have no fear! The Brooklyn Public…
BKLYN Kids Presents: Hanukkah Books to Feast Upon
Danielle,Hanukkah Books to Feast Upon The year 2013 was a special year as the first night of Hanukkah coincided with Thanksgiving. Although the two holidays do not fall on exactly the same night this year, Hanukkah celebrants this year are looking forward to turkey and pie, followed by latkes and donuts in the same long weekend. Here are some Hanukkah books that are worth checking out after feasting on all your holiday favorite foods: Meet the Latkes written by Alan Silberberg Meet the Latke Family. They are just like your family, but they are potato pancakes...and they get a…
Kids Create: Yarn Friends
Danielle,The Kensington library loves crafts with yarn. This month we are making cuddly yarn friends! Supplies: Yarn Scissors One piece of cardboard that is seven inches long and another piece that is four inches long. You can make your cardboard pieces with a ruler and a cereal box Buttons Stickers Any swag to jazz up your doll! (Optional) Steps: Wrap your yarn around the seven inch piece of cardboard 30 times. (Pro-tip: the thicker your yarn, the more full and cuddly your doll will be. Don’t worry if you don’t have a thick yarn. I didn’t have any, and it still works…
Book Talk: Books for the Jewish High Holidays
Danielle,Tonight, Jewish families around the world will be celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashanah can take place in September or October, depending on the Hebrew calendar. There are quite a few Jewish traditions to starting the Jewish New Year off right, but one of my favorites is dipping apple slices into honey to welcome in the sweetness of the new year.
Book Talk: Maps in Children's Books
Kat Savage, Neighborhood Library Supervisor, Adams Street Library; DanielleYou know how books are. They have covers. You open them up, and there’s so much stuff before the story even starts. The copyright page, other books by the author, the dedication. Maybe there’s a table of contents or an epigraph or a... oh my gosh, could it be?… yes! Yes it’s a MAP! Nothing says fantasy like a good map. Not all fantasy books have maps, and not all books with maps are fantasies. But when there is a map, I bookmark that page. In the midst of the tale, I turn back to it, squinting. If Ged has to get to Roke from Hort Town by sailing west, well, is that very far at all? When…
Kids Create: Pride Pom-Poms
Danielle,June is Pride Month! If you are part of the Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, Trans, Queer, Intersex, Asexual (LBGTQIA) community or an ally, show your pride with rainbow pom-poms! The History of the Rainbow Flag In the 1960s, before the creation of the rainbow pride flag, the LBGTQIA community represented themselves with a pink triangle, but this symbol had a dark history. Nazi Germany had forced the gay community to wear pink triangles in order to persecute them. One man, Gilbert Baker, wanted a new symbol, one where he could spread love instead of hate. It was a night dancing that Gilbert…
Earth Day is inside your Refrigerator
Danielle,Earth Day is right around the corner and with the necessity to shelter in place, it is even more important for children to celebrate our beautiful world from home this year. But how? I felt stuck. Many of the Earth Day traditions I would recommend to families are not possible this year, especially for children living in Brooklyn. Any other year, I'd encourage families to join a park clean-up, plant a tree, or walk or bike to a nearby park for time outside. These are not options during the pandemic. I found many wonderful resources on the web that recommend family-friendly documentaries…
BKLYN Kids Presents: Staying Connected
Danielle,Kids - we want to hear from you! Brooklyn Public Library is looking for your journal entries, poems, and other writing about your experience of staying home during the coronavirus. You can tell us what it's been like to learn from home, share advice with other kids about how to get along with your siblings, or write about how you feel. Fill in the form below to participate! Loading... Librarians will read aloud from the submissions "on the air" on our Brooklyn Public Library Family Facebook (Date TBA). In the meantime, check out Brooklyn Public Library's full list of Virtual…
BKLYN Kids Presents: Immigrant Heritage Month
Danielle,On June 24th, the Kensington branch celebrated Immigrant Heritage Month. Tweens and Teens gathered to learn how to draw manga characters from Misako Rocks!, a Japanese manga writer/illustrator who has written works including Rock and Roll Love, the manga about a Japanese foreign exchange student living in the midwest. "Who knows the word for cute in Japanese?" Misako asked the drawing participants. "Kawaii!" the manga readers among them knowingly said. In the process of drawing characters step-by-step, Misako taught the children about Japan and Japanese pop culture. Misako explained that…
Library Lab: Engineering Fun with the Egg Drop Challenge
Danielle,