Calgary Public Library has some great programs coming up for all ages at the various branches.

Ages 3 - 5 Pre-school Storytime at Fish Creek on Tuesdays and Wednesdays

Ages 5 - 9 Readers' Theatre at various libraries on various dates

Ages 6 - 9 Bottle Caps and Booby Traps at Fish Creek on Saturday, March 26

Ages 6 - 9 Treasure Hunt at Fish Creek on Wednesday, March 30

Ages 6 and up Drop-in French Storytime at Memorial Park on Saturdays, March 26 and April 2

Ages 8 - 12 Gaming for Kids at Louise Riley on Thursday, March 31

Any age It's Magic at Bowness on Tuesday, March 29

These are just some of the great programs available. Check them all out on our Program page.

Heritage Park is hosting "Spring Rally in the Alley", from March 26 - April 3, 9:30 am - 4:00 pm. Take your family on a journey back to the 1930s where you’ll explore, learn and have a blast!

The Telus World of Science is featuring the wonderful display, Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition, which includes special activities for the younger crowd. The Creative Kids' Museum has a new Imagination Playground for the younger folk.

The Calgary Zoo offers "Storytime at the Zoo". Listen to all your favorite zoo / animal stories at The Calgary Zoo! Every Thursday from 11:00 am to 11:30 am. Free with admission. Suitable for 3 - 5 year olds.

The Zoo is also offering "Northern Nights Sleepover" for children ages five and older accompanied by an adult. Experience the mystery and magic of sleeping in the Cequel Energy Lodge in the revamped Northern Nights sleepover program! Enjoy a starlight tour of the Canadian Wilds, games and activities, a late night snack and a special edu-tainment program! Awake to the playful antics of the river otters; enjoy a hot pancake breakfast and a day pass for admission to the zoo.

Saturday, April 2, 7:00 pm - 8:30 am, $60 per person.

Of course, don't forget Head-Smash-in Buffalo Jump, the Royal Tyrrell Museum and the Frank Slide Interpretive Centrefor fun, educational daytrips.

The kids will be off for 5 fun-filled days during Teachers' Convention and Family Day Weekend. What do you do with them in the middle of February?

Calgary Public Library is always a great place to take the kids to spend a few hours, looking for great books and movies. What is better than time spent browsing through the children's collection? For information on locations and hours, visit our webpage.

On Thursday, February 17 from 7:00 - 8:00, Fish Creek Library will be offering the Almost Teen Book club for kids between the ages of 10 and 12.This will be the first of three evenings and gives the almost teens a chance to talk about the great books they have read. Register through our home page.

Also, on February 17, Country Hills Library will be hosting "Marvelous Movies". They will be showing movies from the library's video collection from 2:00 - 3:30 pm. A fun way to spend a few hours!

Heritage Park is featuring "Family Quest" at their Gasoline Alley Museum. From Thursday February 17th to Monday February 21st, you can take part in fun-filled family activies and begin creating your own family stories album.

The City of Calgary is having a free skating party at the Rose Kohn/Jimmie Condon Arena on Family Day, February 21 from 1:00 - 2:30. There will be face painting and cookies. There is also a Kidsport Skate Shack in case you need to borrow skates and a helmet. Call 311 for more information.

Don't forget that there are a number of outdoor skating rinks in Calgary, such as the Bowness Lagoon. To find information on these rinks, go to Calgary Outdoor Rinks and Arenas.

The Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller will be having special programs from February 19 - 21, with such fun-filled activities as fossil casting and an interactive game, Alberta Unearthed. To see all the details visit their webpage.

Head Smashed-in Buffalo Jump is featuring a great day of activities on Monday, February 21st. Take part in a simulated dig, guided site tours, educational tours, Napi's puppet theatre and kids' crafts. All that and free admission too!

Enjoy a great Family Day weekend with your kids!!

Looking for things to do with the family during the Christmas holidays? Over the last couple of weeks, we have talked about winter activities in Banff and Jasper. Why not try some of the old, always popular standbys in the city?

Of course, there is always something to see at the Calgary Zoo. The zoo is open every day from 9:00 - 5:00, except for Christmas Day. Zoo Lights is on again this year in the evenings from 6:00 - 9:00 (the gates stay open and start charging Zoo Lights pricing at 4:30). The Kids Winter Fun-derland includes Snow Bowling, Reindeer Stables, Snowball Alley and SnIgloo where you can build your own igloo.The zoo also has a family celebration, Zoo Year's Eve , from 6:00 - 9:00 on December 31st.

The Telus World of Science has a great display, Einstein and Darwin, on over the Christmas vacation.Among other great activities, Einstein's Workshop is an interactive display in which children can produce sound with lasers, create their own constellations or consider time travel! Daily Darwin Critters allows children to experience Darwins' discoveries while viewing live reptiles and amphibians.

When my children were younger, I was always on the lookout for fun free activities for them. What could be better than skating outdoors on the beautiful Bowness Lagoon or on the skating ring at the Olympic Plaza? Calgaryarea.com features a number of places for outdoor skating at locations all over the city.

Don't forget to visit the library to stock up on great books, music and DVDs. We will be closed December 25th, 26th and January 1st.