A Colorful Week of Science Camp

            The Calhoun County Library held a very colorful STEM Science Camp the last week in June with a wonderful retired chemist.

            All About Colors was the topic of the STEM Science Camp this year. It took place from Monday, June 23, 2025, through Friday, June 27, 2025. Each class was from 11:45 AM - 1 PM. Our teacher was the wonderful Dr. Lesa Rice-Jackson, who led us through a five-day week full of experiments and thrills.

            On day one, we made color wheels and learned about everything from primary colors, hues, how to make the secondary colors, and the foundation of colors. This gave our scientists a baseline of information to build on for the rest of the week.

            On day two, we learned about color solutions by mixing water, dyes, chemicals like hydrochloric acid, and in-house foods like purple cabbage and vinegar together. This gave our scientists a physical illusion of how colors work and change depending on what comes in contact with them.

            On day three, we did a scavenger hunt around the library to search for the primary and secondary colors. This gave our scientists a chance to find these colors in the wild and explore how books are colorful in many ways.

            On day four, we made a wearable, a tie dye visor hat, using household items. With colored Kool-aid and some water, we used paint brushes to draw on base colors and then designs on their hats. After they were finished, they had a choice whether or not to spray their wearable with rubbing alcohol, which dilutes the colors and spreads them out. This allowed our scientists to express their personalities in a colorful, wearable form.

            On day five, we had our color-bration to celebrate all of our scientists who completed this week-long STEM Science Camp with us. We even had to highlight some of the best notebooks, most improved, best wearable, and other awards just because these scientists put their best work forward, especially during summer when they aren’t even in school.

            We are very pleased with the turnout of the 2025 STEM Science Camp. It was a blast! We would like to extend our greatest thanks to Dr. Lesa Rice-Jackson for putting on a wonderful and well-thought-through STEM Science Camp full of colors to fit right into our Summer Reading Program theme: Color Our World. We would also like to thank the Orangeburg Chick-fil-a for donating a special prize to each of our STEM Science Camp scientists for their hard work. Of course, the Calhoun County Library would not be able to put on programs like these without the support of our volunteers so we would like to thank them for always being there to lend us a helping hand.

A Fabulous Porkchop Productions Play

            The Calhoun County Library had a special Summer Reading Program last week and we partnered with the Calhoun County Museum.

            On Thursday, July 26, 2025, at 10:30 AM, Porkchop Productions performed for the Summer Reading Program at the Calhoun County Museum. They performed a funny, inspirational version of “The Tortoise and the Hare.” The play was a fable, which is a short story that usually involves animals and teaches a lesson, about a hare (a rabbit) that was competitive and cocky. The animals in the barn did not want to play with the hare because of that. During the play, the hare played with a few different animals and never changed its ways: always winning and then rubbing it in and bragging.

            Eventually, the tortoise challenged the hare to a race. The hare, of course, laughed but eventually agreed. The race was off and the hare was so much faster than the slow tortoise that he decided to take a nap. Due to not having an alarm or someone to wake him up, the hare slept longer than he intended and almost missed the slow tortoise crossing the finish line before him. This taught the hare that you can’t expect everything to go your way and win all the time, but you have to be happy for others when they win and you can’t be a sore loser.

            Over 150 people went to the Calhoun County Museum to watch the Calhoun County Library’s Summer Reading Program with Porkchop Productions. This was a fantastic turnout and we love that everyone was able to enjoy this fantastic performance!

            This project is made possible by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the South Carolina State Library.

            Also, remember, slow and steady wins the race.

Dancing Marionette Puppets for Summer Reading Program

            The Calhoun County Library had a visit from the Columbia Marionette Theatre for the Summer Reading Program the second week of June.

            The Columbia Marionette Theatre visited a group of over 120 people on Thursday, June 12, 2025, at 10:30 AM for our Summer Reading Program. If you don’t know what a marionette puppet is, it is a puppet that works using strings attached to numerous parts of them, like the hands and feet. We loved watching them perform with their beautiful puppets for a wonderful rendition of The Colorful World of Anansi the Spider. They had so many puppets that followed Anansi through its journey trying to get stories for the land. We don’t want to ruin the ending of the story for the Columbia Marionette Theatre, but we will give you a hint that you may be able to find books about Anansi at the library.

            The Summer Reading Program is completely free to attend and enjoy. We would like to thank everyone who came and volunteered. This project is made possible by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the South Carolina State Library.

It’s time for STEM Science Camp at the Library!

            The Calhoun County Library is getting ready for their annual STEM Science Camp with Dr. Lesa Rice-Jackson next week. Call the library to register for this free camp today!

Science Camp takes place every day,  Monday, June 23, 2025 through Friday, June 27, 2025. This program will be from 11:45 AM - 1 PM. This way, your child will not miss the Summer Reading Program at the Calhoun County Museum for Porkchop Productions from 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM and will not miss the beginning of the STEM Science Camp day. The theme this year is All About Colors which means kids will be making color wheels, tie dye hats, color solutions, and more! So, you do not want your kids or grandkids to miss this week of educational FUN!

You must register your child, who must be between ages 8 - 14, to attend this event due to limited space. To register, please visit the library or call us at 803-874-3389. We look forward to a great STEM Science Camp with a full class.

Successful Color Run and Summer Reading Program Registration

            The Calhoun County Library held their Summer Reading Program Kickoff last week with a Color Run at the Calhoun County Sports Complex.

            On Thursday, June 5, 2025, from 10:30 AM - 12:30 AM, we had around 225 children and adults of all ages run through clouds of color. This was a celebration to begin our Summer Reading Program. This year’s theme is Color Our World since books hold so many possibilities and color our world in so many ways. Our Color Run was held at the new Calhoun County Sports Complex where we set up a track with a bright colored obstacle course including a balance beam, stepping stones, a ball bounce, and so much more. Between these obstacles, we had stations full of blue, yellow, green, and pink powder that were safely thrown to turn white T-shirts into multi-colored ones. The library provided white shirts and colorful sunglasses while supplies lasted to make sure everyone had a great time! We also kept everyone cool with the Calhoun County Fire Department spraying their firehose and Randolph’s Italian Ice providing delicious treats.

            Registration for the Summer Reading Program is now open as well. If you have not registered yourself or your child, now is the best time to do so. It’s not too late!

            You can register several ways:

                1. Go straight to the website at https://calhouncountylibrary.beanstack.com/reader365.

                2. Come into the library and look for a QR code at the circulation desk or the children’s area desk. Scan and register!

                3. Come into the library and ask a staff member to help you register!

                4. Save the QR code that is posted on our Facebook and Instagram and scan it in your photos on your phone!

            Once you are registered, start reading and log your minutes. For every 30 minutes logged, you can come into the library and receive a prize. For every 30 minutes you log, your name goes into a drawing for our grand prize. We are even getting new prizes this year, so you’ll have to wait and see what they are! The more you read, the better your chances are of winning!

            Remember, there are multiple age categories for Summer Reading because we want everyone to be included. We have Early Literacy (ages 0 - 6), Children’s (Ages 7 - 12), Teens (ages 13 - 17), and Adults (ages 18 - 109). Register for the category that best fits your needs and participate to your hearts content!

            This Color Run was completely free to attend and enjoy. We would like to thank everyone who came and volunteered, and a special thank you goes out to the Calhoun County Fire Department for their time and participation. This project is made possible by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the South Carolina State Library.

2025 Summer Reading Program Schedule

            The Calhoun County Library has a very busy schedule coming up for the Summer Reading Program so everyone mark your calendars!

Check it out below:

June 5, 2025 - Kickoff: Color Run from 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM (at the Calhoun County Sports Complex)

June 12, 2025 - Columbia Marionette Theatre at 10:30 AM

June 19, 2025 - Closed for Juneteenth

June 26, 2025 - Porkchop Production at 10:30 AM (at the Calhoun County Museum)

July 3, 2025 - No Program

July 10, 2025 - Tim Sonefelt at 10:30 AM

July 17, 2025 - Critter Keeper at 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM

July 24, 2025 - Paint Party at 10:30 AM

July 31, 2025 - Finale at 10:30 AM

Be sure to attend these events and have some fun with us! All of these programs are free to attend and it is free to participate in our Summer Reading Program. Sign up at calhouncountylibrary.beanstack.org to log your minutes and win prizes.

Let’s have a great summer together during the Color Our World Summer Reading Program!

Bee-utiful Bee Field Trips

            Do you know what the biggest pollinator in the world is?

HINT:  We have them right here inside the Calhoun County Library!

The Calhoun County Library held special field trips for 4^th graders in the county to come visit our bees the last week of April. Due to spring blooming and summer around the corner, we had a lot to talk about which resulted in hour-long visits for the students. They rotated through four stations, each for 15 minutes, and they danced, sang, crafted, and learned so much about bees.

1^st Station: Each group made a bee-related craft. We made bee antennae headbands and a queen bee on a stick. While doing this, we taught the bee anatomy of antennae, wings, thorax, abdomen, etc.

2^nd Station: Each group went outside to our pollinator garden located right next to the library. We learned about what colors bees are attracted to and even learned a fun fact that bees cannot see the color red. While in the garden, we held a small scavenger hunt, looking for pollinators that were “hiding” in the garden.

3^rd Station: Each group watched two videos about the Waggle Dance that honey bees do to communicate with each other. A waggle dance is what a bee does with their abdomen to let the other bees know what direction and how far to go for the best flowers and pollen. During the last video, we taught them how to do the waggle dance themselves.

4^th Station: Each group got to visit our real-life bees! We taught the students about how a beehive functions and the stages that they go through from start to finish. Beehives are where bees take the pollen to make the honey, protect the queen, and also lay eggs. Beehives are their homes. Through the clear glass on our hive, we had a sneak peek inside and the students absolutely loved it. Some were a little scared, but after they realized that the bees could not get out or harm them, they were fully engaged.

Once every group visited all four stations, we gave the students a gift. Every child got a bee book and a goodie bag with many bee-related gifts, including a honey stick, a bee bracelet, bee stickers and tattoos, and honey candy. We had so much fun celebrating our bees and introducing them to the students.

Guess what? You do not need to be in school to come visit these bees. You can have your very own field trip and see what the buzz is all about!

Color Run to Color Our World: Summer Reading Kickoff

            The Calhoun County Library is getting ready to start celebrating the Summer Reading Program this year and that means we are having a giant kickoff event!

The Summer Reading Program theme this year is: Color Our World. For our Kickoff, we are making it big. We are going to have a blast of color for our kickoff with a Color Run on Thursday, June 5, 2025, from 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM. This event will be held at the Calhoun County Sports Complex, located at 600 Chestnut Street in St. Matthews. We will have complimentary kids’ white tee shirts while supplies last, so make sure to bring your own shirt just in case. After having fun in the Color Run, cool down with some cold, FREE Randolph’s Italian Ice, while supplies last!

Mark your calendars for splatters of color for the Summer Reading Program Kickoff on June 5, 2025, at 10:30 AM! Come run or walk through clouds of reds, blues, and yellows.

This project is made possible by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the South Carolina State Library.

A Day of Purple Martin

            The Calhoun County Library had a successful, fun time at all of the Purple Martin festivities last weekend, despite the rain.

Somewhat bright and early, our Bookmobile made an appearance during the Purple Martin Parade at 10 AM. We traveled a few miles, throwing purple skittles for your enjoyment. Through little and big spurts of rain, we had a few dedicated people stand tall watching the parade and getting a sugar-filled snack.

Then, from 11 AM - 3 PM, we painted purple martins at our tent between the library and the courthouse at the Purple Martin Festival. Calhoun County High School students of Mr. Sawvell drew outlines for our painters to guide them on how to get the best angle of the beautiful purple martin birds. We had many visitors who wanted to paint, grab a free book, and learn about all our programs, services, and materials. Sadly, we also ran into a few bands of rain. Practicing quick decision-making by our interns, they moved as many patrons under the tent as they could to ensure their paintings did not get ruined and then draped the rest with bright purple table cloths until the storm passed. We did not let the rain dampen our mood though!

In addition to painting purple martins, we had a very special program: the Birds of Prey Program from the Avian Conservation Center. This program focuses on history, conservation, and preservation and keeping animals safe. During the two showings we had of this event, the first at 12:30 PM and the second at 2 PM, we had live birds in the library! A Mississippi kite, northern white-faced owl, and a red-tailed hawk were in the library flying around. Each bird had an important message for us. One of them was about not littering because the red-tailed hawk came to their care facility full of BB pellets, a broken wing, and an infected eye. Now the bird only has one eye, which means they can never be released back into the wild. We even got to witness how this affected his flying because he tried to land and ended up crashing. This program is presented by The Avian Conversation Center located in Awendaw, South Carolina and we would like to thank them for such an informative and enlightening program.

While all of this was happening, the Friends of the Calhoun County Library were having a fantastic book sale where everything was only 50 cents! This included books, puzzles, and movies. We had many browsers and customers who purchased a lot of materials. Be on the lookout for more information about our next big Friends Book Sale coming soon!

Thank you to everyone who watched us in the parade and stopped by the library or our tent for some fun. This is another successful, yet rainy, Purple Martin Parade and Festival in the books!

Little Purple Martin, West Rucker

Librarians at a Career Fair

            The Calhoun County Library was invited to celebrate two career fairs last week. Most people think that working in a library means reading and organizing books all day, but local students learned what really goes on at the library.

On Thursday, April 17, 2025, St. Matthews K - 8 and Sandy Run K - 8 held Career Fairs for their classes. The Calhoun County Library was invited to participate and during these two events, we informed the students of what it’s like to work at a library and what the library has to offer to the public. Students learned about items that circulate (or are checked out) like books, Wonderbooks, Playaways, Launchpads, movies, graphic novels, and even Nintendo Switch games. We showed them that we have resources for them for both school and entertainment such as DISCUS and Magic Desktop for kids. In addition, the Calhoun County Library has a special Teen Night program for ages 12 - 17 and our Summer Reading Program is coming up soon. We gave those students an early look into what we have in store for this summer. The Summer Reading Program is for all ages! Students learned how we plan for events and programs, what programs are upcoming, and how to get involved with the library whether it’s through attending events or volunteering at programs.

The Calhoun County Library has materials to check out, but we have so much more to offer including classes, assistance, services, contacts, and information. During this event, the students learned all about being a librarian and we enjoyed every minute of it.

Purple Birdies at the Library

            The Calhoun County Library is going to be very busy at the Purple Martin Parade and Festival and we invite everyone to stop by to check us out!

            Starting bright and early, the Calhoun County Library will be in the Purple Martin Parade on Saturday, April 26, 2025. Catch us in the Bookmobile throwing candies your way at 10 AM. After that, head over to the festival. There will be dozens of vendors ranging from foods to services to arts. As a matter of fact, we will be doing some artsy fun! Between the library and the courthouse, we will be painting purple martins. For free! This will be from 11 AM - 2 PM. Then we are having a very special program called Birds of Prey. This program is all about conservation and history. Live animals will be in the library for two shows at 12:30 PM and 2 PM. It is also free! During the Purple Martin Festival, the Friends of the Calhoun County Library will be having a book sale in the library. Come buy a book or movie to show your support.

            Make sure to stop by the library to have a great day of fun with us during the Purple Martin festivities!

A Very Special Book Club Schedule

The Calhoun County Library has their very own book club every month and the books for 2025 have been chosen. There is a mix of genres so there is something for everyone.

Take a gander at the below schedule for the Calhoun County Library Book Club:

April 17, 2025 – The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

May 15, 2025 – Go As a River by Shelley Read

June 26, 2025 – The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak

July 17, 2025 – The Dead Don’t Dance by Charles Martin

August 21, 2025 – Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann

September 18, 2025 – The Women by Kristin Hannah

October 16, 2025 – Spare by Prince Harry

November 20, 2025 – The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyers

December 18, 2025 – Reader’s Choice of a Christmas Book and Cookie Exchange

Join us on the third Thursday of every month, except for June, at 1 PM to discuss these books with a very active reading group. We get copies of the books in the beginning of the month so if you would like to join, grab a book for the respective month and give it a deep read. We love having a varying group of opinions and questions. Be sure to clear your schedule, pick up the book of the month, and join us for Book Club!

Growing with Peter Rabbit

            Spring is here and everything is in bloom. To stay healthy, busy, and get growing, the Calhoun County Library hosted Grow with Me at the end of March.

On Saturday, March 29, 2025, we had around 200 people come through the doors from 10 AM - 12 PM for Grow with Me. We built a homemade pine cone birdfeeder, planted a windowsill herb garden, made a “Hairy Harry” plant craft, and learned about the parts of a flower. We even had a cute little petting area complete with a little white bunny named Daisy, two baby ducks, and two baby turkeys. Children enjoyed feeling how soft they were and listening to the chirps and squeaks!

So many children had their faces painted; we saw everything from a butterfly to a tiger! One of the best experiences of Grow with Me was planting a tomato plant! Each child got a big pot, filled it with soil, and picked a tomato plant. We helped them break up the roots, place the tomato plant in the pot, pat down all the top soil, and water it. Of course, we had to give information about how to care for this plant so that each child has the joy of being able to pick off a tomato plant they grew themselves!

There was a special appearance during Grow with Me too: Peter Rabbit came hopping down the bunny trail to take pictures with everyone to celebrate the changing season! We had healthy snacks and refreshments available during the event, supporting heart-healthy meat and fruits. In addition to all of the plants, we also gave out books to all of the children to keep learning about growing. We hope to see pictures of the kids with the Peter Rabbit and all the plants in bloom from Grow with Me at the Calhoun County Library.