You are here

Find a program or event

Some in-branch programs require registration with your library card. Please log in with your library account or follow this link to apply for a card online. You can also apply for a card in person at any of our 33 locations.

  • Monday Feb 24, 2025 at 4:30pm (series runs until May 26, 2025)

    For Ages 10-18.  Drop-in on Mondays between 4:30 and 6 pm for Youth Scrabble - an incredibly exciting activity that provides a challenging and stimulating experience for players. The game requires players to use their vocabulary, strategy, and critical thinking skills to create and place words on the board while competing against others. Whether you're an experienced player or a beginner, the fast-paced and competitive nature of the game is sure to keep you engaged and focused. Additionally, the social aspect of Club Scrabble is not to be underestimated, as players can meet new people, share their love of the game, and have fun together. Overall, Youth Scrabble is an exhilarating and satisfying pastime that offers mental stimulation, social interaction, and a lot of excitement.  

    This program is led by Heidi Robertson, Director of the Ottawa Scrabble Club

    Note:  There is no program on February 17 (Family Day), April 21 (Easter Monday) and May 19 (Victoria Day)

  • Scissors, glue, and paper are laid out over a grey background.
    Monday Feb 24, 2025 at 6:00pm (series runs until May 26, 2025)

    Join us at the Rideau library for a Zine workshop! Learn to design, make and publish your own mini magazines. At the end of the workshop, you can make copies of your completed Zine to share with your friends. All supplies will be provided. Bring any writing, poems, or ideas you may want to include in your Zine.

    Already a Zinester? Bring some copies for our swap box!

    Rejoignez-nous à la succursale Rideau pour un atelier Zine! Apprenez à concevoir, fabriquer et publier vos propres revues. À la fin de l'atelier, vous pourriez faire des copies de votre Zine complété à partager avec vos amis.Toutes les fournitures seront fournies. Apportez vos écrits, poèmes ou idées que vous souhaitez inclure dans votre Zine.

    Vous êtes déjà un Zinester ? Apportez des copies pour notre boîte d'échange !

  • colored pencil crayons in a cup and coloring sheets
    Monday Feb 24, 2025 at 6:30pm (series runs until Apr 28, 2025)

    Bring your craft, knitting or crochet project and join us for the tween crafting club!  It is a place to share advice, ideas and conversations with fellow enthusiasts.  Bring your friends and make new ones who also love crafting!   Drop-in. Ages 8-13

  • Board Game Cover
    Monday Feb 24, 2025 at 7:45pm

    For ages 11-15.  Join us for a cross-country train adventure.  Players collect cards of various types of train cars that enable them to claim railway routes connecting cities throughout North America. The longer the routes, the more points they earn.  Additional points come to those who can fulfill their Destination Tickets by connecting two distant cities, and to the player who builds the longest continuous railway.  So climb aboard for some railroading fun and adventure.  You've got a ticket to ride!  Snacks will be served.  Registration required.

  • Wednesday Feb 26, 2025 at 6:30pm (series runs until Mar 26, 2025)

    Explore science through Carleton University’s popular Science Cafés. Put on by the Faculty of Science. 

    You are invited to join us for lively discussions around a scientific issue of the day. Be prepared to be informed, engaged and entertained, as our professors share their scientific discoveries and research with you. Each Café includes a 30 to 40 minute talk by a scientist followed by a moderated question and answer period.

    The Science Café series is free to attend and all are welcome!

  • Bibliothèque et Archives Canada, 395 Wellington St, Ottawa ON K1A 0N4
    Wednesday Feb 26, 2025 at 7:00pm

    Bibliothèque et Archives Canada (BAC), en collaboration avec la Bibliothèque publique d’Ottawa, vous invite à souligner la Semaine de la liberté d’expression 2025. Sensibilisant le public à la censure et à l’accès aux livres et aux magazines, la Semaine de la liberté d’expression est une campagne nationale qui rassemble les lecteurs, les auteurs, les éditeurs, les écoles, les bibliothèques, les librairies, les universités, les collèges et d’autres organisations partout au pays.



    Prenez part à une discussion enrichissante en compagnie de Mathilde Barraband, professeure à l’Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières et coprésidente de la Chaire de recherche France-Québec sur les enjeux contemporains de la liberté d’expression. Cet échange, qui portera sur la protection de la liberté intellectuelle dans les bibliothèques, se tiendra à BAC et sera animé par Catherine Lachaîne, bibliothécaire à l’Université d’Ottawa.

    À propos

    Les bibliothèques sont les gardiennes par excellence de la liberté intellectuelle, elles préconisent l’échange d’un large éventail d’idées et d’informations. Mais, cette mission est périlleuse à plus d’un égard… Toutes les idées et informations ont-elles leur place dans les bibliothèques? Tout le monde doit-il avoir accès à tout? Mathilde Barraband propose de réfléchir au rôle central que jouent les bibliothèques dans nos démocraties et à l’enjeu complexe qu’est celui de la sélection et de l’élagage de leurs fonds.
     

    Renseignements sur l’événement

    Date : Mercredi 26 février 2025

    Heure : De 19 h à 20 h (heure de l’Est)

    Entrée : Gratuite; inscrivez-vous pour réserver votre place

    Lieu : Bibliothèque et Archives Canada, 395 Wellington St, Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 

    Sensibilisant le public à la censure et à l’accès aux livres et aux magazines, la Semaine de la liberté d’expression est une campagne nationale qui rassemble les lecteurs, les auteurs, les éditeurs, les écoles, les bibliothèques, les librairies, les universités, les collèges et d’autres organisations partout au pays.

  • Thursday Feb 27, 2025 at 6:30pm (series runs until Mar 27, 2025)

    Are you looking for a job? Come learn all the necessary skills to do so at the Elmvale Acres Branch of the Ottawa Public Library, with a program offered in conjunction with CCI Ottawa.

    Some of the topics that will be covered include: 

    •résumé & cover letter writing

    •job search and networking 

    •interview preparation (hard and soft skills)

  • RBC Foundry at Bayview Yards, 7 Bayview Station Road Ottawa, ON K1Y 2C5
    Thursday Feb 27, 2025 at 7:00pm

    This Freedom to Read Week, join public historian and comics librarian Amie Wright for an evening discussion of the unexpected history of comic book censorship in the United States and Canada. Historical restrictions were very real and impacted current understandings around comics and graphic novels which, while popular, remain some of the most censored and misunderstood titles in schools and libraries.

    Event offered in partnership with Library and Archives Canada.

    Bio:

    Amie Wright, MA MLIS (she/her) is a Public Historian and Comics Librarian. Amie is currently completing her PhD in History at Carleton University researching the 1950s moral panic around children’s comic book reading and serves as contract instructor at both Carleton’s Department of History and McGill’s Graduate School of Information Studies. Amie is the former Manager of School Outreach / MyLibraryNYC at the New York Public Library (NYPL) and the former inaugural President of the American Library Association (ALA) Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table (GNCRT). Amie has worked since 2013 to create professional development opportunities for schools and libraries on comics including partnering with New York and San Diego Comic Con, and the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF). You can find some of Amie’s writing on comics, history, libraries, and education in Canadian Literature, The Teaching Librarian, Booklist, and American Libraries.

    Date: Thurs, Feb 27, 2025

    Time: 7 to 8pm

    Location: RBC Foundry at Bayview Yards, 7 Bayview Station Road Ottawa, ON K1Y 2C5

    Visit the Bayview Yards website for information about parking and transit options.

    Language: English

    Ages: Young adult and adult

    Admission: Free admission; register to save your spot

  • Friday Feb 28, 2025 at 4:30pm (series runs until Jun 06, 2025)

    Ages 13-18

    Find community, be yourself, and come hang out with other teens in this monthly drop-in social. Chat, listen to music, or participate in the optional activity. 

    The optional activity changes every month and could include board games, origami, making friendship bracelets, or making zines.

    Dates: January 31, February 28, March 14, April 11, May 9th, June 6th

  • Saturday Mar 1, 2025 at 1:30pm (series runs until Mar 10, 2025)

    Join a band of adventurers as they set out from the seaside town of Dragonsbourne. This is part-5 of a continuing adventure that takes place in the location of Dragonsbourne, and its surroundings. This game is intended for teens who have played D&D before, but beginners are also welcome. Please bring a 3rd level character and dice. Pre-made characters and dice will be provided for those who do not have their own. This game is intended for ages 13-17.