Welcome to the Children’s Room!
We provide materials, programs, services, and other resources to kids in grades K-5, as well as their families, caregivers, and teachers! Children 9 years old and under must be accompanied by a parent, guardian, or caregiver over the age of 13, at all times and must remain on the same floor as their parent, guardian, or caregiver. See our full Safe Child Policy to learn more.
Our programs run seasonally for 8-12 weeks, with short breaks in between. During our program seasons, we offer afterschool and weekend programs, including:
- LEGO Club: Ages 6-11 years can drop in to free build with LEGOs and put their creations on display!
- Dungeons & Dragons for Kids: Ages 8-11 and 5-8 years can sign up to learn to play D&D, the most popular collaborative storytelling game!
- Paws & Tales with Monty: Ages 6-11 years can sign up to read to therapy dog Monty in a private 15-minute session!
- Art Cart: Ages 5-8 years can drop in to work on a different craft or art project each week!
- Are You Smarter Than Your Library?: Ages 5-11 years can sign up and see if they can get a higher trivia score than MHL staff!
- Chapter Champs: Ages 8-9 years can sign up for a monthly book group!
- Full STEAM Ahead: Ages 5-8 years can sign up for an activity based on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math!
- Pokémon Club: Ages 5-18 years can drop in to trade or battle with their cards!
- Quiz Quest: Ages 6-11 years can drop in to find hidden trivia questions in the Children’s Room and win prizes!
- Saturday Science: Ages 5-8 years can sign up for an activity focused on science!
You can check out all upcoming programs for kids on our website’s events calendar!
All Andover residents, town employees, and public school teachers and students are able to get a library card at MHL! There is no minimum age for library cards at MHL. Kids in grades 5 and under can get a library card with a parent or guardian present.
Residents of other cities and towns in Massachusetts may use their hometown library card in our system or apply for a Merrimack Valley Library Consortium (MVLC) card. Andover private school students who live out of state may apply for a Merrimack Valley Library Consortium Card. Learn more about library cards and borrowing items.
Your Memorial Hall library card gives you access to our extensive collection of digital resources. Enjoy ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, news, and more, all from the comfort of your own home.
BookFlix
Build a love of reading and learning with paired fiction and nonfiction. For grades preK-3. Scholastic BookFlix delivers high-interest, interactive content to engage young readers.
Britannica Library: Children
A comprehensive reference resource with a dictionary, thesaurus, multimedia, and primary source materials included.
Kanopy Kids
Kanopy Kids is Kanopy‘s curated collection of content for children, with a focus on ages 2-8. While in the Kanopy Kids section, you will see only content that is age-appropriate. Using favorite characters from Sesame Street, PBS Kids, Weston Woods, and more, this collection of videos inspire empathy, critical thinking, and self esteem in young viewers. The videos range from entertainment to early literacy to STEM education and foreign language learning.
Libby
Use Libby to access eBooks, audiobooks, and magazines in the MVLC OverDrive collection.
NoveList K-8 Plus
NoveList K-8 Plus is a trusted source of read-alike recommendations specifically for younger readers. It helps kids find books that are just right for their reading level and interests. Recommendations and lists are created by librarians, teachers, school media specialists, and book experts. Includes reviews, award-winner lists, and resources for parents and educators.
PebbleGo
PebbleGo is a curricular content hub specifically designed for K-3 students. Contains hundreds of articles, activities, and videos and supports early literacy with read-aloud audio. The current subscription includes the Animals and Biographies modules.
TumbleBookLibrary
TumbleBookLibrary is an online collection of animated, talking picture books which teach kids the joy of reading in a format they’ll love.
Beth, Coordinator of Children’s Services (she/her)
Beth has been working in libraries for a long time, but only 27 years at MHL! She likes to read historical fiction, books about parenting, and biographies. Beth likes to garden, listen to music and binge watch crime shows with her husband. She has two rescue cats and two rescue dogs!
Heather, Library Assistant II (she/her)
Heather has worked in libraries for over 10 years. She likes to read in all formats, and particularly likes the mystery and biography genres.
Heather grows tropical houseplants, and one of her plants is both green and purple, which are her two favorite colors. Heather loves watching the Boston Fleet (the women’s professional hockey team) and crafting gifts and decorations!
Laura, Children’s Librarian (she/her)
Laura grew up in Andover and has been coming to MHL since she was a little kid! She enjoys reading memoirs and novels set in foreign countries as well as bedtime stories to her kids. Controversially, she prefers to read on her Kindle. In her free time, she enjoys art, theater and hanging out with her family. Her favorite ice cream flavor is Moose Tracks.
Olly, Children’s Librarian (they/them)
Olly has been working in libraries for several years. They like reading fantasy books and graphic novels about magic and dragons, and nonfiction books that can teach them something new! Olly likes to play video games, hang out with their cat, and talk about Dungeons & Dragons!