March 18, 2020 at 4:53 p.m.
Free resources
JCPL offering curbside pick-up; internet provides possibilities
Free resources
Schools are closed.
Events are canceled.
But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do.
With healthcare and government officials recommending Americans stay home as much as possible in order to slow the spread of coronavirus, there are still a lot of options for entertainment.
They go well beyond Netflix and Hulu. And they start at the library.
While local libraries are closed to the public, there is still access to some of their resources. That includes a new option being introduced today at Jay County Public Library.
Eric Hinderliter, director of Jay County Public Library (jaycpl.lib.in.us), announced Tuesday that the facility would be offering curbside pick-up.
Anyone with a library card can call the library between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. They can request titles of the materials they would like, and library staff will retrieve the items and call back when they are ready for pick-up. Then residents can drive to the library and call when they arrive, at which time staff will bring them to the vehicle.
Items available for the curbside pick-up include not only books but also music, movies, video games, board games, puzzles and other materials available at the library. Not all materials will be available, but the goal is to give patrons access to as much as possible.
Hinderliter said library staff had already discussed the possibility of curbside pick-up during the winter months and the idea came up again when considering closing the facility because of COVID-19.
“Putting it into play now seems like a no-brainer,” he added. “People are used to other locations doing it and now have no choice with restaurants, so I think it makes perfect sense for the library to do this. And when it comes down to it, our goal is to provide the best service we can to Jay County. If it means going this extra mile, that is what we are going to do. “
Those who have e-readers can also continue to get digital materials via the library’s website and the Overdrive and Hoopla services. A library card is required.
“It’s fairly user-friendly from that point,” Hinderliter said.
The Jay County and Dunkirk (dunkirk.lib.in.us) libraries also offer access to INSPIRE, Indiana’s virtual library, via their websites.
Fort Recovery Public Library similarly has various digital resources available. It also uses Overdrive (and the Libby app) and a library card also offers access to the Ohio digital library, which includes videos of children’s books being read.
The staff has also included a list of databases on the library website.
“There are databases for how to fix a car, hobbies and crafts … there’s one for World Book (encyclopedia), military records … and they’re all vetted websites that are databases provided by the state library,” said librarian Toni LeFevre. “There are sites for kids, sites for adults, all kinds of things that are available through the library.”
Anyone with questions can reach the library via Messenger on its Facebook page.
In addition to libraries there are seemingly endless resources for education and entertainment on the internet:
Culture
Berlin Philharmonic — The orchestra is offering 30 days of free access for those who redeem a voucher by March 31. It offers free access to a vast array of classical music concerts. digitalconcerthall.com
Met Opera — As long as the Met is closed, encore presentations of its “Live in HD” series will be made available at 7:30 p.m. each night. metopera.org
The Louvre — Art lovers. Check out one of the world’s most famous museums without leaving your couch. louvre.fr/en/visites-en-ligne
Local/Indiana
Charley’s Aunt — Portland-based Harmony Players will live stream its performance of the comedy play at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Just “like” their page on Facebook (facebook.com/DinnerTheatreExperience) to be notified when the live stream begins.
Children’s Museum of Indianapolis — Hosting “Museum and Home” videos on its social media pages.
Eskenazi Museum of Art — Check out the museum’s displays, including Ansel Adams photographs and expressionist sculptures.
Nature
National Geographic Kids — National Geographic, customized for children. It includes humorous and educational videos, games and information about animals from all over the planet. kids.nationalgeographic.com
Cincinnati Zoo — Is hosting “Home Safari” sessions at 3 p.m. daily on its Facebook page. Videos will also be posted to the zoo’s YouTube channel.
National Park Service — Tons of videos and photos from our national parks. Scroll to the bottom of the main page and click “photos, videos, webcams and more” to open the gateway of the most picturesque places the United States has to offer. nps.gov
Podcasts (children)
Stories Podcast — The title gives it away. This is a podcast featuring bedtime stories for children of all ages. storiespodcast.com
Brains On — Host Molly Bloom is joined by a different child co-host each week to answer questions about the world. brainson.org
But Why — Kids ask questions and But Why provides the answers on topics from nature to words to the end of the world. bit.ly/NPRButWhy
Podcasts (teens and adults)
TED Talks — The TED stands for technology, entertainment and design. Podcasts include the TED Radio Hour, which is aired on NPR, and TED Talks Daily, some of which clock in at less than 10 minutes. ted.com/podcasts
Good Job Brain — There haven’t been new episodes in several years, but there is a catalog of more than 200 of this silly trivia offering. goodjobbrain.com
99 Percent Invisible — Hosted by Roman Mars, the show looks at “the unnoticed architecture and design that shape our world." 99percentinvisible.org
Tours
Access Mars — Want to get out of this world? NASA, Google and WebVR team up to provide a look at the surface of Mars as recorded by NASA’s Curiosity rover. accessmars.withgoogle.com
The Vatican — Travel to Italy is restricted, but not from your computer screen. Check out the Sistine Chapel and other Vatican sites. http://bit.ly/VaticanVirtualTours
Great Wall of China — It’s said that the Great Wall can be seen from space. You can take a tour from your living room. thechinaguide.com/destination/great-wall-of-china
YouTube
Brave Wilderness — Nathaniel "Coyote" Peterson hosts videos from “Blue Wilderness,” a series featuring ocean life, to those in which he allows himself to be stung by various creatures. youtube.com/user/BreakingTrail
SciShow — Answers to various scientific questions. Some of the recent videos approach coronavirus-related topics, but there are plenty of others as well. youtube.com/user/scishow
The Smithsonian — Art and design. Science and technology. History and culture. The Smithsonian offers a little bit of everything. youtube.com/user/SmithsonianVideos
Events are canceled.
But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do.
With healthcare and government officials recommending Americans stay home as much as possible in order to slow the spread of coronavirus, there are still a lot of options for entertainment.
They go well beyond Netflix and Hulu. And they start at the library.
While local libraries are closed to the public, there is still access to some of their resources. That includes a new option being introduced today at Jay County Public Library.
Eric Hinderliter, director of Jay County Public Library (jaycpl.lib.in.us), announced Tuesday that the facility would be offering curbside pick-up.
Anyone with a library card can call the library between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. They can request titles of the materials they would like, and library staff will retrieve the items and call back when they are ready for pick-up. Then residents can drive to the library and call when they arrive, at which time staff will bring them to the vehicle.
Items available for the curbside pick-up include not only books but also music, movies, video games, board games, puzzles and other materials available at the library. Not all materials will be available, but the goal is to give patrons access to as much as possible.
Hinderliter said library staff had already discussed the possibility of curbside pick-up during the winter months and the idea came up again when considering closing the facility because of COVID-19.
“Putting it into play now seems like a no-brainer,” he added. “People are used to other locations doing it and now have no choice with restaurants, so I think it makes perfect sense for the library to do this. And when it comes down to it, our goal is to provide the best service we can to Jay County. If it means going this extra mile, that is what we are going to do. “
Those who have e-readers can also continue to get digital materials via the library’s website and the Overdrive and Hoopla services. A library card is required.
“It’s fairly user-friendly from that point,” Hinderliter said.
The Jay County and Dunkirk (dunkirk.lib.in.us) libraries also offer access to INSPIRE, Indiana’s virtual library, via their websites.
Fort Recovery Public Library similarly has various digital resources available. It also uses Overdrive (and the Libby app) and a library card also offers access to the Ohio digital library, which includes videos of children’s books being read.
The staff has also included a list of databases on the library website.
“There are databases for how to fix a car, hobbies and crafts … there’s one for World Book (encyclopedia), military records … and they’re all vetted websites that are databases provided by the state library,” said librarian Toni LeFevre. “There are sites for kids, sites for adults, all kinds of things that are available through the library.”
Anyone with questions can reach the library via Messenger on its Facebook page.
In addition to libraries there are seemingly endless resources for education and entertainment on the internet:
Culture
Berlin Philharmonic — The orchestra is offering 30 days of free access for those who redeem a voucher by March 31. It offers free access to a vast array of classical music concerts. digitalconcerthall.com
Met Opera — As long as the Met is closed, encore presentations of its “Live in HD” series will be made available at 7:30 p.m. each night. metopera.org
The Louvre — Art lovers. Check out one of the world’s most famous museums without leaving your couch. louvre.fr/en/visites-en-ligne
Local/Indiana
Charley’s Aunt — Portland-based Harmony Players will live stream its performance of the comedy play at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Just “like” their page on Facebook (facebook.com/DinnerTheatreExperience) to be notified when the live stream begins.
Children’s Museum of Indianapolis — Hosting “Museum and Home” videos on its social media pages.
Eskenazi Museum of Art — Check out the museum’s displays, including Ansel Adams photographs and expressionist sculptures.
Nature
National Geographic Kids — National Geographic, customized for children. It includes humorous and educational videos, games and information about animals from all over the planet. kids.nationalgeographic.com
Cincinnati Zoo — Is hosting “Home Safari” sessions at 3 p.m. daily on its Facebook page. Videos will also be posted to the zoo’s YouTube channel.
National Park Service — Tons of videos and photos from our national parks. Scroll to the bottom of the main page and click “photos, videos, webcams and more” to open the gateway of the most picturesque places the United States has to offer. nps.gov
Podcasts (children)
Stories Podcast — The title gives it away. This is a podcast featuring bedtime stories for children of all ages. storiespodcast.com
Brains On — Host Molly Bloom is joined by a different child co-host each week to answer questions about the world. brainson.org
But Why — Kids ask questions and But Why provides the answers on topics from nature to words to the end of the world. bit.ly/NPRButWhy
Podcasts (teens and adults)
TED Talks — The TED stands for technology, entertainment and design. Podcasts include the TED Radio Hour, which is aired on NPR, and TED Talks Daily, some of which clock in at less than 10 minutes. ted.com/podcasts
Good Job Brain — There haven’t been new episodes in several years, but there is a catalog of more than 200 of this silly trivia offering. goodjobbrain.com
99 Percent Invisible — Hosted by Roman Mars, the show looks at “the unnoticed architecture and design that shape our world." 99percentinvisible.org
Tours
Access Mars — Want to get out of this world? NASA, Google and WebVR team up to provide a look at the surface of Mars as recorded by NASA’s Curiosity rover. accessmars.withgoogle.com
The Vatican — Travel to Italy is restricted, but not from your computer screen. Check out the Sistine Chapel and other Vatican sites. http://bit.ly/VaticanVirtualTours
Great Wall of China — It’s said that the Great Wall can be seen from space. You can take a tour from your living room. thechinaguide.com/destination/great-wall-of-china
YouTube
Brave Wilderness — Nathaniel "Coyote" Peterson hosts videos from “Blue Wilderness,” a series featuring ocean life, to those in which he allows himself to be stung by various creatures. youtube.com/user/BreakingTrail
SciShow — Answers to various scientific questions. Some of the recent videos approach coronavirus-related topics, but there are plenty of others as well. youtube.com/user/scishow
The Smithsonian — Art and design. Science and technology. History and culture. The Smithsonian offers a little bit of everything. youtube.com/user/SmithsonianVideos
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