Week Calendar

A representative from All Faiths Food Bank will be available to help with your SNAP application. 

Appointments are preferred but not required. 

Enjoy special uninterrupted play time with your child in our drop-in FREE Partners In Play® (PIP) parenting education groups.

Join us for storytime! Stories, rhymes, songs, and simple crafts for little ones and their special grownup. 

Join us for songs, rhymes, play, and of course great stories! Engage kids in visual literacy, language development, and social skills in a fun class presented by our Youth Services team.

Join us on Mondays of the month for adult coloring!  We supply the coloring pages and the pencils. Snacks will be provided by the Friends of the Gulf Gate Library. Hope to see you there.

Join us for a guided acrylic painting class! No materials or experience required. Make sure to wear your painting clothing and bring your creativity and good vibes! In this session we'll be painting a mountain landscape.

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy a special uninterrupted playtime with your child in our FREE Partners in Play® (PIP) groups. Meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how play and learning go hand-in-hand.

Fun To Be Fit Kids is a music and movement program for children and their caregivers to attend together.

What time is it? It's library time! Join us for stories, songs and rhymes, fun activities, and a craft. Best for ages 0-5, but the whole family is welcome!

Danielle Valery of the Memory Disorder Clinic of Sarasota Memorial Hospital will help us gain a better understanding of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, including common symptoms, causes, and progressive stages.

Quirky Mahjong! Whether you're an experienced play or a newcomer to this tile-based game of luck and strategy, we welcome you to join this friendly group! 

Join us and learn how to Sew a  Casserole Carrier.

All materials will be provided. Ages 13 and up.

Must Know How to Sew. 

Registration is Required

Join Sarasota Extension Services Master Gardeners for questions pertaining to Florida-friendly gardening, composting, and identifying insects.

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy special play time with your child, meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how Forty Carrots Family Center can help you enjoy parenting even more.

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy special play time with your child, meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how Forty Carrots Family Center can help you enjoy parenting even more.

Join us at the Fruitville Library with your knit/crochet projects. All ages and skills are welcome. Supplies and knowledgeable members are on hand to help anyone interested in learning to knit or crochet. 

Preschoolers, kindergarteners, and their families can enjoy loosely structured play with a variety of rotating toys and activities in our Story Time Room.

Children ages 2-8 and their caregivers are invited for Wednesday morning free-play time, with an assortment of toys and props to inspire the young imagination! Drop-in anytime between 10:30am and 11:30am.

Professor Universe is a painter who often looks at the stars. However, after wishing upon one - he gets abducted by an alien, who steals his painting! 

Do you need access to a sewing machine for practice? Or do you need help with a sewing or mending project? This is an open lab for adults with basic sewing machine experience. 

Come and socialize with fellow knitting, crocheting and sewing enthusiasts! All levels welcome. Bring your current project to work on.

Stumped by technology? Your technology questions can be answered through an in-person appointment with one of our Tech Navigators. Tech Navigators are library staff members ready to assist you with technology skills.

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy a special uninterrupted playtime with your child in our FREE Partners in Play® (PIP) groups. Meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how play and learning go hand-in-hand.

Little ones and their special grown-ups are welcome to learn and practice yoga with Sarah of Venice Kids' Yoga. 

For infants to five years, attending with caregiver. The story time includes simple stories, nursery rhymes, songs, fingerplays, and crafts. Space is limited. Free tickets are available at the youth desk beginning at 10 a.m.

Join world traveler, Jane Mahler, for a trip to two scenic locations in South America!

This program is a unique and sustainable way to explore your creativity and imagination.

Every baby can be a library baby!

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy special play time with your child, meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how Forty Carrots Family Center can help you enjoy parenting even more.

Join us to learn how to make your own hand-rolled beeswax candles using all-natural materials. This un-bee-lievably fun craft is perfect for gifting or for keeps! No experience necessary. 

Join us select Fridays, June - August, to work on a colorful craft! Each session offers something new.

June 13: Cardboard Tube Cactus

June 27: Rock Photo Holders

July 25:  Clay Garden

August 8: Junk Necklaces

Join our Canva 101 class and learn how to create stunning graphics, presentations, and social media posts with ease!

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Every Second Sunday the Sarasota Art Museum offers a free, community day where visitors can not only see exhibits but also participate in family friendly art classes! Come see the libraries at our information table and grab a craft to work on!

Get assistance from experienced and knowledgeable volunteers

Bring your questions

Join a fun exercise class with a coach from Stretch and Grow of Sarasota. Recommended for ages 3-6; all ages welcome in the room as needed.

Space is limited. Tickets are available at the youth desk from 10:45 a.m.

Join musician Joe Licinski for a hands-on musical lesson on rhythm and beats with African drums. For ages 5-9.

Space is limited. Tickets available at the youth desk from 10:30 a.m.

Come and get assistance from experienced and knowledgeable volunteers.

Bring your questions!

Come with any recommendations and to discuss the book of the month: "Book of Longings" by Sue Monk Kidd.

Come and have some fun at our special story time where we'll connect art with early literacy with ROAR!  At this program we'll read together, make art and learn about an object in The Ringling Museum!

Little ones and their special grown-ups are welcome to learn and practice yoga with Sarah of Venice Kids' Yoga. 

Join your friends for stories, rhymes, sign language, and other activities. 

This is best suited for toddlers aged 1-3, but all ages are welcome as needed. 

Join Dr. Joel Ying in a presentation exploring the origins and evolution of storytelling.

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Join us for an educational reptile showcase and animal encounters presented by Next Level Reptiles. 

Note: This is a Registered Event. Families must register each family member individually.

Unleash your creativity and bring vibrant expression to life in Color Our World: Mixed Media & Collage Workshop!

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Enjoy special uninterrupted play time with your child in our drop-in FREE Partners In Play® (PIP) parenting education groups.

Free lunches for anyone up to age 18 will be served in the Juliano room on weekdays from 12-1pm.  

Discover how to navigate the site with ease and learn how to login and view your account, request and search for items, and other new features. 

Free lunches for anyone up to age 18 will be served in the Juliano room on weekdays from 12-1pm.  

Color your world with a variety of materials including colored pencils, glitter pens, and markers, and choose from an array of beautiful coloring sheets or doodle your own!

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy special play time with your child, meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how Forty Carrots Family Center can help you enjoy parenting even more.

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy special play time with your child, meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how Forty Carrots Family Center can help you enjoy parenting even more.

Free lunches for anyone up to age 18 will be served in the Juliano room on weekdays from 12-1pm.  

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy a special uninterrupted playtime with your child in our FREE Partners in Play® (PIP) groups. Meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how play and learning go hand-in-hand.

Free lunches for anyone up to age 18 will be served in the Juliano room on weekdays from 12-1pm.  

This 6-part workshop is designed to introduce new players to the world of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D).

For mobile babies to 5 years old. Drop in to enjoy special play time with your child, meet our friendly Parenting Educators and discover how Forty Carrots Family Center can help you enjoy parenting even more.

Free lunches for anyone up to age 18 will be served in the Juliano room on weekdays from 12-1pm.  

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Jam and learn with your teen teacher, Anni Szantosi, and her numerous instruments! This club is for music lovers who want to learn to play an instrument or find people who enjoy music. 

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Join us for "Fall Prevention 101," a dynamic and informative workshop designed to empower individuals with the knowledge and tools to reduce the risk of falls.

Get genealogy research assistance from knowledgeable and experienced volunteers.

Bring your questions!

Sewers of all levels (or new to sewing) will love creating their favorite snacks using needle and thread!

Create paintings that flow, drip, and puddle with fluid acrylic painting! Join us as local artist Sandy Koolkin guides you in making your own acrylic pour project. 

The Writer's Circle was created for writers of all types and genres. Whether you write Fiction, Poetry, Lyrics even Stand-Up Comedy; here, you will find a welcoming place via Zoom to share and if you wish to, discuss your work.

Come and decorate your very own kaleidoscope! Create your own, ever-changing, patterns of shapes and colors!

Ages 5-9

Everyone is welcome to the open-topic discussions of the Socrates Cafe.

Come and socialize with fellow knitting, crocheting and sewing enthusiasts! All levels welcome. Bring your current project to work on.

Get assistance from experienced and knowledgeable volunteers

Bring your questions

Bring your projects, patterns, and questions to Elsie Quirk Library and join the Quirky Knitters for an afternoon of knitting and crochet.  All skill levels welcome.  Registration is not required, so come on in to knit and chat!

Sarasota County Extension Services Master Gardeners are here to help folks identify plants, flowers, etc. as well as care for them.

Get expert advice on your landscaping needs.

Monk San will guide us in a peaceful meditation here at the library. No previous experience or materials required. If you have a meditation cushion or yoga mat, you are welcome to bring it with you.

Participants can bring in their own item to tie dye or use one of the items provided by the library

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Explore the world of robotics engineering and coding with this exclusive series of classes provided by Create.Solve.Lead. INC, an independent tech education organization led by local volunteers. Each class will cover a different topic.

Dive into the enchanting world of Magic: The Gathering this summer! Join us every monday afternoon from 2-4 PM for our weekly free play sessions.

Come join us Teens and Tweens for a beginning yoga class that will teach you basic yoga and breathing exercises that can be used in your everyday life. Registration required.

Join us for a fun arts and crafts hour featuring jeweled bonsai.

Stations will be set up for colorful and imaginative printing techniques involving gel plates, foam plates, and marbling. 

Please Register for Matter of Balance! You only need to sign up for the FIRST offering, this program is a series.

Stumped by technology? Your technology questions can be answered through an in-person or distance appointment with one of our Tech Navigators. Tech Navigators are library staff members ready to assist you with technology skills.

Working in teams of 2, children will be able to easily create awesome stop motion animated movies with titles, credits, and sound effects.

Want to have fun like a kid again and get some fitness in too? Try hula hooping with instructor Amy! In this class, feel groovy, have fun, and get fit as you strengthen your core with waist hooping.

Join us for a fun arts and crafts hour featuring making your own  jeweled bonsai.

Please bring gardening gloves, if possible.

Tweens and Teens can join us in painting a flowerpot and learning the basics of succulent plant care. Registration required.

Come learn the painting style of one of the great American painters of the 20th century, Alma Woodsey Thomas!

Clash of Steel: The Revival of Historical European Sword Fighting Steel Ring Academy is a Historical European Martial Arts school with a primary focus on German longsword fighting in the KDF tradition.

An Archaeological History of Fishing in Florida

Presented by:

Improve your Spanish by joining the group.

For teens and adults.

A World of Color uses beads from around the world to craft a unique jewelry piece!

KIDS, START YOUR ENGINES! Build looping, twisting tracks for Hot Wheel cars, and experiment with Newton's laws of motion in this fun hands-on event that combines STEM learning with classic play.

Registration for the club is required for the first session and will then be grandfathered in to all other sessions. 

Come get your face painted by professional artist Marisa Lara!

Meet other coders and work on your coding project. Share with others and troubleshoot as a team. Led by Levi Szantosi whose top picks are Python, Scratch, and Unreal Engine.

Use stained glass pieces to create a beautiful 5X7 colorful inspirational stained glass mosaic collage. Color Your World with beautiful dancing color patterns as the sunlight shines through your Collage!

Join us in painting relaxing and geometric Mandala patterns hosted by Tess Craig!

Get ready for an epic night of fun and games at our Game Night.

Wii U, virtual reality, and more! 

Meets 3:30-5:30 p.m. on the 2st Monday of the month except holidays.