Ongoing

Public Art Program
Storytime Program
Film Schedule
Upcoming Classes
For Professionals

Upcoming Events
The following programs do not require registration unless otherwise specified.

Open Mondays in July and August*
*Museum will be closed July 16th for an Educator event.

In The Art Studio
The Shape Game
April 18 - May 30, 2012
Free with Museum Admission
Many shapes can be found by looking closely at Eric Carle’s animal illustrations. Some geometric shapes are easy to recognize and others don’t even have a name! Inspired by a set of curvy, wobbly, and jagged paper shapes, create your own animal, real or imaginary.

In The Auditorium
Berkshire Theatre Festival Presents Way out West
May 19 - May 20, 2012
1:00 pm and 3:00 pm
$6.50 (Members $5.50); Museum Admission extra
Cozy up to the campfire, buckaroos, for inspired tall tales, cowboy chronicles, and Native American mythology on a hilarious journey back to the wild and wacky West.

Tickets may be purchased in advance at the Museum Admissions Desk or by calling (413) 658-1126

Professional Development Workshop
Reading Pictures: Interpreting Picture Book Art with Children
May 23, 2012
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
$40 (Members $35)
(3 PDPs) Using the Whole Book Approach as our foundation, we will explore unique and varied ways that picture books create a sense of motion, time, perspective, and the imaginary, and in doing so develop children’s visual literacy. As we evaluate how the artwork of picture books can create meaning, we will discuss how to engage students interactively and critically with these books in a manner that will encourage them to interpret stories on their own terms, to find pleasure in looking at art, and to make connections between the books that they read and the world that they live in.
Instructor: Emily Prabhaker

Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

At The Museum Shop
Characters on Parade
Meet Maisy!
May 26 - May 27, 2012
2:30 pm
Free with Museum Admission
Join us at the Museum Shop and meet Maisy! Don’t forget to bring your camera. Please note that these are life-size costumed characters and may be scary for young children.

In The Art Studio
Special Sunday: Celebrating Maisy!
May 27, 2012
1:00 - 4:00 pm
Free with Museum Admission
Join us one Sunday of each month for an additional art activity in the back of the Art Studio. Always a surprise and sometimes messy, so bring a smock!

In The Art Studio
Lift, Peek, and Pull
May 31 - July 10, 2012
Free with Museum Admission
Many of Lucy Cousins’s Maisy books have special pages with flaps, tabs, and pockets; hiding characters and objects for you to find. Learn a few new paper construction tricks and create your very own story book filled with surprises using scissors, tape and glue.

At The Museum Shop
Characters on Parade
Meet Maisy!
June 2 - June 3, 2012
2:30 pm
Free with Museum Admission
Join us at the Museum Shop and meet Maisy! Don’t forget to bring your camera. Please note that these are life-size costumed characters and may be scary for young children.

At The Museum
CANCELLED - To be rescheduled
Talking About Words and Pictures with Author
Patricia MacLachlan
June 3, 2012
12:00 pm
Doors open for this event at 11:30 am
Museum opens at 12:00 pm
Free; Museum Admission extra
Join us as we engage picture book artists and authors in conversation about their beginnings and their books.
Book signing to follow

2012 Children’s Book Festival:
Baseball Bonanza!
June 9, 2012
10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Free with Museum Admission
Join a host of authors and artists who have created some of your favorite baseball picture books for our 7th annual Children’s Book Festival in conjunction with the exhibition We Are The Ship: The History of Negro League Baseball, original paintings by award-winning artist Kadir Nelson.

The Museum will host members of the Negro League Baseball Players Association for a special program in the Auditorium. In addition, this event for art-, book-, and baseball-lovers of all ages will feature art activities, artist and author presentations and demonstrations, and book signings. Enjoy ballpark fare or bring your own picnic to enjoy in our apple orchard.

In The Art Studio
Special Sundays
June 17, 2012
1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Free with Museum Admission
Join us one Sunday of each month for an additional art activity in the back of the Art Studio. Always a surprise and sometimes messy, so bring a smock!

In The Reading Library
Music Together for Valley Families
June 21 - August 9, 2012
Thursdays, June 21 – August 9
9:30 – 10:15 am
$150, Second child $105 (Siblings under 8 months Free)
Non-refundable Registration Fee — New Families $15, Returning Families $10
Price includes 8 classes, CDs, songbook, parent guide book and DVD.

Ages Infant - 5 years with an adult
Music and movement for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and the grownups who love them.This research-based, internationally-recognized curriculum is designed to nurture musical growth in a relaxed, playful setting.
Instructor: Debbie Weyl
Space is limited; registration is required. To register contact Music Together for Valley Families at (413) 259–9400 or www.valleymusicgroup.com.

Professional Development Workshop
From The Snowy Day to the Present Day: Multicultural Picture Books
June 23, 2012
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
$40 (Members $35)
(3 PDPs) Fifty years ago, the publication of The Snowy Day helped to launch multicultural children’s literature. In this workshop, participants will learn about the evolution of multicultural picture books and the ways in which these books can teach about identity and community, as well as empathy and understanding. The session will also offer an opportunity to view and discuss the exhibition in the East Gallery, The Snowy Day and the Art of Ezra Jack Keats.
Instructor: Ramona Caponegro

Having received her Ph.D. in English from the University of Florida with a concentration in children’s and young adult literature, Dr. Caponegro is currently an assistant professor at Eastern Michigan University. She was a 2008 Trinkett Clark Intern at The Carle and we are delighted to have her return to teach this workshop.

Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

At The Museum
Eric Carle Book Signing
June 23, 2012
10:00 am
Free with Museum Admission
A limited number of tickets will be distributed the day of the event. No tickets are available in advance.
Meet Eric Carle! Please join us for this special day! Museum Members may enter from 9:00 to 9:45 am. General Public and Museum Members arriving after 9:45 am will be allowed entry at 10:00 am on a space available basis.

Plus see Picture Book Theatre’s presentation of "Slowly, Slowly, Slowly," Said the Sloth in our auditorium!

Signing guidelines:

• Limit 1 book from home and 2 books from The Carle Book Shop* per ticket holder
• No personalization
• Eric will be signing books only
• No flash photography allowed

While supplies last, receive a specially-designed Eric Carle bookplate with each Eric Carle hardcover book purchased that day in the Museum Shop (above the 3-book-per-person limit). We thank you in advance for your cooperation and look forward to seeing you at The Carle!

Click here to view our FAQ’s about the Meet Eric Carle event.

Get in early! Become a Member and enter at 9:00 am! Click here for more information. Update: You can now purchase a Membership on the 23rd to gain entry at 9:00 am for this event.

* Books from the Museum Shop may be purchased the week in advance (6/15-6/22), but a receipt must be presented for the signing.

This event is generously sponsored by People’s United Bank

In The Auditorium
Picture Book Theatre Presents:
An Adaptation of Eric Carle’s
“Slowly, Slowly, Slowly,” Said the Sloth
June 23, 2012
12:00 pm and 1:00 pm
$3; Museum admission extra
In celebration of the 10th anniversary of Eric Carle’s book and in conjunction with the exhibition in the West Gallery, Picture Book Theatre presents this charming stick puppet show. Each performance is followed by a talk-back with the puppeteers.

Tickets may be purchased in advance at the Museum Admissions Desk or by calling (413) 658-1126

Professional Development Workshop
Bookmaking and Beyond
June 28, 2012
1:00 - 5:00 pm
$50 (Members $45)
(4 PDPs) Offer your students multi-sensory opportunities to connect visual and verbal literacy. This workshop explores how bookmaking can be a vehicle for imagining creative and innovative ways to communicate ideas. Through work with professional and everyday materials participants are introduced to the origins of bookmaking and fundamental bookmaking vocabulary, techniques, and structural adaptations for a variety of ages. Come early to take advantage of free admission to the Museum and a 10% discount in the Museum Book Shop (25% for Members).
Instructor: Diana MacKenzie

Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

Members Only Event
Members’ Opening Reception
The Snowy Day and the Art of Ezra Jack Keats
June 28, 2012
5:00 - 7:00 pm
Join us for an intimate Members' evening to celebrate the opening of our newest exhibition. The event includes complimentary appetizers and drink ticket and the chance to win exhibition-related items in our free drawing. Members RSVP by Wednesday, June 20 to Jenny Darling Stasinos at (413) 658-1104 or membership@carlemuseum.org.

The Snowy Day and The Art of Ezra Jack Keats is organized by The Jewish Museum, New York, from the collection of the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection, The University of Southern Mississippi. The exhibition was funded at The Jewish Museum through a generous grant from the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation. Additional support was provided by the Joseph Alexander Foundation, the Alfred J. Grunebaum Fund, and the Winnick Family Foundation.

Exhibition support at The Carle been generously provided by Penguin Young Readers Group and the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation.

At The Museum
Museum Closed for Independence Day
July 4, 2012

The Visual in Children’s Literature
July 6, 2012
1:00 pm
Free with Museum Admission
(2 PDPs) Jerry Griswold, Emeritus Professor of Children’s Literature (San Diego State University), critic, author of seven books and more than 200 essays, and past director of the Center for the Study of Children’s Literature will discuss “visualness” in children’s books. The presentation will take up such topics as: reading as visualizing, how picture books work, the text as object, and picture book design. This presentation will open your eyes and your mind.

Educators' Institute
Featuring Presenters from
Pistoia, Italy and the
University of Florence
July 14 - July 16, 2012
$350 ($385 after June 15) NAREA and Museum Members receive a $30 discount
Learning through the Arts and Literature:
A Collaboration Celebrating Innovation and
Inspiration in International Education
In collaboration with Smith College, The Carle is once again honored to host an Educators’ Institute featuring colleagues from Pistoia, Italy; the University of Florence; and local educators; all of whom possess exceptional passion and expertise in the field of education for young children. With a focus on carefully designed spaces for adults and children, embedding learning within literacy-rich experiences, and supporting each child as an individual and a member of a community, we offer this opportunity to listen, observe, participate, and ponder the possibility of learning with joy and engagement.

Click here for more information including the conference program and registration information.

Joy, Engagement, and the Art of the Book
July 14, 2012
1:00 pm
Free with Museum Admission or Conference Registration
(1 PDP) Whether creating books herself, conducting her annual Children’s Book Boot Camp, teaching Children’s Book Illustration or co-hosting Cover 2 Cover, a talk show about children’s books and the people who create them, Pat Cummings is doing what she loves best. Join her as she shares her stories, talks about her process, and ponders the past, present, and future of children’s books.

At The Museum
Museum Closed for Educator Event
July 16, 2012
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
The Museum will be closed for an Educator event on Monday, July 16, 2012. We apologize for any inconvenience.

In The Art Studio
Drawing from Art and Nature
July 23 - July 27, 2012
9:00 am - 12:30 pm
$195 (Members $175)
(Ages 6-10) Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

Professional Development Workshop
Thinking with Found Materials
August 3, 2012
1:00 - 5:00 pm
$50 (Members $45)
(4 PDPs) Explore ways to collect, store, and offer found and free materials to encourage creative expression and support learning in the pre-K through early elementary classroom and at home.
Instructor: Meghan Burch

Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

Professional Development Workshop
The Whole Book Approach
August 16, 2012
12:00 - 4:00 pm
$50 (Members $45)
(4 PDPs) Discover the difference between reading with children and reading to children. This session will begin with a chance for participants to observe a storytime at The Carle to see the Whole Book Approach in action. Afterwards, participants will discuss their observations and learn how to evaluate the picture book as an art form and to use this critical engagement as a platform for leading interactive picture book reading experiences with their students.
Instructor: Rosemary Agoglia

Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

Professional Development Workshop
Picture Books as Touchstones for Developing Writers
August 17, 2012
9:00 - 12:00 pm
$40 (Members $35)
(3 PDPs) Explore the art and design of picture books as touchstones for writing with students. This workshop will provide a scaffold and strategies for teachers to engage students in a meaningful, fun, and rigorous writing process using the art, design, and text of picture books as pedagogical models. Through examining the relationships between artist and writer, illustration and text, we will use the rich context of picture books to support the development of composition skills. There will be a special emphasis on non-fiction/ expository writing and meeting common core standards in the upper grades.
Instructor: Judy Perlmutter

Judy Perlmutter has been a demonstration literacy teacher and administrator at the Lab School at UCLA, instructor of literacy methods for the UCLA Teacher Education Program, and educational consultant in Formative Assessment.

Registration is required. Please click here for information on how to register.

Animals, Art and the Imagination — 2012
August 20 - August 23, 2012
9:00 am - 3:00 pm
$290 (Members $265)
(Ages 6-10) Join us for this popular full-day summer program in collaboration with The Farm Education Collaborative. This program includes time in The Museum’s Galleries, Reading Library, and Art Studio. After lunch, participants head down to the Hampshire College Farm Center. While Museum Educators plan a variety of activities, each day Farm Education Collaborative staff introduces our students to various farm animals and helps the students experience the animals’ significance in our everyday lives.
Instructors: Museum staff and Farm Education Collaborative Staff
Click here for additional information.

Registration is required. Please click here for more information.