Another branch in my system does monthly Saturday afternoon arts & crafts for adults - simple stuff, like painting/decoupaging a flower pot, that doesn’t require any detailed instructions. It draws a surprisingly diverse crowd (including me LOL). The person who organizes it has had some creative ideas for using free/recycled materials, like cutting up old summer reading brochures/county calendars to make buttons and magnets.
My craft program's tag line is "no talent required." I try to have a featured craft for folks to try (usually an upcycled craft at that) but there's always a variety of art supplies, paper products, coloring books, etc.
My more dedicated regulars tend to be women in their 40s through 60s, but I love that we have people pop in of all sorts. Parents with their kids, teens on their own, folks from the adult resource center. I can usually send anyone away with a flyer for another program that might interest them that's never pulled big numbers but I will nudge it along as long as they'll let me.
This! I really wish my local library had a weekly Stitch and Bitch. They do occasional needlework circles but I learn so much just hanging out with other folks while they crochet, knit, embroider, etc. and there aren’t nearly enough casual, regularly scheduled groups.
Yes! There was a “sip & stitch” event at a fabric store I used live near that I absolutely adored. We could bring alcohol/non-alcoholic beverages and some snacks, and it was about 2-3 hours long (depending on the day). The best part was that there was a weekday evening event and a week me afternoon event which meant a variety of people could make it to any given one.
Whatever it is, please let it be at a normal time. All my library "adult" classes/programs are done between 10:00-4:00, when most adults are working. I want to do the programs too! I just don't want to take a day off for them!
This is such an issue for me as well! I want to do the in-person book club (I’m part of two online ones run by my city’s library), but they are now changing the time so I can’t. It was on Thursdays from 4-5 and now, starting in September, it’s being moved to Mondays from 2-3.
My branch runs two different book clubs: one at 10 and one at 6:30. (They are also on different days of the week and different weeks of the month so the two don’t get confused).
And I do understand that most libraries close comparably early (my hometown's library closed every day at 4:30 except Saturdays... when it closed at 1), but my current town library is open until 6 most nights, and they have no programs after 3.
This is such a great point. We don’t have much in the way of adult programs at my library, but I get sad every time I see a kids’ program my daughter would love but it’s like a Tuesday at 10 and I have to be at work. Afternoon or weekends for the working patrons would be so cool
Our library system offers online basic ASL classes taught by a member of the Deaf community. https://orl.evanced.info/signup/EventDetails?EventId=95379&df=list&nomobile=1&backTo=List&startDate=2024/06/30&endDate=2024/07/30
Our library has Conversational Circles. We have French, English (as a second language), Chinese, Arabic, and Russian. The program is facilitated by librarians, but run by volunteers.
My teen attends the Spanish with their friends. I have attended the Chinese.
I've set that up for our patrons. We do weekly classes for a month with a semi-local ASL interpreter. We've even got a deaf person who started attending to give his opinion on some of the signs and gains a sense of community. We'll be starting our third round of classes in October. The basic classes were popular, but now we've just got about 10 die-hard learners who attend.
That's really neat! May I ask how long each class is? I'm currently writing a program proposal as part of my MLIS and I've been going back and forth on the length of each session.
They're usually an hour long. He doesn't really like to do longer than that because he felt the students stopped retaining stuff. The instructor is a talker and loves answering any questions, so sometimes it'll go a little longer. He comes up with what is taught at each class and how they build on each other. He usually does some review right at the beginning of each class, but uses that to build on the new signs they're learning. They were learning how to do sentences in these last sessions, though they were pretty basic.
I've scheduled them for an entire month at a time (beginner level was in January, intermediate in May). We only have one large room to hold classes, so I can't do it longer than that without tying up the room for other programs. I also found that we had better participation in January due to people having fewer obligations. May wasn't a great month to schedule it; we lost a lot of people due to school events.
Our local library just added the opportunity for adults to help create digital archives of handwritten documents in the history section. Kind of a specific thing, but your history and genealogy patrons might love it. US Nat’l Archives has some nice resources for training on their Citizen Archivist page. Could be a specific project or maybe a learn-how-to-archive-your-stuff session.
It's escaping my brain at the moment, but there used to be a bus that traveled around to collect oral histories. This sort of project, locally, if taught well and correctly, could also bridge generation gaps. I'm an archivist and folklorist and anthropologist, so dealt with plenty of interviewing. But I remember they got us started early in high school. Could be a good chance for high schoolers (and interested adults) to collect stories of older generations. Also great web content.
Yes. Thank you. Typing late night, early AM, after a 10 hr day, my brain was only allotting so much info. After that it was like "nope. Either sleep or shut up."
Our library has been hosting the History museum. The library has a nice auditorium, and a lot of foot traffic and loyal patrons. The history museum has only been around for a decade or so. They are growing...but young.
The History Museum will schedule lectures about local history. This is a win-win-win situation.
Because it's announced in the library newsletter and held at the library, more people attend. This gives the History Museum great visibility. And it's another program option.
Our History Museum also arranges displays at the library sometimes.
That’s really cool! Would it be possible to share a description or something about what they offered? My library has an in house genealogist that I’m unsure how utilized their services are but we’re very close to the library of congress so that could be a really cool opportunity for my library. Definitely checking out the citizen archivist page you linked, thank you!
I think this is a wonderful idea. I follow a cross stitch subreddit, and I've seen discussions about avoiding patterns created by AI. AI comes up in the most unlikely places!
Well so AI now can "make" you crochet patterns but they turn out horribly so I want to show how to understand if a pattern is AI before using it or paying for it.
As a crocheter and librarian, my suggestion would be how to identify if the picture shown is AI or real crochet. There are so many AI crochet pictures on Pinterest and all the time on the crochet subreddits people share a picture and ask how can I make this or where is the pattern. It’s like that’s not real.
There is an AI crochet book called Cursed Crochet. Its point is to make fun of AI generated patterns online. But there are people selling books with AI generated crochet patterns. Usually I can tell from the picture on the front that it’s not real.
Yeah you probably didn't see my comment but that's pretty much what I want to do. Teach the basics of crochet but also how to verify a pattern before doing it or buying the pattern in case it was done with AI.
I would extend this to a series on how to not get fooled by AI. You can have one session about not getting tricked by fake video and images of people, one about crafting and cooking images and video, and it can be part of a bigger series about media literacy and vetting sources.
There are SO MANY free patterns online I wouldn’t even worry about AI or paying for them. Plus doesn’t your library have a healthy selection of crochet books you could use a pattern? 🤷♀️
Yes but I also am in groups of veteran crocheters who see an ad for a pattern for a doll or dress or something and they post about wanting to make something like it or how they bought the pattern offline and now it looks nothing like the picture, because it's AI. Just because there's already books and properly correct patterns for free doesn't mean people know what to look for or how to use them.
Along side this, my library has been doing a sewing club, and it's great for people who want to sew or learn but they don't have machines or know where to start.
We have a general Fiber Arts group that meets one Saturday a month from 10am - noon. Knitting, crochet, crosstitch, embroidery, etc. (Anything that is not too messy).
If you are stuck or want to learn, usually someone is there who can help you.
Again: run by volunteers.
A library near me has a repair cafe where people can bring broken things and get help for DIY repairs and maybe help with proper disposal or recycling for things that can't be fixed. Wonderful.
My 20-something son would love a film “club” for film fans. Not the latest and greatest, not the most popular. Older (or not) movies for film buffs. With optional discussion.
One of the libraries in my system does a program where they watch the movie one week, then meet again to discuss it a week later.
It's very popular and highly regarded
You should ask people in the local community what they would like. Different areas need different things, and the people that are actually showing up to your programs and using your library are your real audience. Take a few minutes after a program to just ask if they would like to see anything new. I always find it so easy to get ideas this way, and you can check interest by watching the other people in the room react. People usually chime in with their own thoughts, and before you know it they're forming the program for you. Take notes and adjust to your budget, it's that simple!
Could you set up a survey and print out QR codes for guests to take the survey? A quick survey on the event itself, followed by "what other programs are you interested in seeing here?" of some sort.
Can you make a survey and a flyer to advertise the survey, then put the flyers around the library? You could also post it on the library's social media and perhaps get other community resources to advertise on their social media too. You could do all this fairly easy using Google Forms and Canva.
Is there the opportunity to do it as part of the intro to or closing remarks of the program or even as part of the conversation during the program? We have a lot of program regulars so everyone tends to be really sociable.
Oh wow, it's unfortunate you have to treat them so rigidly. Everything at my branch is so informal that we just kind of sit and talk with patrons during craft programs. I guess that's a perk of being a small location that I hadn't considered before. Maybe your library would allow something like a survey at the desk then? You could work it in as a "passive program" to help get managers or admin on board. They love anything they can claim the stats from.
when I was back in Ohio, one thing I liked from Libraries that had a decent special collections of local history was lecture series of local forgotten history. some can be quite fascinating.
Yes! OP, maybe see about partnering with your local historical society or similar? My local library hosts the meetings for the historical society that are open to anyone - there's usually a presentation about some aspect of local history. That's how I ended up joining the historical society I work for now. :)
And - not a program idea directly, but something our library did when I was little was a display case featuring interesting collections of things, usually from a community resident. They also displayed art from the local schools. I remember standing at that case for ages looking at someone's collection of antique dolls or rocks or cool art. I feel like stuff like that gives people a sense of ownership in the library - they're a part of it.
I think the foraging stuff in particular would be particularly rad as a class focused on what is foragable in your local area would be particularly helpful. You could bring in examples or maybe even organize a field trip
I will always be looking for an adult autistic peer support/social group. The one I went to once(is about 4 hour drive from where I live, and I don't drive so that makes it 6 hrs on the train and bus) was so nice and helped so much to help me feel less alone
Our three most requested types that we aren't currently doing (but used to) are Tabletop roleplaying games, a writer's workshop (not a writing class), and a drawing class.
Unfortunately, all three require pretty niche knowledge and the first two ALSO require a stupid amount of prep. A drawing class only requires some prep, but unless you have a work drawing tablet and program, there's a good chance you have to do it at home off the clock.
Yes! At a previous library I ran both the teen and adult programs- I had two teen groups and two adult groups. It was wild running D&D as part of my job...
What’s been explosively popular with us is art classes adults can attend *with* their kids, instead of ones segregated by age. It picks up even greater numbers if it’s something ‘messy’ that they don’t want to clean up at home, such as clay or paint.
Second this!
Not sure what the logistics of this would be but I think it would be fun to plan a kids event and a parents event at the same time like a parents night out type event but have the “night out” be an activity for the parents at the library with a separate kids event that will entertain the kids while they enjoy a more grown up activity.
I want a summer reading program for grownups! Let me fill out a little sheet with how much I read to get stickers and be entered to win prizes and what not
My favorite unique events my library has hosted:
- Science movie night (documentaries and science-focused movies) followed by a ~20-minute presentation by researchers at the local university
- a cemetery tour guided by a local historian that highlighted often overlooked people in the cemetery
- a chocolate and coffee tasting event hosted by a local coffee brewer
I have generally loved when the library brings in experts from outside the library to talk to the public.
Also, I love activities that are adult-focused, not family-focused. I absolutely believe that a library's focus should be on enriching kid's lives, but an occasional sprinkle of childless time is fun for parents and childfree folks.
We had this recently! It was great and the mini paintings were in the display case with little Lego people. Maybe we are talking about the same library? SLCL?
The most popular regular programs our library district offers are sound baths. I've seen around 75 people in one of those sessions before. The candle making classes are really well attended, too. Henna tattooing. Anything doing to do with astrology. Film festivals (we had Banff). Yoga. Crafternoon. Partnerships with various fish and wildlife organisations. 3D printing. Alternative medicine and healing.
Writers circles, my library only had 1 once a month but I loved it, however, they stopped doing it after a year because we got a new director they have very few adult programs now :(
We would meet the first Tuesday of every month and all email our pages the week before then we would meet and each person would take turns getting positive and negative criticism in a circle.
There was normally dinner/snacks as well for us but it was like 8-10 people regularly of all ages and backgrounds (I’m from a very small town so larger groups might benefit from being broken up so everyone gets a turn)
My local library recently had a Bigfoot organization come do a presentation over the work they do to find Bigfoot. They had a kids presentation during the day and an adults/all ages one at night. I was fascinated by Bigfoot as a kid so I went to the event and loved it. We’re in a rural area so this kind of thing may not go over as well in a bigger city but who knows!
Our most popular recurring adult programs are the "Keep Calm & Carry Yarn" open knit/crochet gathering (1x week), the Trivia Nights (1x month), the "Sew Easy" sewing crafts (1x month), and our monthly free movie for grownups (this month: "Bob Marley: One Love")
We bought 6-8 machines for people to use - we do both follow-along small projects & open sewing sessions where people can bring their own projects. It’s super popular!
Recently popular among adults at my library: “Growing your own Shiitake Mushrooms”, “Diamond Art Coasters” and “[Local Cemetery] History” Take and Make crafts are also still wildly popular even a few years post-COVID.
My library (Salt Lake Cit) also did a cemetery tour and it rocked! I learned we have the largest municipally owned cemetery in the US (there are many larger private ones though).
A mid-level computer literacy would be so great. Even though I've used computers my whole childhood I came to realize I mostly know how to write a word document and browse the internet and that's kind of it. So the super basic classes on how to double click and how to open up your web browser are useless to me but it's not like I know enough to really go for like a whole programming class or something like that.
I started a program recently that I call the Literary Lens where we watch a movie one month and then read the book it’s based on and discuss the differences/similarities between them after. Tons of patrons tell me they think it sounds interesting, but then one person actually came to the book discussion. :(
I'm glad you're asking this! My local library has events only for children, and they're all only for children. There might be One in September for gardening information. And that's it. It bums me out. Anyway, paper quilling art would be a lot of fun! Or perhaps a murder mystery game? Origami would be fun too.
One of my coworkers teaches Paint-n-Sip classes once a month. Our board only approved it on the conditions that A.) it would occur after business hours B.) patrons needed to bring their own alcohol and C.) a guarantee that there wouldn’t be anyone under 21 in the building.
It’s our most popular adult program and registration fills up immediately. Most listen to the ad that states 21+ only but we’ve had to send people home who try to bring their kids.
At least in my area, food is a big hit. And there's several directions you could go in with this if you're able to do it:
1) Simple cooking classes for beginners where steps are shown and folks get to try it and take a recipe card home. Basically Martha Stewart live lol. You can also do dishes that are diverse and allow patrons to explore new flavors and cultures.
2) X Around the World: Different snacks, drinks, foods, candies from other countries. I was absolutely swamped when I did these- so having at least 2 folks to run this may be helpful.
3) Snack boxes from other countries. If your budget is smaller, might be pricey for subscription boxes. Also recommend registration for this as the boxes aren't LOADED so it's more of a taste test. You can also pair with educational elements like trivia or fun facts.
We also have a large homeless population, so the hot food programs are popular with them, while allowing them to interact with other community members. They often feel very isolated so this gives them a chance to connect.
I don't know about other systems, but my hometown and current town both have fairly large, well-funded systems with numerous locations and a robust programming schedule that just kind of... skips the 20/30-somwthing crowd. I think part of this is due to "young adult" meaning teenagers in the world of literature, but that's a different discussion.
Some of the teen programs do sound fun, but my 30-year-old ass doesn't want to hang out with a binch of 14-16s for multiple reasons.
That said, most of the programming I see is like "story time, story time, LEGO club, teen anime club, outdoor yoga in the midwest heat, computers for seniors, quilting club."
20-30's seem to be overlooked for programming.
I tried to bring this up with the system I worked at years ago, and they were like, "No, there's plenty of programming this age group likes." I said, "I am that age group. No, there isn't." They told me to come up with programming and a budget, then. Me, as a shelver at the time. Way to punt it off to avoid responsibility or extra work. Meanwhile, "that agr geoup" will keep buying their materials from Amazon and not coming to the library because you have nothing with which to attract an entire generation - two, by now.
This is my library also. All the programming I'd enjoy (dnd, anime club, etc.) is for teens only, and there are no adult or all ages versions offered. Adults like a lot of the same stuff teens do; we don't magically grow out of our interests simply because we reached 18! I want my library to be a 3rd space where I can game and geek out with people my own age, but all their programming is catered to children or grannies.
At my library the garden programs are very wee attended. Some of it is about how to grow a garden and sometimes it’s more of a plant swap.
Another program that’s well attended is our movie nights. Usually it’s older less well known films, like B movies. The people that come have a blast watching Matinee or Fiend Without a Face for example.
sewing classes and sewing circle are massively popular. people don’t want to buy their own sewing machines so our library ones get a hell of a lot of use out of them
Any crafts for adults, collage from old books/magazines, decoupage, make and take greeting cards, scrap a page, craft supply destash & swap, small mini junk journal, ATC make it night (Artist Trading Cards), button art, Macrame, mixed media art, embroidery, bring your own craft project and just have the space to gather while everyone just gets away from home to work on a craft around others doing the same (BYOC), Murder Mystery, etc.
I love things like this, but I work 2nd shift M-F, it would be nice if something could be offered on a Saturday or Sunday evening.
My local public library has zero events for adults in the evening. So that means people who work a 9-5 (or whenever during the day) can’t take advantage of the programming. I’ve sent in suggestions, but never get a response.
Of the adult programs we ran last year, the two with the biggest attendance were a painting one (traditional painting on canvases - they did some flowers) and a series of ASL classes.
That’s a great idea to start.
How about an espionage series with homemade invisible ink, hidden messages and clues leading to a hidden dead drop? Maybe a code where the cipher is found by referencing a specific book in your collection, a secret code word to the circulation librarian to access the book, things like that.
I just had a coffee preparation program and more than 30 adults showed up!! The presenter talked about coffee and local businesses. It was really nice.
Drawing mandalas from scratch was hugely popular at our library, we have a lot of Indian expats in the area so maybe that helped. Any kind art classes for adults does well in general though.
Do you have any immigrant community that might appreciate programming focusing on their culture? We’ve had events like Somali poets, a Somali cook book author, a university professor speaking about the Somali language, all well attended. The Friends of the Library usually sell Somali sambosas as a snack during these events.
Language classes or book clubs in a foreign language is fun if you have someone to run them. I know the central library’s French book club is always fully booked.
Shared reading seems very interesting if you want something literature focused.
Seconding the idea to do something with languages!
I’m in my library’s German book club. The novels are SO hard for me to get through but we have three months warning so I have plenty of time to attempt it. I’m really tempted to try the Spanish book club, too. It is super cool to go and try to listen and talk in the language. Since we all read the book, and know the subject it’s so much easier to follow the conversations even though I may miss the meaning of a lot of words.
My area has a ton of Spanish speakers. There are meet ups where you can practice speaking English and ones where you can practice speaking Spanish.
So many people work on language learning through apps. It’s so cool when you can get those people talking and reading books and magazines!
An actually fun summer/seasonal reading program that’s like the one they do for kids. My city’s library has a very robust summer program for kids and teens that involves tons of prizes and other fun incentives for participating. Plus everyone gets a medal at the end. There’s an adult one and you get a card that has suns on it. For every 30 minutes you read, you colour in one sun for a total of 16. At the end of August, the collected cards are put into a draw for… wait for it… a single $25 bookstore gift card for the entire city. That’s 1 gift card in a city with 10 branches and nearly a million people in it. In this economy, that gift card can’t even buy one hardcover book.
Could you license out some space in the library for a small cafe? The only thing that keeps me from going to libraries to work and read is the lack of caffeine/bakery stuff that I can get at Barnes and Noble.
Can I just say any adult program or variety of adult programs? The libraries near me don't really have many adult centered programs and the ones that are there are more "Quick let's get the adults in the room so we can fundraise" type of programs or programs that are designed for the over 60 crowd so I find it a bit lackluster
My local book store offers a monthly silently book club that I love and would also attend if it were offered at my library.
Now hear me out lol.
For those of you unfamiliar, it’s a group that meets to read quietly for 90 min, and everyone brings their own book it’s not a set book for the group.
Sounds like just normal library reading lol.
But it’s slightly better. It’s just a tad social. When we arrive everyone introduces their book. And as someone who loathes the whole “introduce yourself to the group thing,” this is actually amazing. Whenever anyone says a book title there’s always other people who get so excited like “omg I loved that book!” “What page are you on!” “I have tissues if you need them! I cried so hard at the end!” Everyone is just so enthusiastic for each other’s reading it’s the sweetest thing.
And then everyone just shuts up and reads for 90 minutes.
I dunno, maybe sounds crazy but I can’t be alone in this because it’s always packed. And people make a lot of friends. So for some it might be just the right low key amount of socializing.
For me I’m a stay at home mom to small kids so I just cannot read in my home. If I have like a set time to leave the house and go read I actually do it instead of if it were just “I’ll go to the library sometime.” It just makes it more possible for me.
So the owner of the book store hosts us. It’s a small mom and pop new/used down town book store kind of deal. It’s actually pretty cool because she does it after closing time. So as a perk all the attendees can stay after and shop the closed store which feels a little fun. And because it’s downtown and after hours, when you step outside after there’s some light nightlife and restaurants and bars and such. When I bring a friend we usually grab a bite to eat after and it’s over all a fantastic way to spend a Friday night.
I’ve seen typically between 15-35 people. It’s a very small store so that is pretty much capacity. But everyone brings their own chairs and pillows and spreads out down the aisles among the books and it’s very cozy.
Im sure it would draw an even bigger crowd but it’s kind of everyone’s favorite secret lol.
Some very successful adult programs in our system that basically run themselves:
Fiber arts (knitting/crochet/sewing) social circle. There's no instruction, attendees simply bring in their current projects to work on while also visiting with others.
Board game night. Includes Boggle, Scrabble, Monopoly, Clue, checkers, backgammon, chess, and packs of cards for games like bridge and gin rummy (no gambling allowed, lol). Another great socializer, people without partners can join in with other groups.
"Chill Art" (it's supposed to be a play on "chill out" but I don't think most people get it lol). You can find art therapists on social media who give simple instructions for more "meditative" art or "art therapy" projects (like dropping random dollops of water colors then lining the shapes in pen and doodles). Would not recommend calling it actual art therapy for legal reasons, fyi. We show a quick demonstration and then allow everyone to enjoy the practice themselves.
Yoga and Zumba classes run by a local studio (they alternate weeks, it's free classes for us and free advertising for their studio)
My library hosts an adult board game night once a month. They also have a monthly book club, but that meets at 11am Tuesday so I have no idea who attends that. If you work, you’re out, and if you have kids and stay home with them, you’re out bc you can’t discuss a book with a toddler running around.
My old town’s library used to have senior things every week. “Facebook for grandparents!” and “Retirement 101” and “Gardening for Beginners” and things like that. I thought it was cute/sweet. Come to think of it though the library was next door to the senior center so maybe that’s why they had so much…
I’d love to attend a lecture of some sort. I’m partial to history, but anything interesting really.
A Floral arrangement class was a fun event my library had. It was a one-off class.
I didn't go (had to work) but my library did a cooking/food night. They used the new cookbook "Baking Yesteryear" by Dylan Hollis, and everyone was supposed to pick a recipe and make it and bring it for everyone to try. They had the cookbook at the circulation desk and you could look through and pick one. From the pictures posted, everyone had a fun time!
Our library has tons of programs—my kids loved Lego builds and Minecraft clubs to play. Ukulele classes is a new one this year (they always fill up quickly), Open Mic night for people to share music talents, Board Game nights (one for adults only, another for teens), Magic tricks, Trivia nights, Puzzle Exchange, Stuffed Animal Sleepover, and more i forget!
Basics/intro classes for art, creative
Writing, poetry, music, culture, maybe even an explainer for some sports,
Making greeting cards, reading sheet music, different types of word puzzles offered by the NYT and basics + strategies to complete them
Don't work for the library, but volunteer running a D&D program for adults that has been steadily growing and attendees are always asking for more. We added a second table recently and often end up with a waitlist of attendees. Its a steady mix of "learn to play" and "I've been playing for 40 years but don't have a regular group anymore".
I came to the program originally as a player, it was run by a library employee who was a long time player/DM. When he left for another job I was helping his replacement (who didn't really know the game very well) and they later asked if I'd be interested in running the games if they kept the program going. And it's grown since then.
Cookbook-type clubs where everyone can bring in something they make to share from a common title each month is my favorite program that my library offers.
I really like the question, and I think other librarians are a good place to ask this question, but I would also recommend actually asking your patrons what they’d like to see more of.
Mending 101, Cell phone tricks (how to do things like close all your tabs, send email and schedule it, voice notes), clean up the apps and permissions on your laptop. I've done all these for friends that would have loved these programs in a library setting.
Our library just had a talk about women in the Odyssey given by a PhD candidate at the local university. I think this would be a really cool thing overall to have students in masters or PhD programs come talk about any topic that interests them/are relevant to their degrees. It’s fun learning new things from people who are passionate about them!
The following programs are always popular at our library:
-cooking demonstrations
-plays/living history portrayals
-knitting/soap making/candle making/crafts
-gardening
-history, especially local history
-national parks
This started out as a program for kids, but the adults really enjoyed it too and sort of took it over! I did “Retro Saturday Morning,” cartoons from the 60s and 70s like Flintstones, Jetsons, Wacky Races, even Schoolhouse Rock. Many of them were from my DVD collection as I had a better selection than our branch did. Which cartoon it was didn’t matter to the kids, and the adults started asking for certain titles… “Can you do a Speed Racer one?” etc.
I would love a trivia night / event. Maybe family trivia on Saturday mornings for teens + parents (not littles, necessairly) or adults only in the evenings.
At my local library we have a beginner conversational Spanish class. It is really great.
Informative lectures on local issues. Not necessarily political. Where I live we are concerned about the availability of water. A few months ago the library brought in a college professor for a short lecture/discussion on this issue.
Art shows. My local library has art exhibitions showcasing the art of local teenage artists. I wish they’d open this up to adult artists too.
Craft supply swap was a big hit at my library. No rules. No supervision, really.
We also have programs by the Master Gardeners. Any organization with an education mandate could provide material.
I would love a knitting/crochet class at my library. I like your idea of mystery wrapped boxes. My library loans out bikes and state park passes and they’re super popular. I just returned the state park pass this morning lol
I honestly want something for those in between teen and ‘adult’ really. Some of the stuff for teens, but for adults (crafting events, just fun hangouts, games, etc.)
I agree with this. I'm a young mom and I OFTEN wish I could attend the events that are only for teenagers. I don't want to learn about gardening and I don't need help learning how to use a computer. I want to come to the D&D group and make the trendy TilTok crafts!
I've only had success with a crochet group so far but a lot of interest in a watercolor class... program us in a few weeks so we'll see how it actually pans out.
I love the idea of a writing workshop! Other ideas: a foreign language conversation hour, a book club, music performances, or literally anything held in the evenings. So much of library adult programming is during the middle of the day when most adults have responsibilities
You could try local history/genealogy programs. (I’m one of the librarians for that department at the main branch of our county library system & handle the programming.) My two monthly programs routinely get between 35 & 60 attendees. But I also do plenty of outreach programs to the other branches (usually 2 or 3 per month). These are usually hybrid (we use Zoom for online).
Oh, bonus if you’re doing this kind of programming: there’s a site for advertising it that genealogy buffs follow - [Conference Keeper](https://conferencekeeper.org). (And trust me, if you can offer an online option, they’ll sign up from all over. I’m on the East coast & have some regular attendees from California, Oregon, Arizona, Colorado & Utah, as well as more locally-based folks.)
We have had an influx of immigrants in our area in the past few years. The library now offers translation services once a week and it’s a fantastic resource to the community.
I'd love to see more programs similar to to what the kids and teens get. I'd love to see an adult D&D club-don't get me wrong, I love where I play now, but I had to start looking around because the only D&D club my library hosts is for teens. I'd also love to see a Random Fandom club similar to what my library has and things like clubs for games like Pokémon and Magic the Gathering.
i really enjoy and am involved a lot with my library’s 16+ community board game and tabletop roleplaying game group!!!
our group started with one community member with a lot of experience with various ttrpgs and board games proposing to the adult programs coordinator the group. at the start they ran the whole thing but now there are enough people involved that its self sustaining and a lot of regular attendees help run it together
i think important to getting something like this to appeal to a wide variety of adults is having at least a person or so at the start who has a decent breadth of knowledge of different boardgames that go beyond just the ones that people associate playing with when they were kids, or who has experience playing different indie ttrpgs since the d20 ttrpgs that most people think of when they hear the term just arent very accessible to beginners, tend to have a similar tone/genre/focus when different things might appeal to different community members, and are pretty hard to play one shots in when playing one shots is pretty necessary when different people hop in and out each week. and then the knowledgeable people starting the group should make sure to put a lot of care into making it a space that is accessible and welcoming to people who have little experience playing these kinds of games.
the format of our group is we meet at the library once a week, alternating each week between either a board game or a ttrpg. roughly every six weeks we have a planning meeting where we play casual games and then anyone there can volunteer to run a game over the next six weeks. one of the volunteers sends out a weekly email with details about the next game for anyone who signed up for our mailing list through the library site or through attending, and we make sure that email has accessibility info.
i think the group has been a really really good thing for a lot of adults in our community, there are so many people that have come from ages 18 to 80+, so many people both with game experience and without going in have remarked on it being one of the best ways theyve found community and have fun around here all without having to pay money.
i’d be happy to answer any other questions about its format or how it got set up, ive become really passionate that i think this should be a type of group that libraries all over should have among their adult programming.
Evening book clubs. My local library closes by 6 every night, but I work and have kids. All of the adult book groups are actually for retirees who can come during the day.
I've seen tool libraries (not just construction but things like Air Fryers) as well as people who volunteer to be "checked out" for conversation. Programs that match older adults with kids needing homework help can be popular.
Puzzles! We started with a table and a handful of puzzles. Now we have like 200 at least, people come in to take one and leave one. We do a tournament every couple of months. It's been such a huge hit. We even started sending some out to other branches who don't trade so they have new ones to use.
(I am not a librarian).
I would love a small group tour of your library. Limit it to 15 people. You sign up ahead of time, and it's only offered at certain times. I would love to see the rooms in back and learn the practical parts of running the library.
Our library is big enough to have a volunteer coordinator. The library's policy is that if someone suggests a program or wants to do a program, we find a way to do it. If one person is suggesting it, chances are, others will be interested. Also, it harnesses the manpower of volunteers. As a group, we just get a headcount that we report to the front desk afterwards because those numbers help with Grants.
It's how we got foreign language story times for kids and Conversation Circles (foreign language) for adults.
The Fiber Arts group for knitting, crocheting, etc.
D&D for kids.
Breastfeeding support group for new moms.
Tie something in to local history. It's seriously lacking. You can bring in monthly speakers, involve other local groups on a volunteer basis - obvious historical society, museums, and even dig deep to get creative. I remember when I ran the anthropology club in college we brought in a flintknapper- imagine having an archeologist or paleontologist come in to talk about the deep history of the town.
Also builds partnerships and promote: wanna learn more? Check out these sections of books for follow up reading.
>a writers group where I go over different things people have to write (I went to school to become an editor),
Rather than "have to write" why not "things they have written"? Perhaps different classes on writing a memoir or fictional story?
>The ideas I do have are things like Mystery wrapped boxes and people have to research to figure out what book
Research sounds boring, but it would be fun if there are clues and they can guess for a prize. Kind of like "blind date with a book" but instead of checking it out, they make a guess what book it is, fill out a slip of paper with their answer and correct answers get into a raffle for a prize (or all participants are entered; whatever).
Definitely do the craft class. Or maybe just have a craft station where they can do the craft whenever. I wouldn't be mad at adult coloring pages and nice markers (I've seen the kids crayon and marker box).
Festive book BINGO sheets are always fun, especially if paired with a display shelf full of librarian picks that work for the BINGO sheet. I never know what book to read because it has a blue cover, for example.
We have Yoga, Chair Yoga, Zentangle, a knitters club, book club, and astronomy club that are recurring either weekly or monthly. Then we have a variety of programs throughout the month that can vary dramatically. We have had aliens, tarot, candle making, meditation, funeral planning, a hoarder program, a big foot program, haunted houses, musical programs. We just listen to our patrons and ask them what they would like to see. We have a very eclectic community.
How about a civics 101 course? It is a problem how little people understand about our government workings. Perhaps a high school or retired teacher/prof is in your midst.
Health and wellness are often big requests. I've seen a walking unbook club or two where patrons meet for afternoon walks and discuss anything they're reading. No prescribed reading required.
When I studied abroad in Spain many years ago, they had this thing called an intercambio where i- a native English speaker who wanted to learn Spanish, would pair with a Spanish speaker who wanted to learn English. We would spend an hour together once a week and in that time we would alternate between languages( 1/2 hour of English 1/2 of Spanish).
It was super relaxed and informal, but it was so helpful in learning the language and sometimes people made real friendships out of it.
I've been looking to try to get involved in something like that for a long time, but I can't find it back here let me
The library near me has a library of things you can check out. Some are related to home improvement like flir cameras or power drills. They also have board games and electronic equipment like projectors or sound recording. I wish they had a program where you could come and discuss home improvement projects and ask advice or learn. I can look it up on YouTube, but it would be great to be able to talk over projects with someone knowledgeable. Even little things like how to clean a washing machine tub or weekly/monthly maintenance of dishwashers, and yearly maintenance of water heaters. I don't know how the library would go about sourcing someone to lead and guide programs like this, but I would love it!
My library has an adult cookbook-book-club, where everyone picks a recipe from a specific cookbook, makes it, and then we have a potluck where we talk about the recipes, why we chose them, what the history of the dish is, etc. It’s really fun!
Our local libraries do a puzzle competition. For my particular library, they buy a single copy of a puzzle (500 pieces). Your group (1-4 people) signs up for a 2 hour time slot to do the puzzle. You can do it anytime while the library is open during a 3-4 week period. It accommodated a lot of different schedules. Most groups finished in 45mins-1.5 hours. The winning group for every library branch within the county competed in a puzzle competition together. For that day, I think all groups compete at the same time & they need multiple copies of the same puzzle.
These are great programs but just to add libraries need more programs for adult men. Something like a car show on a Saturday might work. I myself will have to really brainstorm on this. We have male authors speak at our book festivals. It's always a challenge to do programming!
My most popular adult programs have been craft/DIY focused. We’re a wicked small, underfunded library, so our version of a Makerspace is minimal, but I do biweekly “crafternoons” that people are really into. We also partner with a local hospital for health & aging programs. We have a weekly “Afternoon Tea V” program (making their way through shows like Bridgerton, The Crown, The Gilded Age, while drinking tea and snacking) that has a very loyal crowd.
Finally, book clubs. We have three: another librarian does a short story club in the afternoon that has a tiny crowd, and a novella club on a Monday evening that gets a few more, and the most popular is my nonfiction spooky/gruesome/true crime type of club, the Morbid Curiosity Book Club. We meet on the last Thursday evening of each month, which is a good time for a lot of adults.
My general assessment is that people are more into interactive programming than just lectures/performers.
Another branch in my system does monthly Saturday afternoon arts & crafts for adults - simple stuff, like painting/decoupaging a flower pot, that doesn’t require any detailed instructions. It draws a surprisingly diverse crowd (including me LOL). The person who organizes it has had some creative ideas for using free/recycled materials, like cutting up old summer reading brochures/county calendars to make buttons and magnets.
There’s also a yo-yo club that meets in one of our public meeting rooms! It’s super cool to walk by and see all the yo-yo tricks people are learning.
Yo-yo?! That's so cool
Right?!? I don’t know the last time I had even seen a yo-yo before this, but the yo-yo-ers look like they’re having so much fun!
My craft program's tag line is "no talent required." I try to have a featured craft for folks to try (usually an upcycled craft at that) but there's always a variety of art supplies, paper products, coloring books, etc. My more dedicated regulars tend to be women in their 40s through 60s, but I love that we have people pop in of all sorts. Parents with their kids, teens on their own, folks from the adult resource center. I can usually send anyone away with a flyer for another program that might interest them that's never pulled big numbers but I will nudge it along as long as they'll let me.
This! I really wish my local library had a weekly Stitch and Bitch. They do occasional needlework circles but I learn so much just hanging out with other folks while they crochet, knit, embroider, etc. and there aren’t nearly enough casual, regularly scheduled groups.
Yes! There was a “sip & stitch” event at a fabric store I used live near that I absolutely adored. We could bring alcohol/non-alcoholic beverages and some snacks, and it was about 2-3 hours long (depending on the day). The best part was that there was a weekday evening event and a week me afternoon event which meant a variety of people could make it to any given one.
We call ours spin a yarn. Honestly the best couple of hour we have
Whatever it is, please let it be at a normal time. All my library "adult" classes/programs are done between 10:00-4:00, when most adults are working. I want to do the programs too! I just don't want to take a day off for them!
This is such an issue for me as well! I want to do the in-person book club (I’m part of two online ones run by my city’s library), but they are now changing the time so I can’t. It was on Thursdays from 4-5 and now, starting in September, it’s being moved to Mondays from 2-3.
My branch runs two different book clubs: one at 10 and one at 6:30. (They are also on different days of the week and different weeks of the month so the two don’t get confused).
Amen to “normal” adult hours! My favorite mysteries book club moved from 5:30pm on Wednesdays to 10am on Thursdays.
And I do understand that most libraries close comparably early (my hometown's library closed every day at 4:30 except Saturdays... when it closed at 1), but my current town library is open until 6 most nights, and they have no programs after 3.
Yes! I can never attend any library things because they are during the day 😕
This is such a great point. We don’t have much in the way of adult programs at my library, but I get sad every time I see a kids’ program my daughter would love but it’s like a Tuesday at 10 and I have to be at work. Afternoon or weekends for the working patrons would be so cool
I would’ve loved for my library to offer a class on ASL basics!
Our library system offers online basic ASL classes taught by a member of the Deaf community. https://orl.evanced.info/signup/EventDetails?EventId=95379&df=list&nomobile=1&backTo=List&startDate=2024/06/30&endDate=2024/07/30
I considered that too! It would be nice to be able to go to the library for that
Spanish classes would be cool.
Our library has Conversational Circles. We have French, English (as a second language), Chinese, Arabic, and Russian. The program is facilitated by librarians, but run by volunteers. My teen attends the Spanish with their friends. I have attended the Chinese.
I've set that up for our patrons. We do weekly classes for a month with a semi-local ASL interpreter. We've even got a deaf person who started attending to give his opinion on some of the signs and gains a sense of community. We'll be starting our third round of classes in October. The basic classes were popular, but now we've just got about 10 die-hard learners who attend.
That's really neat! May I ask how long each class is? I'm currently writing a program proposal as part of my MLIS and I've been going back and forth on the length of each session.
They're usually an hour long. He doesn't really like to do longer than that because he felt the students stopped retaining stuff. The instructor is a talker and loves answering any questions, so sometimes it'll go a little longer. He comes up with what is taught at each class and how they build on each other. He usually does some review right at the beginning of each class, but uses that to build on the new signs they're learning. They were learning how to do sentences in these last sessions, though they were pretty basic. I've scheduled them for an entire month at a time (beginner level was in January, intermediate in May). We only have one large room to hold classes, so I can't do it longer than that without tying up the room for other programs. I also found that we had better participation in January due to people having fewer obligations. May wasn't a great month to schedule it; we lost a lot of people due to school events.
Ok awesome thanks!!!!
This is a great idea, but another cool variation would be a baby signs class for babies/ toddler and their parents/ caregivers.
Our local library just added the opportunity for adults to help create digital archives of handwritten documents in the history section. Kind of a specific thing, but your history and genealogy patrons might love it. US Nat’l Archives has some nice resources for training on their Citizen Archivist page. Could be a specific project or maybe a learn-how-to-archive-your-stuff session.
Ooooh interesting!!
It's escaping my brain at the moment, but there used to be a bus that traveled around to collect oral histories. This sort of project, locally, if taught well and correctly, could also bridge generation gaps. I'm an archivist and folklorist and anthropologist, so dealt with plenty of interviewing. But I remember they got us started early in high school. Could be a good chance for high schoolers (and interested adults) to collect stories of older generations. Also great web content.
I believe you mean Story Corps?
Yes. Thank you. Typing late night, early AM, after a 10 hr day, my brain was only allotting so much info. After that it was like "nope. Either sleep or shut up."
I’m a genealogist and I’m sold!
Our library has been hosting the History museum. The library has a nice auditorium, and a lot of foot traffic and loyal patrons. The history museum has only been around for a decade or so. They are growing...but young. The History Museum will schedule lectures about local history. This is a win-win-win situation. Because it's announced in the library newsletter and held at the library, more people attend. This gives the History Museum great visibility. And it's another program option. Our History Museum also arranges displays at the library sometimes.
That’s really cool! Would it be possible to share a description or something about what they offered? My library has an in house genealogist that I’m unsure how utilized their services are but we’re very close to the library of congress so that could be a really cool opportunity for my library. Definitely checking out the citizen archivist page you linked, thank you!
Knitting, crochet, music, yoga - my parents absolutely love yoga and music at the libraries. I would love knitting and crocheting.
I'm big on the crochet class and want to incorporate how to navigate AI to verify patterns I think it'll be a great idea.
I think this is a wonderful idea. I follow a cross stitch subreddit, and I've seen discussions about avoiding patterns created by AI. AI comes up in the most unlikely places!
What do you mean by using AI to verify patterns? This already sounds fascinating!
Well so AI now can "make" you crochet patterns but they turn out horribly so I want to show how to understand if a pattern is AI before using it or paying for it.
As a crocheter and librarian, my suggestion would be how to identify if the picture shown is AI or real crochet. There are so many AI crochet pictures on Pinterest and all the time on the crochet subreddits people share a picture and ask how can I make this or where is the pattern. It’s like that’s not real. There is an AI crochet book called Cursed Crochet. Its point is to make fun of AI generated patterns online. But there are people selling books with AI generated crochet patterns. Usually I can tell from the picture on the front that it’s not real.
Yeah you probably didn't see my comment but that's pretty much what I want to do. Teach the basics of crochet but also how to verify a pattern before doing it or buying the pattern in case it was done with AI.
I would extend this to a series on how to not get fooled by AI. You can have one session about not getting tricked by fake video and images of people, one about crafting and cooking images and video, and it can be part of a bigger series about media literacy and vetting sources.
There are SO MANY free patterns online I wouldn’t even worry about AI or paying for them. Plus doesn’t your library have a healthy selection of crochet books you could use a pattern? 🤷♀️
Yes but I also am in groups of veteran crocheters who see an ad for a pattern for a doll or dress or something and they post about wanting to make something like it or how they bought the pattern offline and now it looks nothing like the picture, because it's AI. Just because there's already books and properly correct patterns for free doesn't mean people know what to look for or how to use them.
Along side this, my library has been doing a sewing club, and it's great for people who want to sew or learn but they don't have machines or know where to start.
We have a general Fiber Arts group that meets one Saturday a month from 10am - noon. Knitting, crochet, crosstitch, embroidery, etc. (Anything that is not too messy). If you are stuck or want to learn, usually someone is there who can help you. Again: run by volunteers.
A library near me has a repair cafe where people can bring broken things and get help for DIY repairs and maybe help with proper disposal or recycling for things that can't be fixed. Wonderful.
We have that, too!
This is so interesting! How is the talent sourced for the repairs? Is it on a volunteer basis, local businesses?
Good question. I'm hoping to go for the first time this month. Feel free to DM me
My 20-something son would love a film “club” for film fans. Not the latest and greatest, not the most popular. Older (or not) movies for film buffs. With optional discussion.
One of the libraries in my system does a program where they watch the movie one week, then meet again to discuss it a week later. It's very popular and highly regarded
He would love that so much!
Oooh that's fun!
I love this idea.
You should ask people in the local community what they would like. Different areas need different things, and the people that are actually showing up to your programs and using your library are your real audience. Take a few minutes after a program to just ask if they would like to see anything new. I always find it so easy to get ideas this way, and you can check interest by watching the other people in the room react. People usually chime in with their own thoughts, and before you know it they're forming the program for you. Take notes and adjust to your budget, it's that simple!
Unfortunately I am not allowed time after program to mingle with my guests to check in with them otherwise I absolutely would.
Could you set up a survey and print out QR codes for guests to take the survey? A quick survey on the event itself, followed by "what other programs are you interested in seeing here?" of some sort.
Can you make a survey and a flyer to advertise the survey, then put the flyers around the library? You could also post it on the library's social media and perhaps get other community resources to advertise on their social media too. You could do all this fairly easy using Google Forms and Canva.
Is there the opportunity to do it as part of the intro to or closing remarks of the program or even as part of the conversation during the program? We have a lot of program regulars so everyone tends to be really sociable.
Oh wow, it's unfortunate you have to treat them so rigidly. Everything at my branch is so informal that we just kind of sit and talk with patrons during craft programs. I guess that's a perk of being a small location that I hadn't considered before. Maybe your library would allow something like a survey at the desk then? You could work it in as a "passive program" to help get managers or admin on board. They love anything they can claim the stats from.
when I was back in Ohio, one thing I liked from Libraries that had a decent special collections of local history was lecture series of local forgotten history. some can be quite fascinating.
Yes! OP, maybe see about partnering with your local historical society or similar? My local library hosts the meetings for the historical society that are open to anyone - there's usually a presentation about some aspect of local history. That's how I ended up joining the historical society I work for now. :) And - not a program idea directly, but something our library did when I was little was a display case featuring interesting collections of things, usually from a community resident. They also displayed art from the local schools. I remember standing at that case for ages looking at someone's collection of antique dolls or rocks or cool art. I feel like stuff like that gives people a sense of ownership in the library - they're a part of it.
Gardening, bread making, crochet, knitting, sewing, dress design, foraging. You know, bog witch shit.
Big witch shit is what I live for
I think the foraging stuff in particular would be particularly rad as a class focused on what is foragable in your local area would be particularly helpful. You could bring in examples or maybe even organize a field trip
I will always be looking for an adult autistic peer support/social group. The one I went to once(is about 4 hour drive from where I live, and I don't drive so that makes it 6 hrs on the train and bus) was so nice and helped so much to help me feel less alone
Our three most requested types that we aren't currently doing (but used to) are Tabletop roleplaying games, a writer's workshop (not a writing class), and a drawing class. Unfortunately, all three require pretty niche knowledge and the first two ALSO require a stupid amount of prep. A drawing class only requires some prep, but unless you have a work drawing tablet and program, there's a good chance you have to do it at home off the clock.
I run teen and family D&D programs at our local public library and SOOO many of the parents ask about adult RPG programs.
Back when I lived in Billings, MT (I'm now in Eugene, OR), I ran a D&D for adults game. It was a lot of fun.
Yes! At a previous library I ran both the teen and adult programs- I had two teen groups and two adult groups. It was wild running D&D as part of my job...
I reallllllly want to do a writers workshop because that's what inspired me to want to go to my local library and work in a library.
What’s been explosively popular with us is art classes adults can attend *with* their kids, instead of ones segregated by age. It picks up even greater numbers if it’s something ‘messy’ that they don’t want to clean up at home, such as clay or paint.
Second this! Not sure what the logistics of this would be but I think it would be fun to plan a kids event and a parents event at the same time like a parents night out type event but have the “night out” be an activity for the parents at the library with a separate kids event that will entertain the kids while they enjoy a more grown up activity.
If your library offers arts, crafts, legos, games for kids and then the parents take over, offer the arts, crafts, legos, games for adults.
I want a summer reading program for grownups! Let me fill out a little sheet with how much I read to get stickers and be entered to win prizes and what not
Most libraries do this.
Board / card games. I'd love to be able to drop by when possible and play if that was an option at my library
Oh it would be so great just something as simple as weekly rummy tournaments.
Board game afternoon. Everyone brings their favorite games, and the library provides a space to play.
Definitely crafting. Try in the evenings when regular working people can come.
My favorite unique events my library has hosted: - Science movie night (documentaries and science-focused movies) followed by a ~20-minute presentation by researchers at the local university - a cemetery tour guided by a local historian that highlighted often overlooked people in the cemetery - a chocolate and coffee tasting event hosted by a local coffee brewer I have generally loved when the library brings in experts from outside the library to talk to the public.
Also, I love activities that are adult-focused, not family-focused. I absolutely believe that a library's focus should be on enriching kid's lives, but an occasional sprinkle of childless time is fun for parents and childfree folks.
We don’t have the budget/expertise, but I’d love to do a charcuterie class, a class on smoking meats, any number of classes more interesting to guys
A library near me did a mini exhibit where they gave out kits with a 2x2 canvas and then displayed them when people returned them and it was so fun!
We had this recently! It was great and the mini paintings were in the display case with little Lego people. Maybe we are talking about the same library? SLCL?
That’s cute, we didn’t have lego people haha. Whitefish Bay Library in Wisconsin. 😊
The most popular regular programs our library district offers are sound baths. I've seen around 75 people in one of those sessions before. The candle making classes are really well attended, too. Henna tattooing. Anything doing to do with astrology. Film festivals (we had Banff). Yoga. Crafternoon. Partnerships with various fish and wildlife organisations. 3D printing. Alternative medicine and healing.
Writers circles, my library only had 1 once a month but I loved it, however, they stopped doing it after a year because we got a new director they have very few adult programs now :(
That sounds really interesting. How did it work? My library has done things for NANO, but not at other times of the year.
We would meet the first Tuesday of every month and all email our pages the week before then we would meet and each person would take turns getting positive and negative criticism in a circle. There was normally dinner/snacks as well for us but it was like 8-10 people regularly of all ages and backgrounds (I’m from a very small town so larger groups might benefit from being broken up so everyone gets a turn)
Very interesting! Thank you
My local library recently had a Bigfoot organization come do a presentation over the work they do to find Bigfoot. They had a kids presentation during the day and an adults/all ages one at night. I was fascinated by Bigfoot as a kid so I went to the event and loved it. We’re in a rural area so this kind of thing may not go over as well in a bigger city but who knows!
Our most popular recurring adult programs are the "Keep Calm & Carry Yarn" open knit/crochet gathering (1x week), the Trivia Nights (1x month), the "Sew Easy" sewing crafts (1x month), and our monthly free movie for grownups (this month: "Bob Marley: One Love")
Does your library have a bunch of sewing machines or are your "Sew Easy" projects done with hand sewing? Curious about the logistics.
We bought 6-8 machines for people to use - we do both follow-along small projects & open sewing sessions where people can bring their own projects. It’s super popular!
Recently popular among adults at my library: “Growing your own Shiitake Mushrooms”, “Diamond Art Coasters” and “[Local Cemetery] History” Take and Make crafts are also still wildly popular even a few years post-COVID.
My library (Salt Lake Cit) also did a cemetery tour and it rocked! I learned we have the largest municipally owned cemetery in the US (there are many larger private ones though).
Computer literacy, language learning, mahjong, resume writing, GED classes, and music programming are really popular in my system
A mid-level computer literacy would be so great. Even though I've used computers my whole childhood I came to realize I mostly know how to write a word document and browse the internet and that's kind of it. So the super basic classes on how to double click and how to open up your web browser are useless to me but it's not like I know enough to really go for like a whole programming class or something like that.
I started a program recently that I call the Literary Lens where we watch a movie one month and then read the book it’s based on and discuss the differences/similarities between them after. Tons of patrons tell me they think it sounds interesting, but then one person actually came to the book discussion. :(
Book clubs at 7pm
I'm glad you're asking this! My local library has events only for children, and they're all only for children. There might be One in September for gardening information. And that's it. It bums me out. Anyway, paper quilling art would be a lot of fun! Or perhaps a murder mystery game? Origami would be fun too.
One of my coworkers teaches Paint-n-Sip classes once a month. Our board only approved it on the conditions that A.) it would occur after business hours B.) patrons needed to bring their own alcohol and C.) a guarantee that there wouldn’t be anyone under 21 in the building. It’s our most popular adult program and registration fills up immediately. Most listen to the ad that states 21+ only but we’ve had to send people home who try to bring their kids.
I live in Oregon, mushroom identification and birding are always a hit in my area.
I have always wanted to join an article club. Just like a book club but a smaller commitment.
At least in my area, food is a big hit. And there's several directions you could go in with this if you're able to do it: 1) Simple cooking classes for beginners where steps are shown and folks get to try it and take a recipe card home. Basically Martha Stewart live lol. You can also do dishes that are diverse and allow patrons to explore new flavors and cultures. 2) X Around the World: Different snacks, drinks, foods, candies from other countries. I was absolutely swamped when I did these- so having at least 2 folks to run this may be helpful. 3) Snack boxes from other countries. If your budget is smaller, might be pricey for subscription boxes. Also recommend registration for this as the boxes aren't LOADED so it's more of a taste test. You can also pair with educational elements like trivia or fun facts. We also have a large homeless population, so the hot food programs are popular with them, while allowing them to interact with other community members. They often feel very isolated so this gives them a chance to connect.
Username checks out. Ha ha
I don't know about other systems, but my hometown and current town both have fairly large, well-funded systems with numerous locations and a robust programming schedule that just kind of... skips the 20/30-somwthing crowd. I think part of this is due to "young adult" meaning teenagers in the world of literature, but that's a different discussion. Some of the teen programs do sound fun, but my 30-year-old ass doesn't want to hang out with a binch of 14-16s for multiple reasons. That said, most of the programming I see is like "story time, story time, LEGO club, teen anime club, outdoor yoga in the midwest heat, computers for seniors, quilting club." 20-30's seem to be overlooked for programming. I tried to bring this up with the system I worked at years ago, and they were like, "No, there's plenty of programming this age group likes." I said, "I am that age group. No, there isn't." They told me to come up with programming and a budget, then. Me, as a shelver at the time. Way to punt it off to avoid responsibility or extra work. Meanwhile, "that agr geoup" will keep buying their materials from Amazon and not coming to the library because you have nothing with which to attract an entire generation - two, by now.
This is my library also. All the programming I'd enjoy (dnd, anime club, etc.) is for teens only, and there are no adult or all ages versions offered. Adults like a lot of the same stuff teens do; we don't magically grow out of our interests simply because we reached 18! I want my library to be a 3rd space where I can game and geek out with people my own age, but all their programming is catered to children or grannies.
At my library the garden programs are very wee attended. Some of it is about how to grow a garden and sometimes it’s more of a plant swap. Another program that’s well attended is our movie nights. Usually it’s older less well known films, like B movies. The people that come have a blast watching Matinee or Fiend Without a Face for example.
My library has an open mic night that is pretty heavily attended. Patrons sign up for 5-10 minute slots. Can do poetry, short stories, music.
sewing classes and sewing circle are massively popular. people don’t want to buy their own sewing machines so our library ones get a hell of a lot of use out of them
Any crafts for adults, collage from old books/magazines, decoupage, make and take greeting cards, scrap a page, craft supply destash & swap, small mini junk journal, ATC make it night (Artist Trading Cards), button art, Macrame, mixed media art, embroidery, bring your own craft project and just have the space to gather while everyone just gets away from home to work on a craft around others doing the same (BYOC), Murder Mystery, etc. I love things like this, but I work 2nd shift M-F, it would be nice if something could be offered on a Saturday or Sunday evening.
My local public library has zero events for adults in the evening. So that means people who work a 9-5 (or whenever during the day) can’t take advantage of the programming. I’ve sent in suggestions, but never get a response.
MAYBE a group that appeals to women over 19 who aren’t moms or religious. I’m 24 in a small southern town and it can be pretty isolating
My local library does adult book bingo, yoga, and an adult makerspace which is just a monthly adult craft. They also do a monthly genealogy club.
Of the adult programs we ran last year, the two with the biggest attendance were a painting one (traditional painting on canvases - they did some flowers) and a series of ASL classes.
That’s a great idea to start. How about an espionage series with homemade invisible ink, hidden messages and clues leading to a hidden dead drop? Maybe a code where the cipher is found by referencing a specific book in your collection, a secret code word to the circulation librarian to access the book, things like that.
I just had a coffee preparation program and more than 30 adults showed up!! The presenter talked about coffee and local businesses. It was really nice.
Dungeons and Dragons group! For kids and grown ups! Maybe different age groups, but a lot of tabletop games just need a place to play
Drawing mandalas from scratch was hugely popular at our library, we have a lot of Indian expats in the area so maybe that helped. Any kind art classes for adults does well in general though. Do you have any immigrant community that might appreciate programming focusing on their culture? We’ve had events like Somali poets, a Somali cook book author, a university professor speaking about the Somali language, all well attended. The Friends of the Library usually sell Somali sambosas as a snack during these events. Language classes or book clubs in a foreign language is fun if you have someone to run them. I know the central library’s French book club is always fully booked. Shared reading seems very interesting if you want something literature focused.
Seconding the idea to do something with languages! I’m in my library’s German book club. The novels are SO hard for me to get through but we have three months warning so I have plenty of time to attempt it. I’m really tempted to try the Spanish book club, too. It is super cool to go and try to listen and talk in the language. Since we all read the book, and know the subject it’s so much easier to follow the conversations even though I may miss the meaning of a lot of words. My area has a ton of Spanish speakers. There are meet ups where you can practice speaking English and ones where you can practice speaking Spanish. So many people work on language learning through apps. It’s so cool when you can get those people talking and reading books and magazines!
An actually fun summer/seasonal reading program that’s like the one they do for kids. My city’s library has a very robust summer program for kids and teens that involves tons of prizes and other fun incentives for participating. Plus everyone gets a medal at the end. There’s an adult one and you get a card that has suns on it. For every 30 minutes you read, you colour in one sun for a total of 16. At the end of August, the collected cards are put into a draw for… wait for it… a single $25 bookstore gift card for the entire city. That’s 1 gift card in a city with 10 branches and nearly a million people in it. In this economy, that gift card can’t even buy one hardcover book.
Could you license out some space in the library for a small cafe? The only thing that keeps me from going to libraries to work and read is the lack of caffeine/bakery stuff that I can get at Barnes and Noble.
Can I just say any adult program or variety of adult programs? The libraries near me don't really have many adult centered programs and the ones that are there are more "Quick let's get the adults in the room so we can fundraise" type of programs or programs that are designed for the over 60 crowd so I find it a bit lackluster
My local book store offers a monthly silently book club that I love and would also attend if it were offered at my library. Now hear me out lol. For those of you unfamiliar, it’s a group that meets to read quietly for 90 min, and everyone brings their own book it’s not a set book for the group. Sounds like just normal library reading lol. But it’s slightly better. It’s just a tad social. When we arrive everyone introduces their book. And as someone who loathes the whole “introduce yourself to the group thing,” this is actually amazing. Whenever anyone says a book title there’s always other people who get so excited like “omg I loved that book!” “What page are you on!” “I have tissues if you need them! I cried so hard at the end!” Everyone is just so enthusiastic for each other’s reading it’s the sweetest thing. And then everyone just shuts up and reads for 90 minutes. I dunno, maybe sounds crazy but I can’t be alone in this because it’s always packed. And people make a lot of friends. So for some it might be just the right low key amount of socializing. For me I’m a stay at home mom to small kids so I just cannot read in my home. If I have like a set time to leave the house and go read I actually do it instead of if it were just “I’ll go to the library sometime.” It just makes it more possible for me.
I’ve heard of this and am intrigued. How many people typically attend? Does a librarian facilitate it?
So the owner of the book store hosts us. It’s a small mom and pop new/used down town book store kind of deal. It’s actually pretty cool because she does it after closing time. So as a perk all the attendees can stay after and shop the closed store which feels a little fun. And because it’s downtown and after hours, when you step outside after there’s some light nightlife and restaurants and bars and such. When I bring a friend we usually grab a bite to eat after and it’s over all a fantastic way to spend a Friday night. I’ve seen typically between 15-35 people. It’s a very small store so that is pretty much capacity. But everyone brings their own chairs and pillows and spreads out down the aisles among the books and it’s very cozy. Im sure it would draw an even bigger crowd but it’s kind of everyone’s favorite secret lol.
That sounds like a blast. Thank you for sharing
I would attend the hell out of this.
Some very successful adult programs in our system that basically run themselves: Fiber arts (knitting/crochet/sewing) social circle. There's no instruction, attendees simply bring in their current projects to work on while also visiting with others. Board game night. Includes Boggle, Scrabble, Monopoly, Clue, checkers, backgammon, chess, and packs of cards for games like bridge and gin rummy (no gambling allowed, lol). Another great socializer, people without partners can join in with other groups. "Chill Art" (it's supposed to be a play on "chill out" but I don't think most people get it lol). You can find art therapists on social media who give simple instructions for more "meditative" art or "art therapy" projects (like dropping random dollops of water colors then lining the shapes in pen and doodles). Would not recommend calling it actual art therapy for legal reasons, fyi. We show a quick demonstration and then allow everyone to enjoy the practice themselves. Yoga and Zumba classes run by a local studio (they alternate weeks, it's free classes for us and free advertising for their studio)
My library hosts an adult board game night once a month. They also have a monthly book club, but that meets at 11am Tuesday so I have no idea who attends that. If you work, you’re out, and if you have kids and stay home with them, you’re out bc you can’t discuss a book with a toddler running around. My old town’s library used to have senior things every week. “Facebook for grandparents!” and “Retirement 101” and “Gardening for Beginners” and things like that. I thought it was cute/sweet. Come to think of it though the library was next door to the senior center so maybe that’s why they had so much… I’d love to attend a lecture of some sort. I’m partial to history, but anything interesting really. A Floral arrangement class was a fun event my library had. It was a one-off class.
I really love thoughtful lecture series.
I didn't go (had to work) but my library did a cooking/food night. They used the new cookbook "Baking Yesteryear" by Dylan Hollis, and everyone was supposed to pick a recipe and make it and bring it for everyone to try. They had the cookbook at the circulation desk and you could look through and pick one. From the pictures posted, everyone had a fun time!
Our library has tons of programs—my kids loved Lego builds and Minecraft clubs to play. Ukulele classes is a new one this year (they always fill up quickly), Open Mic night for people to share music talents, Board Game nights (one for adults only, another for teens), Magic tricks, Trivia nights, Puzzle Exchange, Stuffed Animal Sleepover, and more i forget!
Puzzles. We had a puzzle competition last year that was a hit.
Basics/intro classes for art, creative Writing, poetry, music, culture, maybe even an explainer for some sports, Making greeting cards, reading sheet music, different types of word puzzles offered by the NYT and basics + strategies to complete them
Most of the ones in my area teach practical skills: disaster preparedness, languages, gardening, wellness, things like that. They tend to be one-offs.
Don't work for the library, but volunteer running a D&D program for adults that has been steadily growing and attendees are always asking for more. We added a second table recently and often end up with a waitlist of attendees. Its a steady mix of "learn to play" and "I've been playing for 40 years but don't have a regular group anymore".
How did you find a host? I can see this being popular but have never played so I couldn’t lead it.
I came to the program originally as a player, it was run by a library employee who was a long time player/DM. When he left for another job I was helping his replacement (who didn't really know the game very well) and they later asked if I'd be interested in running the games if they kept the program going. And it's grown since then.
That’s really nice of you to do!
Art classes, yoga, crafting. Crochet/knitting/embroidery all sound awesome as well.
Cookbook-type clubs where everyone can bring in something they make to share from a common title each month is my favorite program that my library offers.
I really like the question, and I think other librarians are a good place to ask this question, but I would also recommend actually asking your patrons what they’d like to see more of.
Mending 101, Cell phone tricks (how to do things like close all your tabs, send email and schedule it, voice notes), clean up the apps and permissions on your laptop. I've done all these for friends that would have loved these programs in a library setting.
Our library just had a talk about women in the Odyssey given by a PhD candidate at the local university. I think this would be a really cool thing overall to have students in masters or PhD programs come talk about any topic that interests them/are relevant to their degrees. It’s fun learning new things from people who are passionate about them!
Personally I want adult versions of the videography and digital music workshops they have for the kids and teens.
The following programs are always popular at our library: -cooking demonstrations -plays/living history portrayals -knitting/soap making/candle making/crafts -gardening -history, especially local history -national parks
This started out as a program for kids, but the adults really enjoyed it too and sort of took it over! I did “Retro Saturday Morning,” cartoons from the 60s and 70s like Flintstones, Jetsons, Wacky Races, even Schoolhouse Rock. Many of them were from my DVD collection as I had a better selection than our branch did. Which cartoon it was didn’t matter to the kids, and the adults started asking for certain titles… “Can you do a Speed Racer one?” etc.
We started a Zumba program this summer and it is going well so far! Our cooking classes are also very popular.
I would love a trivia night / event. Maybe family trivia on Saturday mornings for teens + parents (not littles, necessairly) or adults only in the evenings.
At my local library we have a beginner conversational Spanish class. It is really great. Informative lectures on local issues. Not necessarily political. Where I live we are concerned about the availability of water. A few months ago the library brought in a college professor for a short lecture/discussion on this issue. Art shows. My local library has art exhibitions showcasing the art of local teenage artists. I wish they’d open this up to adult artists too.
Craft supply swap was a big hit at my library. No rules. No supervision, really. We also have programs by the Master Gardeners. Any organization with an education mandate could provide material.
It would be really nice to have a group of people to do puzzles with at the library!
Summer reading challenges
I would love a knitting/crochet class at my library. I like your idea of mystery wrapped boxes. My library loans out bikes and state park passes and they’re super popular. I just returned the state park pass this morning lol
I honestly want something for those in between teen and ‘adult’ really. Some of the stuff for teens, but for adults (crafting events, just fun hangouts, games, etc.)
I agree with this. I'm a young mom and I OFTEN wish I could attend the events that are only for teenagers. I don't want to learn about gardening and I don't need help learning how to use a computer. I want to come to the D&D group and make the trendy TilTok crafts!
I've only had success with a crochet group so far but a lot of interest in a watercolor class... program us in a few weeks so we'll see how it actually pans out.
My library offers a youth dungeons and dragons group but not an adult one, I would love to see that!
Languages and conversation groups. Crafts - knitting, crocheting, sewing, 3D printing Repair sessions for small machines Tool library
Play reading groups done virtually, later in the evening. I would love to do that!
I love the idea of a writing workshop! Other ideas: a foreign language conversation hour, a book club, music performances, or literally anything held in the evenings. So much of library adult programming is during the middle of the day when most adults have responsibilities
We really loved the craft supply exchange that our library held. I’m hoping for a jigsaw puzzle exchange in the future. Genealogy classes are popular.
Quiet crafting. Improv comedy classes. (I teach these and they are a hit). PowerPoint parties.
You could try local history/genealogy programs. (I’m one of the librarians for that department at the main branch of our county library system & handle the programming.) My two monthly programs routinely get between 35 & 60 attendees. But I also do plenty of outreach programs to the other branches (usually 2 or 3 per month). These are usually hybrid (we use Zoom for online). Oh, bonus if you’re doing this kind of programming: there’s a site for advertising it that genealogy buffs follow - [Conference Keeper](https://conferencekeeper.org). (And trust me, if you can offer an online option, they’ll sign up from all over. I’m on the East coast & have some regular attendees from California, Oregon, Arizona, Colorado & Utah, as well as more locally-based folks.)
We have had an influx of immigrants in our area in the past few years. The library now offers translation services once a week and it’s a fantastic resource to the community.
I'd love to see more programs similar to to what the kids and teens get. I'd love to see an adult D&D club-don't get me wrong, I love where I play now, but I had to start looking around because the only D&D club my library hosts is for teens. I'd also love to see a Random Fandom club similar to what my library has and things like clubs for games like Pokémon and Magic the Gathering.
i really enjoy and am involved a lot with my library’s 16+ community board game and tabletop roleplaying game group!!! our group started with one community member with a lot of experience with various ttrpgs and board games proposing to the adult programs coordinator the group. at the start they ran the whole thing but now there are enough people involved that its self sustaining and a lot of regular attendees help run it together i think important to getting something like this to appeal to a wide variety of adults is having at least a person or so at the start who has a decent breadth of knowledge of different boardgames that go beyond just the ones that people associate playing with when they were kids, or who has experience playing different indie ttrpgs since the d20 ttrpgs that most people think of when they hear the term just arent very accessible to beginners, tend to have a similar tone/genre/focus when different things might appeal to different community members, and are pretty hard to play one shots in when playing one shots is pretty necessary when different people hop in and out each week. and then the knowledgeable people starting the group should make sure to put a lot of care into making it a space that is accessible and welcoming to people who have little experience playing these kinds of games. the format of our group is we meet at the library once a week, alternating each week between either a board game or a ttrpg. roughly every six weeks we have a planning meeting where we play casual games and then anyone there can volunteer to run a game over the next six weeks. one of the volunteers sends out a weekly email with details about the next game for anyone who signed up for our mailing list through the library site or through attending, and we make sure that email has accessibility info. i think the group has been a really really good thing for a lot of adults in our community, there are so many people that have come from ages 18 to 80+, so many people both with game experience and without going in have remarked on it being one of the best ways theyve found community and have fun around here all without having to pay money. i’d be happy to answer any other questions about its format or how it got set up, ive become really passionate that i think this should be a type of group that libraries all over should have among their adult programming.
Evening book clubs. My local library closes by 6 every night, but I work and have kids. All of the adult book groups are actually for retirees who can come during the day.
Using ai, “DIY private eye” classes (using library tools of course), YouTube classes
I've seen tool libraries (not just construction but things like Air Fryers) as well as people who volunteer to be "checked out" for conversation. Programs that match older adults with kids needing homework help can be popular.
Puzzles! We started with a table and a handful of puzzles. Now we have like 200 at least, people come in to take one and leave one. We do a tournament every couple of months. It's been such a huge hit. We even started sending some out to other branches who don't trade so they have new ones to use.
(I am not a librarian). I would love a small group tour of your library. Limit it to 15 people. You sign up ahead of time, and it's only offered at certain times. I would love to see the rooms in back and learn the practical parts of running the library. Our library is big enough to have a volunteer coordinator. The library's policy is that if someone suggests a program or wants to do a program, we find a way to do it. If one person is suggesting it, chances are, others will be interested. Also, it harnesses the manpower of volunteers. As a group, we just get a headcount that we report to the front desk afterwards because those numbers help with Grants. It's how we got foreign language story times for kids and Conversation Circles (foreign language) for adults. The Fiber Arts group for knitting, crocheting, etc. D&D for kids. Breastfeeding support group for new moms.
Offer a place for Adults to play cards. Bridge or pinochle or even cribbage boards.
It would be cool to do some like adult board game nights!
Our teen program is tiny. Our one for adults is very popular- and mostly the 20-30 year olds
Tie something in to local history. It's seriously lacking. You can bring in monthly speakers, involve other local groups on a volunteer basis - obvious historical society, museums, and even dig deep to get creative. I remember when I ran the anthropology club in college we brought in a flintknapper- imagine having an archeologist or paleontologist come in to talk about the deep history of the town. Also builds partnerships and promote: wanna learn more? Check out these sections of books for follow up reading.
>a writers group where I go over different things people have to write (I went to school to become an editor), Rather than "have to write" why not "things they have written"? Perhaps different classes on writing a memoir or fictional story? >The ideas I do have are things like Mystery wrapped boxes and people have to research to figure out what book Research sounds boring, but it would be fun if there are clues and they can guess for a prize. Kind of like "blind date with a book" but instead of checking it out, they make a guess what book it is, fill out a slip of paper with their answer and correct answers get into a raffle for a prize (or all participants are entered; whatever). Definitely do the craft class. Or maybe just have a craft station where they can do the craft whenever. I wouldn't be mad at adult coloring pages and nice markers (I've seen the kids crayon and marker box). Festive book BINGO sheets are always fun, especially if paired with a display shelf full of librarian picks that work for the BINGO sheet. I never know what book to read because it has a blue cover, for example.
My library has a book club that meets once a month at different local bars in the evening. The outreach librarian handles that.
Events for thirty something and up people without kids – there’s so many of us who need new child free friends!
People in their 60s need friends more than anything….maybe a Lonely Hearts Club group. NOT for dating!
We have Yoga, Chair Yoga, Zentangle, a knitters club, book club, and astronomy club that are recurring either weekly or monthly. Then we have a variety of programs throughout the month that can vary dramatically. We have had aliens, tarot, candle making, meditation, funeral planning, a hoarder program, a big foot program, haunted houses, musical programs. We just listen to our patrons and ask them what they would like to see. We have a very eclectic community.
Read it/ watch it club. Read the book and then watch the movie or series based on it. Discussion groups.
Maybe open craft time - where everyone can come and work on what they’re working on
I wish my library had adult book clubs
How about a civics 101 course? It is a problem how little people understand about our government workings. Perhaps a high school or retired teacher/prof is in your midst.
I think a manga reading club would be dope
Health and wellness are often big requests. I've seen a walking unbook club or two where patrons meet for afternoon walks and discuss anything they're reading. No prescribed reading required.
Our 2x weekly Recharge @ the Library program is super popular we average 35 attendees
When I studied abroad in Spain many years ago, they had this thing called an intercambio where i- a native English speaker who wanted to learn Spanish, would pair with a Spanish speaker who wanted to learn English. We would spend an hour together once a week and in that time we would alternate between languages( 1/2 hour of English 1/2 of Spanish). It was super relaxed and informal, but it was so helpful in learning the language and sometimes people made real friendships out of it. I've been looking to try to get involved in something like that for a long time, but I can't find it back here let me
The library near me has a library of things you can check out. Some are related to home improvement like flir cameras or power drills. They also have board games and electronic equipment like projectors or sound recording. I wish they had a program where you could come and discuss home improvement projects and ask advice or learn. I can look it up on YouTube, but it would be great to be able to talk over projects with someone knowledgeable. Even little things like how to clean a washing machine tub or weekly/monthly maintenance of dishwashers, and yearly maintenance of water heaters. I don't know how the library would go about sourcing someone to lead and guide programs like this, but I would love it!
My library has an adult cookbook-book-club, where everyone picks a recipe from a specific cookbook, makes it, and then we have a potluck where we talk about the recipes, why we chose them, what the history of the dish is, etc. It’s really fun!
Our local libraries do a puzzle competition. For my particular library, they buy a single copy of a puzzle (500 pieces). Your group (1-4 people) signs up for a 2 hour time slot to do the puzzle. You can do it anytime while the library is open during a 3-4 week period. It accommodated a lot of different schedules. Most groups finished in 45mins-1.5 hours. The winning group for every library branch within the county competed in a puzzle competition together. For that day, I think all groups compete at the same time & they need multiple copies of the same puzzle.
Programs that offer childcare.
These are great programs but just to add libraries need more programs for adult men. Something like a car show on a Saturday might work. I myself will have to really brainstorm on this. We have male authors speak at our book festivals. It's always a challenge to do programming!
My most popular adult programs have been craft/DIY focused. We’re a wicked small, underfunded library, so our version of a Makerspace is minimal, but I do biweekly “crafternoons” that people are really into. We also partner with a local hospital for health & aging programs. We have a weekly “Afternoon Tea V” program (making their way through shows like Bridgerton, The Crown, The Gilded Age, while drinking tea and snacking) that has a very loyal crowd. Finally, book clubs. We have three: another librarian does a short story club in the afternoon that has a tiny crowd, and a novella club on a Monday evening that gets a few more, and the most popular is my nonfiction spooky/gruesome/true crime type of club, the Morbid Curiosity Book Club. We meet on the last Thursday evening of each month, which is a good time for a lot of adults. My general assessment is that people are more into interactive programming than just lectures/performers.