Friends of the Mission Hills-Hillcrest/Knox library

April 2026 Calendar

HIGHLIGHTS

Beyond our regular storytimes, Tinker Tuesdays, Dance Pants, LEGO, book clubs, adult craft lab, and concert, please take note of the following special events:

April is National Poetry Month, and we’ll be celebrating at the Mission Hills-Hillcrest Library! Please see our attached 2-page calendar for all our events. Here are some highlights.

Poetry Events
- American Literary Heroes: Walt Whitman & Emily Dickinson (Saturday, 4/4, 2:00 p.m.): Actors from Write Out Loud will bring Whitman and Dickinson to life, using selections of their works and bits of their lives. For adults, teens, and older kids.
- Blackout Poetry (Tuesday 4/14- Friday 4/17): Come in anytime and create a unique poem by blacking out the unwanted words from a page of a magazine or book. Enter your poem in a contest to win a prize.
- Open Poetry Reading for the Whole Community (Saturday, 4/18, 3:30 p.m.): Attend a poetry reading hosted by local poet Charlie Berigan and sponsored by the San Diego Poetry Annual. Read your own poem or just enjoy hearing others’ poetry.
- Poem in Your Pocket Day (4/30): Select a poem that you like and carry it with you to share with coworkers, family, and friends. The library will have a variety of poetry to choose from.
Kids’ Events
- Library Egg Hunt (Saturday, 4/4, noon): Over 300 eggs filled with stickers, toys, and candy will be hidden in the Mission Hills Library for children to find. This program is first come, first served and eggs are expected to disappear fast! Bring your own basket or bag and join the fun! Ages 3-10.
- Spring into STEAM: Magical Adventures & Illusions in the STEMverse (Saturday, 4/18, 1:00 p.m.): A hands-on adventure where science feels like real magic and every kid becomes an explorer of curiosity. Ages 9-12. Register with library staff.
- Piñata Science (Saturday, 4/25, 11:30 a.m.): Join us to learn how piñatas are constructed, the different materials they’re made of, and how it all affects the science of force. Participants can make their own piñatas. Recommended for ages 8-14.
Other Events
- Vegetable Container Gardening (Saturday, 4/11, 2:30 p.m.): The folks from Healthy Adventures bring the arts and crafts, pots, soil, craft sticks, construction paper, and seeds. Participants get to decorate their pot, create a gardening marker, fill their pot up with soil, plant their seeds, and take their work of gardening art home. For adults, teens, and older kids (accompanied by adults).
- Smartphone Basics Workshop (Saturday, 4/18, 11:00 a.m.): An introductory workshop designed to help you feel more confident using your smartphone. Learn essential skills including calls, texting, contacts, camera basics, apps, and simple settings that make daily use easier.
- Gustav Klimt (Saturday, 4/25, 2:30 p.m.): Aniko Makranczy, MFA, will introduce us to Gustav Klimt (1862-1918), the Austrian symbolist most widely known for his paintings, murals, and as a founder of the Vienna Secession movement.

We hope you’ll be able to make it to one or more events this month!

About this Item

What would a school look like if it was designed with mental health in mind? Too many public schools look and feel like prisons, designed out of fear of vandalism and truancy. But we know that nurturing environments are better for learning. Research consistently shows that access to nature, big classroom windows, and open campuses reduce stress, anxiety, disorderly conduct, and crime, and improve academic performance. But too few school designers and decision-makers apply this research to create healthy schools. Schools That Heal details the myriad opportunities—from furniture to classroom improvements to whole campus renovations—to make supportive learning environments for our children and teenagers.

Schools around the world have been designed to support students’ health. A Japanese community decimated by a tsunami has incorporated water elements into the school campus to reconnect students to nature in a supportive way and promote environmental stewardship. Sandy Hook Elementary, creating a completely redesigned campus in the wake of a school shooting, began with an inclusive design process to ensure the new school could be a place of healing and learning. And while the larger mental and physical impacts of how COVID-19 has changed schooling aren’t known yet, Latané discusses how building elements like large windows—that can open to circulate fresh air—were once common in schools and could once again be useful as a cost-effective tactic for reducing virus exposure.

Backed by decades of research, Schools That Heal showcases clear and compelling ways to create schools that support students’ mental health and feelings of safety. Written in an accessible tone, this book reviews the evidence connecting design to mental health and makes design and advocacy recommendations to support students’ well-being and sense of safety.

With invaluable advice for school administrators, public health experts, teachers, and parents, Schools That Heal is a call to action and a practical resource to envision and implement nurturing and inspiring school environments. Healthy, healing campuses will better prepare students to take care of themselves, their communities, their cities, and their planet.

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