Tours of State Library are a great way to find out about our amazing spaces, collections and services, and really help students to understand how the library can support them with their studies. Guided group tours are available for students from Year 5 to tertiary, as well as teachers, librarians and other adult groups. The free guided tours last 45 minutes and can be booked online up to 14 days prior. Self-guided visits are also welcome. Please check in to let us know about your visit and if your group has any special requirements.

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State Library will host the inaugural Teachers and Libraries conference on Monday 22 July 2019. The full-day program at State Library will be an invaluable professional development opportunity for teacher-librarians, teachers and other education and library professionals. Don’t miss this unique chance to update your skills and learn about the latest tech and developments. Reinforce your library’s status as the essential ideas hub and resource centre of your school. Teachers and Libraries is also an exceptional chance to network and share ideas. Save the date in your calendar today and look out for booking information to follow.

Tagging in the catalogue

In our catalogue you can create and share private pinned lists of resources, as well as publicly available tagged resources. Create tags for specific assessments, curriculum areas, school or class names or other useful labels. You can then share these with teachers and students. The catalogue also features tags supporting the prescribed text lists in English, developed in partnership with the QCAA.

Free film-streaming with Kanopy

Kanopy is a free film-streaming service with over 30,000 of the world’s best films, documentaries, rare titles and favourites covering all curriculum areas. Licensing allows teachers to screen films in class and for groups. Create and share playlists of films to support a topic of study. Kanopy is available on desktop, mobile and tablet.

>> Explore Kanopy now.

Emerging from the sugarcane farms of tropical Queensland to cut a path to freedom, the stories of Australian South Sea Islanders are steeped in strength and resilience.

Through never-before-seen original photographs, rare and restricted historical papers, and newly commissioned artworks, Plantation Voices gives voice to the untold stories of a community that played a vital role in the shaping of our nation, and fought so fiercely to call Australia home…

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South Sea Islanders cutting cane in the Bundaberg district, ca. 1906. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Image APO-032-0001-0018.

There’s no place like home. And there’s no sense of nostalgia quite like the one we feel when we see a photograph of a home — our house, the house of someone close to us, the house where we spent our formative years. Our homes may be made of bricks and mortar, but they can assume mythical dimensions in our imaginations, shaping the stories we tell about ourselves and one another.

Home: a suburban obsession explores the social and emotional foundations of our houses through the incredible legacy of Frank and Eunice Corley, whose photographs displayed here — alongside stories, ephemera and artistic responses — capture the suburban architecture of 1960s ‒1970s South East Queensland and the places we call home.

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Image: Image from the Frank and Eunice Corley House Photograph collection, Acc.6169 John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland.

Unleash your inner researcher and apply for a research fellowship at State Library. There are five research opportunities totalling $60,000.

Attend an information night on Thursday 7 March to hear more about the application process and insights from current State Library fellows. People from all backgrounds and disciplines are encouraged to apply!

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Image: Children on the verandah of a cottage in Pialba, 1928, H M Hall, John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland.

Following the recent Bright Bold Boundless: designing the Queen’s baton display, State Library has put together a resource guide for secondary design educators.

This guide will help educators to identify teaching and learning opportunities in the Design General Senior Syllabus using the #GC2018 Queen’s Baton as a case.

A replica GC2018 Baton used in Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games is available for viewing in State Library’s collection.

>> View the resource guide

The inspiring history of Palm Island is celebrated in a fascinating showcase of images, memorabilia and digital stories. Palm Island and Our People acknowledges the centenary of the first placement of people to the island as an Aboriginal Reserve, and explores the history of this tropical paradise.

>> Download your learning notes

State Library acknowledges the significant contribution of the Palm Island Aboriginal Shire Council and the Bwgcolman Indigenous Knowledge Centre in the development of this exhibition.

Image: Alf Wilson. Acc: 31493, Palm Island Centenary Commemoration Photographs 2018, John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland.

Congratulations to the eight Queensland students awarded a trip of a lifetime, experiencing the Anzac tradition first hand, through the 2019 Premier’s Anzac Prize.

Follow the progress of the 2018 Q ANZAC 100: Memories for a New Generation Fellows Elaine Acworth, Dr Anastasia Dukova, Dr Martin Kerby and Deborah Terranova as they bring to life memories and experiences of Queenslanders during the war.

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Explore elements of design and construction at The Corner!

Come down to The Corner and play your way through our interactive environment carefully prepared for children from birth through to eight years. Through art making, facilitated play, sharing stories and creative conversations, children and families can interact with artists and each other to creatively engage in the serious business of play.

Image: Joe Ruckli

Experience the World Science Festival at State Library of Queensland.

Join Dr Rob Bell for a First 5 Forever morning filled with science, stories, slime and all things family fun. First 5 Forever is an initiative of the State Library of Queensland and the Queensland Government.

To find out more, visit your local Queensland public library or visit first5forever.org.au.

Family Fun with Dr Rob Bell is a World Science Festival Brisbane Affiliate Event.

In 2019 State Library of Queensland celebrates the International Year of Indigenous Languages.

A great way for families to experience indigenous languages together is by learning an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander word for something they know how to say in their own language/s. To get you started, we’ve got word lists for animals, body parts and greetings from a range of languages spoken all over Queensland.

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Image: Joe Ruckli

The State Library website has had a facelift. 

Discover themed book lists and art making resources; tools and suggestions for supporting early literacy through the First 5 Forever program; and The Summer Reading Club to support a love of recreational reading through the summer.

Check out the What’s On section for family-friendly events and activities to help you learn, play and have fun together.

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Author Dave Lowe will challenge and inspire young writers aged 10–13 in a specially crafted workshop. A wonderful opportunity for young people with big imaginations and a love of stories.

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Workshop provided by Book Links (Qld).

Make an artist’s book with award winning illustrator Katrin Dreiling.

In a workshop tailored to 9–12 year olds, Katrin Dreiling will inspire young illustrators with the joy of artist’s books. Why not visit the artist book collection on Level 4 while you are here?

>> Book now

Workshop provided by Book Links (Qld)​.