I Hear a Búho with Raquel MacKay
2025-02-22 10:30 - 11:00 (America/Chicago) | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
I Hear a Búho is a rhyming story with text in English and Spanish, which encompasses language, the parent-child bond, nature, and the benefit of being still, and listening.
A mother and daughter are snuggling together on their porch, listening to the sounds of the night. A girl makes animal calls and her mother responds sweetly. To their surprise a real owl appears and flies across the night sky.

Raquel MacKay resides in Iowa City, Iowa with her husband, two young sons, and big white dog. During the day, she teaches English language learners from many cultural backgrounds. She also teaches Spanish at a little school that she started for young kids in her community (La Escuelita). In her free time, she enjoys dancing, going on outdoor adventures with her family, working on projects, reading, and so much more. There is always something to see, learn, or do. And there’s always a story to tell.

Middle School Writing Jam…And That’s When Things Got Weird…
2025-02-22 10:30 - 12:30 | The Tuesday Agency, 404 E College St, Unit 408, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
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Featuring guest author, Mike Meginnis
Meginnis is the author of Drowning Practice (2022, Ecco) and Fat Man and Little Boy (2014, Black Balloon). His short fiction and essays have appeared in Hobart, PANK, The Lifted Brow, Recommended Reading, Booth, The Pinch, The Collagist, The Sycamore Review, Fanzine, American Book Review, and Writer’s Digest. His story “Navigators” appeared in Best American Short Stories 2012. He lives and works in Iowa City.

A Visit with Owl Friends
2025-02-22 11:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Head upstairs to Theater 3 for Owls!
Meet real live owls and learn about their fascinating behaviors and habitats from an expert handler. Discover what makes these majestic birds so extraordinary in this engaging, family-friendly event!

Animal Poems from IC Speaks
2025-02-22 11:30 - 12:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
IC Speaks poets will perform their own original poems about animals, along with some classics.
IC Speaks seeks to develop and sustain an inclusive, thriving spoken-word poetry community in Iowa City that empowers youth from all backgrounds to speak their truths.
Learn more at IC Speaks :: Iowa City Poetry

Readers Theater with the Montessori School of Iowa City
2025-02-22 13:00 - 13:30 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Montessori School of Iowa City’s elementary students present a readers’ theatre inspired by the Montessori Second Great Lesson: The Coming of Life. Montessori Elementary students are encouraged to be curious and wonder while developing an understanding of the Universe as a whole. This impressionistic Readers’ Theater invites children to initially learn about how life came to be on Earth while leaving room to ask questions and explore different topics.

Workshop – Today We Celebrate (Or Not!)
2025-02-22 13:00 - 15:00 | The Tuesday Agency, 404 E College St, Unit 408, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Looking for silly ways to be happy in spite of it all? Join us for a two hour workshop where we’ll use writing to find and celebrate all the ways we come together in our lives – from the perfect bubble tea, to binge watching our favorite series, family dinner, or sitting with our friends at lunch. In this low-stakes workshop, we’ll try out different writing genres, including poetry, memoir, and fiction. Whether you’re new to writing or have been doing it forever, you’re welcome to come celebrate creativity with us!
There will be light snacks (cookies!)
FREE, 6-8th graders are welcome to sign up!
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INSTRUCTORS
Born and raised in Michigan, Lisa K. Roberts has taught literature and composition in Hong Kong, Charlottesville, Virginia, Las Vegas, and Lincoln, Nebraska. After moving to Iowa City, she worked as Assistant Director of the Iowa Youth Writing Project to bring free creative writing workshops to children and teens. Today she serves as Director of Iowa City Poetry, a nonprofit arts organization dedicated to redistributing poetry resources with writers of all ages, incomes, identities, and experience levels. In this role, she co-produces The Free Generative Writing Workshops, IC Speaks Slam Team, Iowa City Poetry Al Fresco, Write at the Stanley, and Mic Check Poetry Fest. Her poetry has been published in Plainsongs, The Untidy Season, Little Village, Backchannels Journal, and she has been a featured spoken word performer at various venues, including Voice Box, Was the Word, NewBo PoJam, and Poetry in Motion.
Ruth “Ruben” Thomas is a poet and Iowa City local. Originally a fiction writer, she was introduced to spoken word poetry in 2019 and has been writing poetry ever since. She has competed in both local slams and state competitions, and has opened for poets such as Patricia Smith, Ebony Stewart, and Rudy Francisco. Reuben volunteers with youth program IC Speaks as an assistant director, youth coordinator, and slam team coach. When not behind the mic stand, she loves to still be on stage acting and singing, or finding somewhere quiet to drink boba, crochet, and binge watch video essays.

Maisy Mouse Storytime!
2025-02-22 14:30 - 15:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Join us for a fun-filled Maisy Mouse storytime, featuring plenty of adventures with everyone’s favorite curious little mouse!

Trains!
2026-02-21 10:00 | MERGE, 136 S Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Full steam ahead for Lego and BRIO train fun with Dan Daly. Stop in at MERGE on the pedmall and play all day! (136 S. Dubuque Street Iowa City, next to the library and playground)
🚂 Calling all train lovers & helpers! 🚂
We need 4 awesome volunteers to make Trains! at One Book Two Book extra magical. This is the event where kids get to explore a whole room full of Brio & LEGO train fun, and YOU can help make it happen!
✨ Volunteer roles we need:
🔹 2 Track Builders — Help design & set up the tracks on Friday, Feb. 20
🔹 2 Train Assistants — Help kids, keep things moving, and spread the train joy on Saturday, Feb. 21
No experience necessary — just energy, teamwork, and a love of trains (or a willingness to learn 😉).
🚆 Sign up to volunteer!

Book Fair at One Book Two Book
2026-02-21 10:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
At FilmScene at The Chauncey
Join us for a celebration of children’s literature and writing! Books, author readings, writing workshops, film screenings, crafts, costume characters, and more!
Coralville Public Library | Iowa City Public Library | Midwest Chinese Academy | PaperPie | Scattergood Friends School | Sidekick Coffee & Books | The Book End | The Iowa Children’s Museum | Toadally Awesome Pets | Willowwind School

Sponsored by FilmScene

Jacqueline Briggs Martin: Turtles Heading Home
2026-02-21 10:00, 2026-02-21 10:30 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
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The waters around Cape Cod used to cool off gradually, signaling to sea turtles that it was time to swim south. But now, due to climate change, the water stays warm too long and cools off too quickly, making the turtles too cold to migrate.
Join author Jacqueline Briggs Martin as she reads from her latest book, Turtles Heading Home. Learn about the efforts of conservationists as they rescue the turtles, nurse them back to health, and release them into warmer waters. The operation involves hundreds of people, from the volunteers patrolling beaches, to the veterinarians in the hospital, to the pilots who fly the turtles south. All of them share the goal of helping save the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle—the most endangered sea turtle in the world.
Note – There will be two readings at 10-10:30 a.m., and again 10:30-11 a.m.

Drop-in Illustration Workshop with Matt Laux
2026-02-21 10:00 - 12:00 | MERGE, 136 S Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Join an all-ages free draw with Iowa City artist Matt Laux. Matt is a father, chef, and artist, inviting everyone to be creative and joyful. We will provide the paper and drawing tools, you provide the creativity!

Snapshots Cover Contest
2026-02-21 10:00 - 15:00 | MERGE, 136 S Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Kids, this is your chance to make snapshots extra special! Everyone’s art will get a spot in the magazine, but one person will get to be our cover — and it could be you!
snapshots is the University of Iowa’s literary magazine for children! The journal is written, produced, edited, and published by undergraduate/graduate students enrolled at the University of Iowa.

Slither, Stick, and Scribble: Writing with Reptiles
2026-02-21 10:30 - 11:30 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to chase your dinner up a wall? Or see heat? Or smell with your tongue? Join us to interact with live reptiles, learn how they experience the world, then explore your ideas through the very human act of creative writing. Prepare to slither and scribble with a bearded dragon, a black and white tegu, a Russian tortoise, some crested geckos, and a couple of snakes!
Recommended for grades 1-6. Please register ahead if your child plans to attend so we can get a sense of numbers. Walk-ins are always welcome! Only children who will participate need to register—parents or caregivers attending do not need to register.
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Brought to you by Extant Relatives and Iowa City Poetry in partnership with the One Book Two Book Festival.

Sing-Along
2026-02-21 11:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
The Iowa Children’s Museum Sing Along will feature creature sounds, animal songs and dancing for the whole family!

The Big Picture show presents: ICE AGE
2026-02-21 11:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Free for Kids! Adult Admission $5!
Twenty-thousand years ago, Earth is a wondrous, prehistoric world filled with great danger, not the least of which is the beginning of the Ice Age. To avoid really bad frostbite, the planet’s majestic creatures—and a few small, slothful ones—begin migrating south as we follow our sub-zero heroes: a woolly mammoth (Ray Romano), a saber-toothed tiger (Dennis Leary) , a sloth (John Leguizamo) and a prehistoric combination of a squirrel and rat that is known as Scrat (Chris Wedge).
About the Series

The Picture Show family and children’s series is an ongoing series featuring the best in all ages programming, selected from the past century of cinema. Parents can revel in beloved classics and kids make new discoveries. On weekends, each film is preceded by a media literacy lesson to help children understand the images and sounds they encounter every day. Kids can pick up their Picture Show Passport to collect stickers at every show and redeem them for concessions treats or a free t-shirt!

Local Children’s Book Author Fair
2026-02-21 11:00 - 15:00 | MERGE, 136 S Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Join us as local children’s book authors share their newest stories, answer questions, and sign books. Explore each author’s table, where a variety of books for young readers will be available for purchase.
Sandra Rhea | Allison Ward | Michelle Gillitzer | Ashlyn Solinsky | Breanna Ferry | Nalina Siva

Book Character Meet & Greet
2026-02-21 12:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Bring your camera and snap a picture with Clifford and Frog & Toad

Toadally Awesome Pets Presents An Amphibian Open House
2026-02-21 12:30 - 15:00 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Hop on over to meet some of the coolest frogs, toads, and salamanders around! Join Toadally Awesome Pets’ Mobile Amphibian Education Center for a hands-on open house where kids and families can explore the amazing world of amphibians up close. You’ll get to see and touch a variety of live amphibians on display, learn fun facts about what makes each species special, and discover why these creatures are so important to our ecosystems.

Storytime
2026-02-21 13:00 - 13:30 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Join your favorite librarians for a very special storytime!

Lunar New Year Storytime
2026-02-21 13:30 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Join Midwest Chinese Academy for a festive Lunar New Year storytime! Enjoy a heartwarming Chinese New Year story about family reunion and learn how to say “Happy New Year” in Mandarin. Perfect for curious young learners and families!

Book Character Meet & Greet
2026-02-21 14:00 - 14:30 | FilmScene at The Chauncey, 404 E College St, Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Bring your camera and snap a picture with Clifford and Frog & Toad!

Write Out Loud Student Award Ceremony
2026-02-22 13:00 - 14:00 | Macbride Auditorium, 17 N. Clinton St., Iowa City, IA, 52240, United States
Students in grades 1 through 8 in Corridor area districts have been invited to submit writing to One Book Two Book! Those submissions are evaluated by a team at ACT in Iowa City. Grade-level winners will be selected in two categories:

The Write Stuff, which is judged based on language, clarity, structure, and emotional impact.
From the Heart, judged based on creativity, passion, and expressiveness.

Recognized students will read their winning submissions at “Write Out Loud,” a special award ceremony Sunday, February 22, at 1 p.m. in Macbride Auditorium, on the campus of the University of Iowa. In addition, a percentage of all students whose submissions were deemed to be of outstanding quality also will be honored with a “certificate of distinction.” All recognized students will receive certificates and prizes at the event. The grade-level prize winners will have their work published in a booklet available at the festival.
