The Joy Culture Foundation is a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to becoming a Chinese cultural hub through childhood education in the San Francisco Bay Area. We have a children’s library in Menlo Park, California, offering traditional and simplified Chinese children books, a play area, and a wide variety of Chinese classes. We also host cultural and community events, particularly for children ages 0-11. Our goal is to provide a platform where families can strengthen their bonds by immersing themselves in Chinese culture and literacy.

You can become a member to receive our newsletter regularly, and stay informed about our latest library promotions, course offerings, and events. Additionally, you can follow us on social media: Instagram Facebook LinkedIn 小紅書 We share updates about courses, events, workshops, and more on these platforms.

The Little Bookworm Chinese Library is a Chinese children's library for children aged 0-11 years old. In our library, besides Chinese children's books and a parent-child play area, we also offer Chinese storytime, arts & crafts time, and enrichment classes taught in Mandarin. Moreover, we regularly host various activities and festivals! These provide children with different ways to engage and immerse in Chinese beyond just books.

Address & Contact Number 934 Santa Cruz Ave #A, Menlo Park, CA 94205 650-272-6915 Email library@thejoyculturefoundation.org (for book borrowing/extension/fines and related matters) info@thejoyculturefoundation.org (for other library-related matters) Opening Hours Tuesday to Friday, 10 AM to 3 PM (Closed on Mondays) Saturday to Sunday, 10 AM to 4PM. Special holiday hours will be announced separately on the monthly calendar.

The Little Bookworm Chinese Library is free to the public to visit and browse, however, you must become a paid member to borrow books. Please note that free admission on Saturday from 10:00 to 12:00 is for members and class participants only.

The Little Bookworm Chinese Library currently has a collection of over 6,000 books, primarily including: A variety of popular Chinese children's picture books and magazines suitable for parent-child reading with preschoolers. Popular Chinese readers suitable for children aged 7-11 to read independently. Various Chinese parenting books and newspapers for parents and adults. Various brands of reading pens available for trial. A variety of other collections waiting for you to discover in the library!

Borrowing Books Please visit our Little Bookworm Chinese Library during our open hours to borrow books. Based on your membership tier, you can borrow up to 10 or 15 books at a time for a period of 4 weeks. To check the availability of books, please call us during opening hours or email us at library@thejoyculturefoundation.org. Returning Books You can return books at any time by placing them in the return box at the entrance, or by returning them in person during our open hours.

Each book can only be renewed once. For new members, you can log in our website and renew by yourself. Otherwise, to extend the borrowing period, you can visit our front desk, call our library at 650-272-6915, or email us at library@thejoyculturefoundation.org. If you choose the email option, please include the following information in your email: the list of books you wish to renew and your membership information.

Overdue Books If a book is overdue, the fine is $0.25 a day per book, with a maximum fine of $20 per book. Damaged Books If a book is damaged but repairable, the fine is $10 per book. Lost Books/Books severely damaged beyond repair If a book is lost or severely damaged beyond repair, the fine is $20 per book.

1. Borrowing Books: Based on your membership tiers, members can borrow up to ten or fifteen books at a time for a period of four weeks. 2. Reserving Books: Members can reserve books on-line. 3. Renewals: Members may request a one-time renewal to extend the borrowing period for an additional three weeks. 4. Participate in Activities: Priority participation in various events and workshops organized by the library. 5. Use of Reading Pens: Members can try various brands of reading pens for free. 6. Use of Board Games: Members can borrow board games from the library for in-library use. 5. Exclusive Member Discounts: Enjoy exclusive discounts on book purchases, course & event registrations, and more. 6. Exclusive Member Events: We host member exclusive events that are open only to members and not to general visitors. 7. Additional Benefits: Members receive exclusive discounts from various merchants.

Please fill out our membership application form on our library website or at the library front desk and pay the membership fee. You can join as a member and enjoy borrowing privileges on the same day. Please note that our membership is subscription-based and our system will automatically deduct the annual membership fee from your registered credit card each year until you cancel. If you wish to cancel your membership, please log in to the website to cancel or email info@thejoyculturefoundation.org

One week before your membership automatically renews each year, you will receive a renewal reminder via email. If you do not wish to continue your membership, we recommend logging into your account and canceling as soon as you receive the email. Once the payment is processed, you will need to email info@thejoyculturefoundation.org to request membership cancellation and a refund. If you request a cancellation within thirty days and didn’t use any member benefits, we can issue a refund, but a $5.25 transaction processing fee will be deducted. Please note that after thirty days, the current year's membership cannot be canceled. If you cancel your membership in the system after thirty days, it will only cancel the subscription for the following year. Your paid membership will continue until the end of the current membership period, during which time you can still enjoy all membership benefits.

Classes & Workshops Programs may be canceled seven days before the first class date when the minimum enrollment is not met. Please register early. If a class or program is canceled, participants are notified via email and will receive a full refund. Please note that refunds paid by credit card may take up to one to two weeks to process. No refunds are provided for any one to five sessions, including workshops, special events, and trial classes. Full refunds will be issued for cancellations made more than 10 business days before the start of the course and are subject to a 5% processing charge. For cancellations made 10 days or less from the start of the course, no refunds will be issued. Camps Camps: Cancel before April 9 2025: Each session will be refunded in full, less $50 cancellation fee. Cancel on or after April 9, 2025: No refunds will be issued. No prorations for partial sessions, and no refunds for missed days for any reason. Membership If you request a cancellation within thirty days and didn’t use any member benefits, we can issue a refund, but a transaction processing fee will be deducted. All cancellations need to be notified via email to info@thejoyculturefoundation.org

Our courses are conducted in Mandarin and encompass a wide range of subjects, such as music, instruments, dance, art, hands-on crafts, science, mathematics and Chinese language. The annual course schedule is divided into spring courses, autumn courses, and summer camp-related courses.

Our faculty includes current school teachers, former school teachers with extensive teaching experience, and professionals with community teaching experience. These educators possess exceptional expertise and skills in Chinese language instruction, and are able to provide comprehensive, high-quality educational services from various perspectives. They meet the diverse needs of students in areas such as language and culture.

For registration information, please refer to our official website for courses and related activity links. Registration is open to the public, not just to members. Occasionally, we offer member-exclusive discounts as a token of appreciation. https://www.thejoyculturefoundation.org/classes

We allow one absence per session for any personal reason and offer a credit equivalent to one class tuition, which must be used before the current course ends. You can make up any classes using your credits this season. However, if the makeup class’ fee less than your credits, they are non-refundable. If the cost of the makeup class is higher, you will need to pay the difference. To qualify for missed-class credits, students must notify us by email (info@thejoyculturefoundation.org) at least 72 hours before the scheduled start time. Please note that we do not offer credits or refunds for students who miss two or more classes for any reason, including illness or personal reasons, and a refund for a single class is excluded, including workshops, special events, and trial classes. Additionally, we cannot provide credits or refunds for missed classes when notification is received after the scheduled class time.