Beginner English

Walnut Street West Library is running a Beginner English class on Wednesday and Friday mornings this fall, and it's open to new Americans. It's a free class for adult and senior beginners, focused on the kind of English you actually use in daily life—the stuff that helps when you're out and about in the city.

The sessions run from 10:30 AM to 12 PM, Wednesdays and Fridays, from September 23 through December 2, 2026. Since it's a recurring thing, you can drop in when it works for you rather than committing to every single date. There's no registration required, so you just show up.

The class is held at the Walnut Street West Library, at 201 South 40th Street—40th and Walnut Streets in West Philadelphia. The branch has been serving the neighborhood since 1906, though it actually opened back on May 28, 1895, as the fifth Philadelphia Public Library branch. The building it's in now opened on June 26, 1906, and it was the first of thirty libraries funded by an Andrew Carnegie grant, built at a cost of $80,387.68 on land donated by West Philadelphia banker Clarence Clark, whose will deeded the land to the city 'in perpetuity' as long as a library sat on it. A mural of West Philadelphia scenes by artist Paul Santoleri welcomes visitors at the entrance.

So, if you're a new American looking to get more comfortable with English for everyday life, the class is free, no registration needed, and runs 10:30 AM to 12 PM on Wednesdays and Fridays through December 2 at Walnut Street West Library.