Jennifer Garner bonds with Ben Affleck's ex, Gwyneth Paltrow

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Sept. 15 (UPI) -- Jennifer Garner bonded with Ben Affleck's ex-girlfriend, Gwyneth Paltrow, over the weekend.

The 43-year-old actress spent time with Paltrow at the Think It Up charity telethon on Friday. The event marked Garner's first public appearance since she and Affleck announced their split in June.

Garner wasn't wearing her wedding ring when she told Entertainment Tonight her favorite thing about school was the library. The Think It Up telethon raised funds for student-powered, teacher-led learning projects in classrooms nationwide.

Affleck and Paltrow were together from 1997 to 2000, and co-starred in Shakespeare in Love and Bounce during their relationship. The actress said Affleck wasn't "in a good place in his life to have a girlfriend" at the time during an interview with Howard Stern in January.

Garner and Affleck co-starred in Pearl Harbor and Daredevil before marrying in June 2005. The former couple share 9-year-old Violet, 6-year-old Seraphina and 3-year-old Samuel, and were spotted with their kids at a farmer's market in Los Angeles on Sunday.