I have always liked to read, so the library has always had a special place in my heart. I can remember having my own library card as a child and what fun it was to check out books. When I was in High School I even helped out in the school library. Of course, I want my children to have the same love of books as I do. When my older children struggled with reading comprehension it really hindered their ability to enjoy books. I wanted to make sure my younger little ones had an early start with reading, it was actually one of the reasons I wanted to homeschool, I did not like the way our school system taught children to read.
I made sure to focus on making reading fun. One of the ways I've done that is by reading to them a lot. We have also participated in a lot of fun activities that the libraries in our area provide. How do you utilize your library? Here are some of the ways we use our two nearby libraries.
--We check out lots of books from the library. I will put many books on hold related to the unit we are on and the children can also take out a few books that they would like to read. We have a box full of books in the dining room plus a basket in the living room that is supposed to be full of the relevant books for our unit. Now if we could just stop misplacing books and getting charged fines.
-- We have participated in the one library's Story Time in the past. They had 3 different groups meeting at different times during the week. Two designed for 2-3 yr olds and 1 designed for 4-5 yr olds. The girls loved going and signing songs, listening to stories, doing crafts, doing some active play and having snack. Then we got to check out books. I love that this library allows the girls to have their own card, I think it makes it more special for them that they are the ones taking it out. Unfortunately with playgroup and co-op, and the fact that we would have to participate in 2 separate story times because of the ages of the children, we can no longer participate.
--Our town library just started a Story Hour a month ago and we have shown up every week, though they are struggling with getting participation. Such is the problem of living in a small town I guess.
We gather in the special children's room to read a book.
Then it's time for some active play. Today they played Red Light, Green Light because the book was "Go Dog, Go!"
Then it was time for the craft. I sat Harold in this comfy chair and he actually sat there for a while, just watching, instead of tearing books and movies off the shelf like he usually does.
Yes, they are making traffic lights.
Does your library offer a children's Story Time/Story Hour?
Does your library have a Summer Reading Program?
What other fun ways do you utilize your library?
We LOVE our library. We just started the summer reading program also. Ours has a reading record for all ages, so even I get in on the fun. :-)
ReplyDeleteAll these activities look like so much fun. Our library does Summer Reading but we decided not to participate this year, instead we are adding more crafts and life skills to summer school.
ReplyDeleteWe love the library. We have to pay to use a bigger library since we are not residence of that county. It is so worth it, though. We almost always have 100+ books checked out. We no longer due story time as it is difficult with one vehicle but have loved it in years past.
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