L is for Library Fun

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?

 --We also participate in each library's Summer Reading Program. It's sort of neat how they have complemented each other in the last couple of years, not that they are designed that way. In the local library there is a designated day to go to the library and there have been special presentations planned on some weeks, such as puppet shows or learning about astronomy. They've also done crafts. They can earn dollars by participating and reading during the week. They can save their money to buy items at the Summer Reading Store in the library. And they receive a free book each week. We are hoping it is going to be the same this year.

The majority of our reading is done by reading the books we take out of the other library. The library has different activities planned each day of the week, we usually only go on the craft day as we live 20 minutes away. No matter what day of the week we go in, the girls get to spin the wheel to see how many books they can check out (7-10 books). Then we go find the books that interest the girls. After we check them out the girls spin the wheel again to win a prize. They either get to choose from the big treasure chest or the little treasure chest.

Does your library have a Summer Reading Program?

What other fun ways do you utilize your library?