Children Benefit From Library Experiences

November 05, 2010

"There is only one child in the world and his name is All Children."  Carl Sandberg

Children come to the library with parents, grandparents, and daycare providers. Cheers for all the adults who provide care for young children! The benefits of children coming to the library include getting to know about books, such as how to choose them, handle them, notice pictures and words, and how to return them when finished.

As parents, grandparents, and caregivers, you give your child an advantage by coming to the library and starting now to learn early literacy skills. Early literacy skills are the skills a child knows before he or she learns to read or write. Early literacy equips your child with skills that make successful readers, and choosing library books your child likes is the perfect place to begin.

Storytimes offer a structured setting in which children can explore books and stories. It is a simple and positive way to introduce children to good literature, and to offer an opportunity for socialization with children of similar ages. The Raytown Branch offers storytimes three times a week: Toddler Time on Tuesday at 11:00am; Family Storytime on Thursday at 7:00pm, and Family Storytime on Friday at 10:00 am. Consult other MCPL Branches for storytime schedules or take a book at Beyond the Books for other storytime schedules.

Teachers of elementary students agree that the more early literacy experiences children have, the more positive reading experiences they will have in school. Parents, grandparents, and caregivers have the opportunity to provide those early literacy experiences by coming to the library and by coming to storytime.

Give it a try and see what you might be missing.

Amy T.
Raytown Branch