Lebanon Library has book bundles! What are a book bundles, you ask? They are little bundles of joy for your bundle of joy. We often have customers in the children”s section ask, “Where are the fairy books?” or “Where are the dog books?” As we all know, the picture books are shelved by author, and though a few authors write about a particular character, a librarian has to know the shelves well in order to pull several books about rabbits out of her hat.
Our Juvenile Easy (picture book) section is separate from the Easy nonfiction selections. Book bundles bring non-fiction, fiction and sometimes, DVDs together. The bundles are based on popular themes, like dinosaurs, frogs and bears – Oh, my!
You can find them on the upper display shelf in the children’s section. Come in and check them out – literally. If you don’t see a theme you like, make a suggestion.
Literacy begins at home — Recently on National Public Radio they ran a three part discussion on the importance of reading to children. There are a number of simple things parents can do with their young children to help them get ready to read and libraries can help.
In the interview, Dorothy Stoltz, who is the head of outreach and programming at the Carroll County Public Library, suggested five basic practices that helps lay thegroundwork for literacy. “Talk, sing, read, write and play. That is doable for every parent no matter how busy you are. You can fit in these practices in little bits of time with your children throughout the day.”
These five practices grew out of a body of research which demonstrated that “parental interaction with children at an early age is crucial to later success in school. A study done in 1995 indicated that children from higher-income families heard 30 million more words at home by the age of 4 than children from low-income homes. This has become known as the 30 million-word gap.” NPR
Every year teachers and librarians see children who struggle to read or even speak well. Hearing their language spoken correctly and often is so important to their future education, social and job success. A limited vocabulary is stumbling block for many children, but that is something we can fix. Visit the NPR website to listen to the series or our faceebook page for the link. Until next week, read another goodbook to your child.