This September, Snoopy, the world-famous beagle, is serving as Honorary Chair for Library Card Sign-up Month. The goal of this campaign, which is sponsored by the American Library Association, is to put a library card in every child’s hand and encourage them to use it. Since the campaign’s inception in 1987, schools and libraries have teamed together to obtain this goal. Libraries across the United States want parents to know that a library card is the most important back-to-school supply.
Libraries transform lives through education and lifelong learning, as librarians play an invaluable role in the education of youth. Studies show that children who read either at home or in the library perform better in school and are more likely to continue to use the library as a source of lifetime learning. It wasn’t too long ago, during the first newborn pediatrician visit, doctors would just do the basic health check up. Now, more and more pediatricians are having the conversation with new parents about the importance of reading, as reading has been proven to stimulate optimal patterns of brain development, which builds language skills.
Librarians are literacy experts. They design programs that stimulate and enrich learning, while providing fun and engaging opportunities to learn. They offer an array of activities, from baby story time, to toddler and pre-school age (which often include puppets, music, dance and singing), to tween and teen programming as well. These events create a foundation for a love of reading in children, and also offer a connective outreach for parents and caregivers to socialize and make new friends. Best of of all, these story times are free!
The creative nature of events that libraries host is remarkable. I sometimes forget the value that the library provides for quality family time as well. Last month my family joined a room packed with kids and parents to watch “The Rope Warrior,” a jump rope superstar, a Guinness World Record holder and an amazing performer. It was an energetic, jaw dropping event and everyone was hooting and hollering over the tricks and stunts performed. Once again, I was amazed at the creative programs that libraries offer that are FREE to attend. Libraries are my go-to place, not just for my children, but for me and my voracious reading habit. If it were not for the library, I would go broke from buying books for my family.
Library Sign-Up Month is a great reminder that the our local libraries provide an extension to education beyond school and our home. So visit your local library this month and find out all the great things it has to offer your family!
Fun Fact: The Library Company of Philadelphia, founded in 1731 by Benjamin Franklin and a group of his friends, became the first American subscription library. The Library Company, while founded as a membership library, did allow members to borrow books, and so may have been the first truly public library.
