“The fire of literacy is created by the sparks between a child, a book, and the person reading. It isn’t achieved by the book alone, nor by the child alone, nor by the adult who’s reading aloud-it’s the relationship winding between all three, bringing them together in easy harmony.” -Mem Fox
Lots of us have heard how important and beneficial reading to your child is, especially at a young age. Some of my greatest memories with my children have been us reading together or watching my children cuddle around their dad so they could listen to him read them a story. I have counted on the public libraries where we have lived to be able to check out books so that we didn’t grow tired of the ones we had in our personal library at home. The Madison County Library has met all my expectations in providing a great array of books for my children to read or for me to read to them. My four children, who are 9, 6, 5, and 22 months have all found something they enjoy that the library offers. My son, who is 22 months old, loves to go to the library and play in the Kid’s Corner. There is nothing better than seeing your child, no matter how old, grab a book, get comfy on a couch or chair, and read that book. My son does that now since the library added those comfy kid’s moveable couches/chairs. Him and I also greatly enjoyed in the Story Walk that the library did. It was so fun to watch him run around on the sidewalks, pointing to the pages and making the animal sounds. My 5-year-old daughter loves to learn about the human body. I told her that the library probably had books about it, and I was right. They had a small selection that ranged from short and simple to more complex and detailed. She looked at those books almost every day and wanted to share what she had learned when she looked at them and when I read to her. I have a love of learning that I have tried to pass on to my children. When they have questions or want to learn about something I tell them we should go to the library and find a book about it. The library hasn’t let me down. We have always been able to find a book to answer their questions and expand their knowledge on a certain topic. My 6-year-old daughter loves the Discovery Kits that the library offers. She also likes to do crafts, so the take home crafts that the library provides are perfect for her. She also comments on all the cool decorations that the librarians make to go along with their different themes. They spark her imagination and give her ideas on what she would like to make or draw at home. She is a budding reader, and it makes her feel proud when she can read a whole book by herself. The library has a large selection of easy reader books that are perfect for her. My oldest daughter, who is 9, loves to read but was having a hard time finding books that were somewhat between graphic novels and full-on junior novels, which were a lot longer than what she was used to reading. Those bigger books were intimidating to her, but she was wanting something more than the Magic Tree House series. One of the librarians helped her find a few series that fit the bill in what she was looking for. Going to the library got exciting for her again because she had found books that captured her attention. That helped her move on from fearing those bigger chapter books to being interested and ready to read them. The Madison County Library is a great resource for me as a mom as my husband and I try to promote the importance of literacy to our children. We have made lots of great memories of laughing as a family when we have read a funny book that we checked out at the library, for example, “Bob, not Bob!” by Liz Garton Scanlon and Audrey Vernick. Mary Ellen Chase, who was an American educator, scholar, and author said this, “There is no substitution for books in the life of a child.” I whole heartly agree with her. The library makes it possible for me to make sure my children have access to books, whether to learn about something and/or go on an adventure. The whole world is open to them when they have access to books and that’s something I am truly grateful for.
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