Storytime

Did you know that between the ages of 2 and 6 children have the ability to learn 6 to 10 new words a day? From the always helpful Not Just Cute blog comes this article about why it's important for adults to use "quality language" with children. While "baby talk" has been shown to support language development in infants, by the time children get older, they need to be hearing a rich vocabulary. 

Many of our storytime families will be traveling this summer! Here’s a craft you can use with a Things that Go or Travelling storytime that starts with recycled maps.

Ask your staff or patrons if they have old maps they can bring in, or call your local AAA office to see if they have out-of-date maps they would be willing to donate.

Cut the maps into smaller pieces, and cut triangles and squares out of construction paper. If you have a diecut machine, you can use it to cut Xs, but if you don’t, skinny rectangle shapes can be glued criss-cross to make your own Xs.

Recently we wrote about using crafts as a component of literacy-based storytimes. Here is an example of a simple craft that can be an effective conversation starter.

Cloud Collage

You can make a cloud collage as part of a storytime about Birds, Spring or Summer, Weather, Things that Go, Balloons, Up and Down...what else?

Has it been a while since you visited StoryBlocks to check out the videos of songs and rhymes for young children that include literacy tips for parents? Well, it's time to go back, because we've added 6 new videos! 4 of the videos are in English, while 2 more are in Spanish. We hope you enjoy them, and share them widely with the parents and caregivers who visit your library!

Post by Jeff G.