If you’re not paying attention, it’s easy to miss a certain part of a library storytime session. A young child, perhaps two or three years old, leans forward with a non-performative expression as the librarian holds up a picture book. Just focus. The child is already curious about what will happen next even though the story isn’t yet complete. Early childhood researchers have been writing about this early impulse for decades: one of the most enduring habits you can give a child is the desire to know what will happen next, and it usually manifests itself first through books.
Even though it is rarely discussed in public, the research connecting early library exposure to long-term literacy is fairly consistent. Before the age of five, children who receive regular reading have greater vocabularies, stronger comprehension abilities, and improved phonemic awareness when they start school. These gaps still exist. A child has a quantifiable advantage that tends to increase rather than decrease as school years go on if they are already familiar with the rhythm and logic of stories when they enter kindergarten. This effect is not solely produced by the library, but it is concentrated and accelerated in ways that are difficult to duplicate at home without substantial time and resources.
This is made tangible by the programming offered by Valley Cottage Library. Its storytime sessions, which revolve around picture books, music, and basic movement, accomplish more than just amusement. They provide parents with an example of how to read aloud at home. They normalize the behavior by placing kids in a room with other kids who are listening. Additionally, they place books in small hands on a regular basis, creating the impression that books are something you come across every week, much like dinner or bath time. Children’s books, storytimes, educational programs, and opportunities for lifelong learning are all available to families who use Valley Cottage Library. Although that statement may seem straightforward, the cumulative impact of these resources over a child’s five or six years of life is anything but.
The summer reading program is underutilized by the families who stand to gain the most from it, which is one reason it deserves special attention. The concept is straightforward: kids read books throughout the summer, keep track of their development, and receive little prizes when they meet certain goals. The summer slide, which is the well-established propensity of kids, particularly those without strong reading habits at home, to lose reading gains made during the school year, is what it actually prevents. A child who doesn’t open a book for ten weeks is in a completely different position when they return to school in September than one who reads regularly throughout July and August. Every child, regardless of financial situation, can access the structured, free library version of this. Although the reason why enrollment isn’t higher in most communities is still unknown, it’s likely related to parents not being aware of it.
Entering a children’s library section can be a little intimidating for parents who are navigating this for the first time. Board books, picture books, early readers, middle school, graphic novels, audiobooks, DVDs, magazine subscriptions, and digital lending are just a few of the many resources available. The natural tendency to browse aimlessly frequently leads to leaving with a random item and never returning. The better method is to describe your child, including their age, interests, and whether they would rather be read to or read on their own, and let a librarian create a small stack. If you ask, most librarians will provide this information without being asked. It’s free advice that can’t be duplicated by going to a bookstore, and it functions remarkably well.
Another factor to take into account is bilingual programming, which Valley Cottage and many other libraries in multilingual communities provide. Storytime in their native tongue is more than just a comfort for kids growing up in homes where English is not the primary language. It reaffirms that reading is a natural activity rather than a school assignment in a foreign language. It creates the cognitive scaffolding that makes learning to read in a second language much simpler by tying a child’s enjoyment of stories to the language they already know. This is well known in literacy education, and libraries that provide it are doing truly important work, frequently with little acknowledgment.
It is common for the book-related habits that were developed at age five to manifest in a recognizable way at age twenty-five. Nearly all adults who read for pleasure say they were read to as kids. Adults who find reading tedious frequently claim that they were not exposed to it at a young age or, worse, that it was more of a school requirement than a source of personal interest. The evidence indicates that the library can significantly improve the chances for young children who visit its doors on a regular basis, even though it may not be able to reverse all of that.
Given what it actually unlocks, it’s difficult to ignore the library card’s almost comical undervaluation as an item. With a card, a child can access thousands of books, organized programming, a quiet area watched over by professionals who are more knowledgeable about children’s literature than the majority of parents, and a set of routines centered around regular interaction with written language. Other than the taxes that support the library, none of this is expensive. The card is free in and of itself. The twenty minutes it takes to go register is the only expense.
If there’s a useful tip hidden in all of this, it’s this: if a child in your life—your own, your niece or nephew’s, or your neighbor’s child—doesn’t already have a library card, all it takes is a trip to the branch and proof of address. Most libraries offer storytime sessions for various age groups throughout the week, and the schedule is typically available online.
