By Hal, Rainbow Services Librarian March 31 is Transgender Day of Visibility (TDoV). Founded in 2009 by Rachel Crandall, Transgender Day of Visibility celebrates the resilience and accomplishments of transgender and nonbinary people. Back in November, we shared books and resources about gender identity. This time, in honor of TDoV, let’s explore some books written … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian What kind of things do you hear during the winter? When there’s a lot of snow on the ground, it can actually be very quiet! Until a snowplow comes by. Or the wind starts blowing and whistling. Or kids start playing in the snow. There are many benefits to paying … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Well, 2021 has certainly begun right where 2020 left off: with a lot of tough topics. Even our youngest kids know when big or upsetting things happen in the news. They may not know the details, but they can see and feel the strong emotions of their grownups and that … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Every year, our final Early Bird Reader tip we send via text (Want weekly early learning tips from the Oak Park Public Library? Sign up now for Early Bird Readers ») is to share stories about the year that’s ending. Sharing memories is a great way to practice narrating stories, … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Songs are powerful! When we plan our storytime classes, we organize them to build energy and then calm kids down before we send them back on their way. When we want to build energy, we do a lot of movement songs and silly songs, and then choose quieter songs to … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian I’m one of those odd ducks who loves winter and snow and is excited to get this season started. I know—my co-workers shake their head over me, too. But I also know this is going to be a long and hard winter for a lot of people, so Jenny and … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Miss Jenny and I both love building fun sounds into our storytimes and our videos. Sounds, especially unexpected ones, get and keep everyone’s interest and attention. Will your preschooler understand you if you give them directions using inflections and gestures but only mooing? Yes, probably! And they might even focus … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Mr. Andy, one of our past librarians, always used to tell caregivers that he could remember the words to “Sweet Caroline” much better than he could remember how to use and program his remote control. Does that feel familiar? Things set to song are easier to remember! If you have … Read more
Sometimes, at the Children’s Services desk, small kids come up to the desk and proudly read a book to us. Their caregiver will laugh and say they memorized it or are describing the pictures. And guess what? That is also reading! The articles about Picture Walks and Whole Book Reading offer ways to let kids … Read more
By Children’s Librarian Shelley Harris When we think about talking with our smallest kids, there are so many sounds involved: animal sounds, choo choo sounds, airplane sounds. These may feel like small things, but they’re important—the sounds we make with our kids are the building blocks of words. Being able to hear and practice those … Read more
By Shelley Harris, Children’s Librarian Miss Jenny and I have been sharing a lot of words this week—big ones like “disappointed” and fancy ones like “scarlet.” The more words kids hear and know, the easier it is to read and keep learning new words: They can guess what a new word means when they know … Read more
Searching for good picture books online? Here are some of our favorite digital resources! Your digital library Babybug & Cricket on Flipster: Find stories just for kids in two award-winning magazines. Hoopla: Easy to navigate and use, the app offers educational and fun options for young readers of all ages. Media on Demand & Libby: From … Read more
Know someone without a card? Help us spread the word! Learn more about getting and using your card » #1: You get to say yes more! No late fines and automatic renewals? Go ahead, get all the books, music, and movies you can carry—and then some. With each library card, you can check out up to 200 … Read more
