Public Libraries

It’s official. Gum Spring Library is no longer the new kid in town. And now the realization that tweens are the most frequent Teen Center users has forced staff to look more closely at upcoming programs.

How to counter the “summer slide”? Simple, kids during the out-of-school months should read more books, according to journalist and author Annie Murphy Paul. And libraries play a critical role

During his “busman’s holiday” in France, SLJ’s contributing editor Rocco Staino was invited to Paris to tour the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the National Center for Children’s Literature. In this dispatch, he shares what he learned about the business of kids’ books in France—notably, American authors are very popular—plus highlights of his visits to other library branches and bookstores.

Saint Paul (MN) public schools and the Saint Paul Public Library have teamed up to provide library cards and library resources to incoming freshmen with their Wild Cards! summer school program.

There was a spirit of optimism among attendees at the 2013 annual American Library Association (ALA) conference held recently in Chicago, especially among school media specialists and youth services librarians. Members of ALA’s three youth divisions were particularly energized and motivated by the dynamic programming and renewed advocacy efforts, they say.

Research has long supported the importance of play in early literacy, yet many parents remain mystified about how to engage with young children in fun activities, particularly at the pre-verbal stage. Enter the library.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that when you have easy access to amazing things the relative value you place upon those things diminishes significantly after a surprisingly short amount of time. Case in Point: When I worked across the street from the MOMA for several years it was apparently too difficult for me, even [...]

Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy (CLEL), an advisory group to the Colorado State Library, is launching the Bell Picture Book Awards, with the first honorees set to be announced on February 5, 2014. The program is designed to celebrate books that foster adult-child engagement around the early literacy practices of read, write, sing, talk, and play.

Tech-savvy younger Americans are more likely than older adults to have read printed books in the past year, are more likely to appreciate reading in libraries, and are just as strong supporters of traditional library services as older adults, a new national report from the Pew Research Center shows. And, according to the survey of Americans ages 16–29, a majority of young adults say it is “very important” for libraries to have librarians and books for borrowing.