When I was a child, my favorite day of the week was Saturday. On Saturdays, I walked hand-in-hand with my mother into an old brick building and made a beeline for the blue plaster pillars which guarded the entrance to the building’s most sacred place: the children’s book section. I’d spend hours searching for books to read and often returned home with more tomes than my little arms could carry. Those weekly trips to the library helped foster in me a love of knowledge and stories that have profoundly impacted my life.
If you have a child, I highly recommend starting a similar library tradition today. Keep on reading to find out all the fun that happens on February fourth, and the different ways you can celebrate Take Your Child to the Library Day.
How Did this Holiday Begin?
Take Your Child to the Library Day (TYCLD for short) was founded in 2011 at the Connecticut Waterford Public Library by librarians Nadine Lipman and Caitlin Augusta, as well as author and illustrator Nancy Elizabeth Wallace. Since its founding, this holiday has been recognized across the United States, Canada, and several other countries and has impacted 48.7 million people!
How is TYCLD Celebrated?
To celebrate this holiday, many libraries offer fun activities for the whole family free of charge. The type of events vary from library to library, but these activities can include ice cream socials, crafts, and most importantly, storytime sessions. In addition, parents can allow their children to play and learn with other kids, meet their local librarian, and even get a library card.
Why Should You Celebrate
There are so many benefits to encouraging your children to develop a love of reading. According to the official TYCLD website, children who are proficient readers by the time they graduate third grade are more likely to graduate high school, which expands their opportunities for brighter futures. Also, library storytimes help preschool-aged children develop good academic and social skills that contribute to success in school as they grow older. Furthermore, Libraries offer free access to the internet and computers, which help kids learn necessary technologies for today’s world.
But what could be better than all these learning opportunities? Fun! Most public libraries offer dozens of activities designed to get people of all ages engaged and excited about reading, while also encouraging the development of intelligent and curious minds.
How To Get Involved
Visit your local library’s website or give them a call to see if they have any activities planned for Take Your Child To The Library Day. If you are a librarian and would like for your institution to sign up as a participating library, you can register on the TYCLD website by clicking here!
Even if there are no TYCLD events planned near you, still take the opportunity to bring your child, grandchild, or inner child to the library. Opening a book and discovering a whole new world inside is one of the best ways to spend a Saturday.
To read more about bookish holidays, click!
To read more about children’s books, click here!