A child enjoys a play time in Bloomer

The importance of play in the development of young children is so critical!  It is great to see so many libraries develop spaces and programs that encourage play.  I love hearing about and seeing playful elements in story time, STEAM programs, and more.  It is such a great way to learn, explore, develop language skills, problem-solve, and cooperate. 

I came across this article (thanks to a post to an email list I’m on by Saroj Ghoting) in the journal Young Children:  Public Libraries Harness the Power of Play.  It looks at the way libraries that have been trained in Every Child Ready to Read have incorporated this information into their services.  One of the biggest things they note is that there is a lot more intentional opportunity for PLAY in the libraries that have this information. 

If you want more information about Every Child Ready to Read, or want to borrow the IFLS Every Child Ready to Read kit, please let me know!  And if you just want to talk about play, and how to incorporate it into what your library is provi

ding for kids of all ages, I want to hear about that, too!