About 40 toddlers and babies, and their โbig peopleโ โ also known as parents or grandparents โ find their spots on the library floor.
Some look through books. Some laugh and play. Some fuss.
All wait for toddler story time at Nanini Library to begin.
Story time is a โvery popularโ event for the 5-and-under set, says Cat Strong, senior childrenโs librarian at Nanini Library.
So popular, in fact, that Nanini hosts an average of 27 story time events each month. In September, they drew 875 people.
A recent toddler story time drew 90 people to the library, practically filling the room, Strong says. The average attendance is 65.
โIn the past, weโve had to turn people away because it was at capacity,โ Strong notes. And while she doesnโt want to have to turn people away, she is glad to see so many people at the library.
Toddler story time at Nanini Library is just one of 57 weekly story time events held by the Pima County Public Library system across its 27 locations.
Story times are held for different age groups, each one offering a fun introduction to reading and language through stories, songs and activities: Baby time for babies up to 18 months, toddler story time for kids ages 18-to-36 months, preschool story time for children ages 3-to-5 years and family story time for the whole family.
The events are geared toward teaching early literacy, building a community of readers and acting as models for parents to continue the lessons, Strong says.
โEarly literacy is very important,โ Strong says. โFocusing on talking, singing, reading, writing and playing lays the foundation for children to learn to become readers. Research shows that success in reading leads to success in school.โ
The free events provide access to literacy opportunities to thousands of families across Tucson.
โHaving access to books and literacy opportunities, including story time, ensures that children are ready to learn and ready to read when they begin school,โ says Amber Mathewson, deputy director of the Pima County Public Library. โStory time at the public library is free and open to all and is an excellent way for parents to learn about early literacy and brain development. As a childโs first teacher it is important for parents to have access to those skills and tools.โ
Story time isnโt just about sitting on the floor, listening as someone reads. Rather, Strong keeps kids engaged by interacting with them and having them make movements or sounds that correspond with the story.
For example, if a character in the story is cold, Strong directs the children to make shivering movements. When a story calls for an animal sound, the kids get to make them.
As she makes her entrance, Strong greets each family with the story time mascot, a puppet named โLola the Lopp-Eared Bunny.โ
โHow are you doing today?โ she asks the children, through Lola. โAre you happy today?โ
โGood,โ a child answers, shyly.
Little hands take turns petting Lola.
Itโs time to start โ with song and dance, of course.
Strong stands in front of the room and demonstrates the movements to โWheels on the Bus.โ
Most children and parents follow suit.
Before you know it, story time is in full swing, with Strong reading and most parents and children participating.
Thereโs no pressure on kids to do everything, Strong says.
โToddlers are active, mobile little people and their attention spans vary. I try to get everyone to focus, but sometimes you get some looking around,โ Strong says. โI try to make everybody comfortable and let the child take the lead on how they participate.โ
Concepts such as book handling, socializing, being good listeners and rhyming words are a focus of each event. Those concepts can be built upon at home with handouts and takeaways Strong sends with participants.
โNow weโre going to do our freeze dance,โ Strong says to the group. โSo you have to be good listeners. When the music stops, you freeze.โ
As the music plays, the group dances around the circle.
When it stops, each child freezes in place.
Cat commends their listening skills.
The social aspect of story time events keeps participants coming โ for the kids and parents.
โAt the end of baby time, they have time to play,โ Strong says of another story time event. โAnd the parents start to connect. A library is all about connections. Weโre connecting children with learning, parents with learning, parents to parents and educators and community groups.โ
It also helps parents see what kind of learners their children are.
Strong recalled a mother who brought her son to baby time for the first time. She was uncertain how he would react because he is very active and she worried he wouldnโt pay attention.
โI said, โThatโs totally normal,โโ Strong says. โIt turns out he observed the whole time and participated at the very end. Heโs the type of child who likes to observe before he participates.โ
Timarie Phillips dances with her smiley 20-month-old son Tytus, during the event. The duo attend every week.
โI think itโs a fun outing and it gets him to be around kids his age,โ Phillips says. โAnd it gets him to do things with people other than mom.โ
As Strong leads the group in the โSnowey Pokey,โ a winter version of the โHokey Pokey,โ Amber Hunt follows along with her 1-year-old daughter in her arms.
Hunt attends toddler story time almost every week with her two kids and has been doing so for โa couple years.โ
โItโs something great to do out of the house and itโs interactive,โ Hunt says. โI love to read and I want to instill that in my kids.โ
After attending for a while, children get the hang of things and start to change, Strong says.
โItโs wonderful to see children blossom,โ Strong says. โBabies are in tune to what Iโm doing and their big person. Their eyes are glued to you. They blossom. They put books back and are sharing toys. They go from parallel play to playing together.โ
At the end of story time, Strong goes over the take-home projects โ a snowflake made of popsicle sticks, paper mittens to color and a song โ and commends them for being there.
โEarly literacy begins with you,โ Strong says to the group. โI applaud all the big people for bringing their kids here.โ
