February 6 is Take your Child to the Library Day!
Looking for an easy promotional program to highlight all the incredible children’s services that you are already providing? If so, consider celebrating Take Your Child to the Library Day (TYCTTLD), which seeks to raise community awareness about the importance of the library in the life of a child. The official date for 2016 is Saturday, February 6; however, some libraries are celebrating all throughout February, so there is still time to join the program. TYCTTLD is not new; in fact, this grass-roots program was first held in 2011 and continues to gain more momentum as more libraries get on board. The organic beginnings of the celebration make it an easy and natural fit for public libraries to adopt as their own. TYCTTLD was created by Connecticut librarians Nadine Lipman (Waterford Public Library, retired) and Caitlin Augusta (Stratford Library) and stewarded by the Connecticut Library Consortium, a statewide membership collaborative for all types of libraries.
I first learned about TYCTTLD just recently when browsing the Association for Library Service to Children websiteand immediately thought, “Well, that’s a winner.” Let’s think about this for a moment, from a parent’s perspective. We know taking our children to the library is a good thing. We know taking them regularly is as important as daily nutrition and good hygiene. And we all want to be good parents, right? So, if a Facebook post crosses my phone, or a door hanger lands on my door, or I receive an announcement about TYCTTLD with my water bill, I am most definitely going to put it on my calendar.
Now, from a librarian’s perspective, front line or administrator, is this too good to be true? What could be better than TYCTTLD for gaining awareness of the libraries vast services for children and parents? What a wonderful memory you can help a family make. (Okay, well maybe it can get just a wee bit better if your favorite elected official just happens to come in that day, too!) The possibilities are as endless as the impact you can have on your community and families as you help to create generations of readers.
As the number of libraries celebrating TYCTTLD increases, so do the resources made available to participants. Nancy Elizabeth Wallace, author and illustrator, has generously created the artwork to support the program . Images are available in high and low resolution JPG files that can be used on flyers, social media, and websites, and a collection of printed material available is for sale at Upstart/Demco. TYCTTLD-branded items include bookmarks, posters, bags, and library card holders – a portion of which helps support the work of the CLC and Connecticut-based nonprofit organization Read to Grow.
Additional free resources have been donated to the cause so, if you’re on the fence about joining, this should seal the deal. Take, for example, the TYCTTLD Program Guide written by former children’s librarian Patti Sinclair. This guide includes all sorts of ideas and suggestions such as creating daily book displays corresponding to famous children’s book authors and illustrators. Games (such as library bingo, library trivia contests, and creating a photo shoot) and a complementary song list are just some of the resources in Sinclair’s guide. With the inclusion of the New York Library Association, even more resources are available .
To find more information about TYCTTLD and how libraries are getting press, just Google “take your child to the library day” and “public library,” and you’ll uncover a host of press releases and glowing media coverage. Are you ready to get on board yet? If so, head on over to the TYCTTLD blog and sign up. It’s that simple. If your library is celebrating TYCTTLD please comment below and let readers know how it went.
Resources
Koester, Amy. “February 1 Is Take Your Child to the Library Day,” School Library Journal. January 29, 2014. Web. http://www.slj.com/2014/01/industry-news/february-1-is-take-your-child-to-the-library-day/#_. Accessed December 22,2015.
“Take Your Child to the Library Day now a nationwide campaign,” by Channel 8, WTNH News8. January, 26, 2013. Web. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsgJMYCAH54. Accessed December 22, 2015.
