10 Reasons to Take Your Child to the Library

by Susan Taylor

The library was such a magical place to me when I was growing up. I have so many happy memories going there with my mum and spending hours discovering and reading new stories in such a peaceful sanctuary. The notion that one place could have so many books was so exciting to me, not to mention that I could even take them home with me for a while! Boredom was simply not an option.

Since becoming a mum, I’ve naturally also loved taking my own children to the library. Whenever I mention it to friends though, they seem quite surprised which baffles me. It seems that a lot of people these days have either forgotten about the library or simply don’t want to go. Why?!

Obviously covid-19 has made library visits a little tricky at times, but did you know that many libraries offer click and collect or even delivery options? In my opinion there is no excuse not to be using your local library, and when it comes to kids, the sooner they get the library bug the better!

There are so many great reasons to take your children to the library, here are just 10 of them:

It’s a lovely free outing for little ones – most libraries also have regular free storytime and music or art groups that parents and children can join.
It saves money and clutter – even if you have to reserve a book or pay a late fee fine, it’s only $1 or so, and you don’t have to worry about running out of bookshelf space at home!
It teaches them that sometimes we need to be quiet – it might take a while, but over time they will learn to respect the library rules of not being loud which is a great lesson in different environments and behaviours.
It’s not just books you can borrow – there are so many children’s movie and TV show DVDs available at the library, and sometimes you can even borrow toys like Lego!
It teaches them to respect other people’s belongings – helping them take care of the books they’ve borrowed so they can be returned undamaged, and by a certain date, is a great way to teach kids to be responsible.
It’s fun! – children love picking out their selections and then scanning the barcodes themselves at the computer self-checkout.
It keeps things fresh – without library visits my children would have never read all the stories they have. It stops them getting bored of the same books at home and keeps them interested in reading.
It’s a tranquil tech free zone – ok so libraries do have computers and such, however the peaceful setting and general lack of noisy overstimulating devices gives them a much-needed break from excessive technology whilst still learning, having fun and being inspired.
It encourages them to read more – countless studies can’t stress enough how important it is for children to read as much as possible when they’re young and taking them to the library gives them a new setting to do so.
You get something out of it too – while you’re there you can borrow a fun novel for yourself, perhaps a cookbook, any number of parenting self-help books or even a classic blockbuster. It’s a win-win!

So dust off your old library card, or sign up for one if you don’t currently own one, and get the kids excited about a visit soon to the good old library!