It’s that time of year again! The First and Best Booklist of 2013 has just been unveiled and features the year’s absolute best in Canadian children’s literature from birth to age five. The First and Best Booklist is part of our Ready for Reading initiative. For those unfamiliar with Ready for Reading, it is a […]
Another school year has begun, and for those children who struggle with reading, surviving another year may seem a daunting task. Leading to Reading is a free, literacy-based program that assists children in Grades 1-6 who struggle with reading. Through the assistance of volunteers, the program strives to turn reading and learning into a fun […]
Summer reading isn’t just for kids! On June 24, the fifth Word Out: Teen Summer Reading was officially launched and will run until Labour Day. Word Out, is funded by the TD Bank Group, and features events and workshops in Toronto Public Library branches over the course of the summer. Events include writing workshops […]
Did you know that children can hear the sound of a letter most easily when it is at the beginning of a word? Learning about different shapes, and recognizing them, helps your child learn how letters are formed and prepares them to learn the alphabet. To read, children must understand that written words are […]
Being familiar with printed language helps children feel comfortable with books and reading. Noticing that print is all around, that it carries a message and has meaning, is a very important connection your child will make. So, how do we help them make this connection? It’s simple really, and you probably don’t even know you’re […]
What happens first, next and last? As you read with your child, take time to talk together about the book. Don’t feel the need to read the book straight through to the end without stopping before you can have these discussions. It is perfectly alright to stop on a page as you are reading […]
Did you know that by playing “I Spy” with your child you actually encourage vocabulary building? “I spy with my little eye, something that is…” by asking your child to find something according to the category, shape, colour and size that you have described to them, you teach them how to look at and describe […]
Enjoying books often and together on a daily basis is the first step towards developing a love of reading in your child. Making reading time a fun and enjoyable experience demonstrates to your child that reading is a good thing. The question we as librarians get asked most often by paren’ts and caregivers is, “How […]
Let's get Ready for Reading: A fun and easy guide to help kids become readers, was launched on March 26, 2013. It’s been out for a month now, and we’ve received great response. The guide was developed as a fun, research-based booklet for paren’ts, caregivers and educators of children from birth to five. Think of […]
Charles de Lint normally writes adult fantasy novels, but has written several novels for teens. His latest venture into teen authorship is The Painted Boy, in which he mixes fantasy with realism. When we first meet Jay Li he is on his was to Santo del Vado Viejo in the Arizona desert. Why is he […]