I guess if you’ve followed or read this blog for any length of time you’d know either that I'm a librarian or that I love books. The book thing is pretty self evident, only if you’ve known me for mere moments, you’d catch on pretty quickly.
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Before heading to work the other day I caught a little bit of the news-I always keep either Chris Evans or BBC 1 on in the morning so I can see the time as I run about trying to iron things or find accessories. Anyway, I will get back to the point! I heard a little segment all about reading and so thought I would give myself five minutes to actually SIT and listen. I was so upset to hear that one in three children come from a home with less than ten books. Now I don’t know if that was only in England and Wales-because it was about the curriculum which is different in those countries, or if it was the UK, or in fact GB, but the fact remains the same.
In no way at all do I mean that I was thinking of children from homes where parents don’t collect all the ‘stuff’ that I do here, and I certainly wasn’t upset to think of little ones that have so many visits to various libraries that they just don’t bother buying books. I instantly thought of little ones not encouraged. Not the ones that it’s hard to pin down, just the ones left to their own devices, flailed about, failed and didn’t try again.
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I feel lucky that I work in an environment where the children are already brought in, either because they do have encouraging parents or the children do want to read or learn. We, at that point, haven’t fought the battle. We have these little sponges eager to learn, they are placed right in front of us, and we give them whatever they want. I am so lucky that we aren’t fighting a loosing battle once I attend work. It’s the meetings and what not that we have to prove our worth, but once we’re in the building we are instantly thought highly of by little ones. We give them all the time in the world to find exactly what they want-no matter how odd sounding the request is. We’re the ones that give their grown-ups the stories that get read to them at night time.
I know I don’t have any little ones, and boy is it easy to make promises when carrying them through isn’t going to happen any time soon. But I certainly pray that I will always have the energy to give a child attention when it comes to books. I think the world of any people that trudge down to their local library in the pouring rain. The grown ups that escort their little ones down in the snow, tugging them in little red sledges, piled up with books to return and replace. YOU are heroes to me! Not only do you keep me in a job-thanks for that too-you actually make me think the world can be an ok place for the children brought into it!
In no way at all do I mean that I was thinking of children from homes where parents don’t collect all the ‘stuff’ that I do here, and I certainly wasn’t upset to think of little ones that have so many visits to various libraries that they just don’t bother buying books. I instantly thought of little ones not encouraged. Not the ones that it’s hard to pin down, just the ones left to their own devices, flailed about, failed and didn’t try again.
I feel lucky that I work in an environment where the children are already brought in, either because they do have encouraging parents or the children do want to read or learn. We, at that point, haven’t fought the battle. We have these little sponges eager to learn, they are placed right in front of us, and we give them whatever they want. I am so lucky that we aren’t fighting a loosing battle once I attend work. It’s the meetings and what not that we have to prove our worth, but once we’re in the building we are instantly thought highly of by little ones. We give them all the time in the world to find exactly what they want-no matter how odd sounding the request is. We’re the ones that give their grown-ups the stories that get read to them at night time. I know I don’t have any little ones, and boy is it easy to make promises when carrying them through isn’t going to happen any time soon. But I certainly pray that I will always have the energy to give a child attention when it comes to books. I think the world of any people that trudge down to their local library in the pouring rain. The grown ups that escort their little ones down in the snow, tugging them in little red sledges, piled up with books to return and replace. YOU are heroes to me! Not only do you keep me in a job-thanks for that too-you actually make me think the world can be an ok place for the children brought into it!
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1 comment:
Books are so important in child development. I believe it is very important for children to be taken to the library and for them to possess books of their own. Thank you for what you do to encourage young readers. I have always believed, if you can read you can do anything. Librarians are special people! Thanks!
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