Tune in for Storytime Success
Thank you to everyone who shared their responses to the latest Ask Jbrary question. I’ve aggregated all of the feedback and added in some of my own. This community is the best. Ask Jbrary Dear Jbrary, How do you introduce new material (movement songs, rhymes etc.) that the group might not be familiar with? Especially… Continue reading Introducing New Songs and Rhymes
It’s time for another round of Ask Jbrary! I received an email from a librarian who is new to storytime and looking for advice. Here is the question: Dear Jbrary, How do you introduce new material (movement songs, rhymes etc.) that the group might not be familiar with? Especially looking for tips when you have… Continue reading Ask Jbrary: Introducing New Songs and Rhymes
Howdy folks! Alyssa Jewell (La La Librarian) here this week guest blogging while Lindsey is doing one of the herculean tasks many of you are likely doing this week: preparing for Summer Reading! The folks in Storytime Central and I have also been gearing up for what is surely the busiest time of year for… Continue reading Give Me Your Summer Reading Thoughts (and dinosaur favorites!)
I have stumbled upon something I can only describe as the best thing I’ve ever done with puppets in my career as a children’s librarian. I can’t even remember how I stumbled upon this video, but it has changed my storytimes. Dear friends, I present to you the greatest puppet version of a book I… Continue reading The Best Thing I’ve Ever Done with Puppets
This year I returned to delivering storytimes on a regular basis, and it has reminded me why I love my job so much. There’s just something magical about singing and reading together as a group. The books are an important part of that, and it’s one of the reasons I continue to track and share… Continue reading 2025 Favourite Storytime Picture Books
Recently I discovered that to my great delight I am not the only one who sings Moo, Baa, La, La, La! by Sandra Boynton to the tune of Bad Romance by Lady Gaga. Jayme Champagne, Youth Services Librarian at Wake County Public Libraries and wonderful human being, also channels her inner Little Monster at storytime…. Continue reading Moo, Baa, La, La, La! by Lady Gaga
This past weekend, during my second bout of the flu since August (welcome back to public facing service!), I did something I don’t do anymore: I opened up Instagram and let the algorithm take me down the long dark tunnel of reels and memes. It turns out, when you stumble upon the world of early… Continue reading Props I Want to Try in Storytime
Greetings Jbrarians! Alyssa Jewell, MLIS (aka La La Librarian) and Rachel See, MT-BC of Singable Book Club here. Lindsey is busy getting back into the swing of baby storytime this month, so she asked us to take the wheel on this blog post. We’re honored! Thanks for having us, Lindsey. August is prime planning time… Continue reading Why Singable Books Belong in Every Storytime
After two years of working on special projects and acting as a manager, this August I am finally returning to my role as a children’s librarian. Am I excited? Yes. Am I a little scared? Also yes. I know some things will have changed, and some things will be exactly the same. One thing that… Continue reading Give Me Your Babytime Recommendations
Words matter. What we say and how we say it matters. I recently had a conversation with a district principal that gave me new words to use when I talk about how the library can support children entering school. Our conversation came about when the principal noticed a library program with the phrase “school readiness.”… Continue reading All Kids Are Ready for School