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Success starts at home! Early learning is crucial to the health and development of children later in life. The Ontario City Library offers support for parents and caregivers raising children ages 0 – 5 through the Little Learners, Big Futures initiative. The initiative encompasses the many programs, services and materials offered by the libraries to the city’s little learners and their families.
This online program provides parents and caregivers with guided activities that can be implemented at home to encourage early learning and brain development. Children can be registered to earn books, collectable cards with songs or activities, samples and supplies. The program grows with the child; as a child ages, they will have access to a new set of activities and supplies through age five. To register please visit, OntarioCA.Beanstack.org.
Raising Little Learners program offers research-based practices that adults and children can enjoy together while helping children learn early literacy or pre-reading skills. The curriculum used for these workshops, Every Child Ready to Read®, was developed by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the Public Library Association (PLA), divisions of the American Library Association, in conjunction with national reading and education experts.
AmeriCorps Early Learning Advisors and Ontario City Library staff offer a series of eight Raising Little Learners workshops built around Every Child Ready to Read® which is the knowledge that engaging children in simple but powerful activities every day helps them develop early literacy skills, preparing them to read. These activities highlight five important early literacy techniques: talking, singing, reading, writing and playing. Parents, caregivers and library staff can reinforce and help develop brain connections through these five practices. Practiced regularly these techniques will help a child develop the six early literacy skills to be prepared to learn to read.
In these workshops, advisors demonstrate how to help children learn early literacy skills, offer titles of high-interest age-appropriate books and provide parents and caregivers ideas and materials for early literacy activities that can be incorporated into a family’s daily routine. The workshops bring parents and caregivers together with their children to explore science activities, create process art pieces and discover fun and interactive ways to learn numbers, letters, shapes and other early learning concepts. Participants who attend all workshops will be invited to a literacy party filled with giveaways.
For workshop dates or more information, please call (909) 395-2273 or email OPCEarlyLearning@OntarioCA.gov.
This online program encourages parents and caregivers to read to their child regularly. Children can be registered and track their reading to reach their goal of 1,000 books read before kindergarten. For each 100 books read little learners will receive a milestone prize and when they reach 1,000 books, they will complete the program and earn a backpack full of early learning goodies. To register please visit, OntarioCA.Beanstack.org. Prizes are available at Lewis Family Branch Library.
Little Learner Academy are developmentally appropriate story times, structured as early learning programs for children to enjoy the wonders of early learning while developing important skills. A story time program includes read-aloud books, singing, engaging movement activities, completing a hands-on activity or socializing through free-play. The purpose of story time is for children to have positive interactions at the library while developing their early learning skills. These skills include fine and gross motor development, listening and understanding, increasing vocabulary, developing mathematical and scientific thinking, creative expressions with art and understanding structured social environments.
Visit our Calendar of Events to learn more about Little Learner Academy schedules.
Ontario City Library has several collections geared toward little learners and their parents or caregivers.
The board book collection is filled with strong, durable books perfect for little learners 0 – 24 months. These books are made of a durable material that allow little learners to easily turn the pages. Many of these books have early learning concepts, textured pages and high contrast images to engage even the youngest babies! Board books can be found in English and Spanish.
The early literacy collection consists of picture books that highlight early learning concepts of the alphabet, numbers, shapes, colors and other concepts. These books are a great way to introduce topics to little learners that help prepare them for school.
The parenting collection is geared toward parents and caregivers looking for support in raising children and teens. The books cover a wide range of topics from potty training and cookbooks for picky eaters through emotional support for teens. Parenting books are available in English and Spanish.
The Playaway Launchpad collection are durable tablets that make learning fun! Each launchpad is preloaded with activities or games that teach a subject. Subjects include math, science, language learning, early literacy, and language arts. Launchpads are labeled with suggested age ranges so parents and caregivers can easily find subjects for their little learners.