Summer Reading Is Coming: Start With a Book Blog Tour

I am so excited to part of this lovely blog tour promoting Start With a Book. When Amy at Show Me Librarian asked me to be part of this tour and talk about this great resource, I jumped at the chance. Start With a Book is a great resource for parents, librarians, educators-really anyone who wants to read with a child!

As a librarian, I know the value of having storytime and reading to kids. Reading at all ages is important! It's a great way to develop skills that kids need like growing their vocabulary, learning how stories are told, hearing the rhythm and sound of words, and beginning to recognize letters and words and start to read. Not only that, but it's a fun way for adults and kids to share in an activity that will help them bond. Nothing is more fun than sharing a book with a child.

Even if a child can read on their own, they still should be read to! I've been out doing summer reading promotion at area schools and each class I visit-even high school-I ask if I can read them a picture book and tell them they are never too old to be read to. They are always eager to listen to a story and are so engaged in the books I bring-they love being read to.

One thing we often joke about at my library is that we could do storytime every minute of every day and have an audience waiting to read books. It would be fun (and very crazy!), but it's not possible for librarians to always be the ones doing storytime. That's why I love Start With a Book. We are always encouraging parents to check out books and have storytime at home, but so often I get asked about what books parents should read or how do they even find a book to read at home? It can be intimidating to walk into a library and see shelves and shelves of books and not know where to start or what book is the perfect book for you.

Start With a Book offers adults a great resource with their themed booklists. Every day I am asked for books on various topics and themes and Start With a Book has created fantastic themed booklists that give kids and adults a chance to pick a topic and create a storytime at home. The lists include a mix of fiction and nonfiction titles as well as a target age group, which is so helpful when adults are looking for a good fit for their child.

Not only does the Start With a Book themed booklists include books, but ways to take the reading experience further by including activities, crafts and websites to help kids and adults explore each theme. It's like having a storytime at your fingertips planned and ready to go!

Every kid deserves storytime-at the library and at home. So Start With a Book and go exploring this summer!