What is a Family Place Library?
The Family Place Libraries ™ initiative promotes a national model for transforming public libraries into welcoming, developmentally appropriate early learning environments for very young children, their parents and caregivers. Based on research about the importance of early brain development, the Family Place Library supports the essential role of parents as first teachers and addresses the physical, social, emotional and cognitive aspects of child development to help build a foundation for learning during the critical first years of life. By partnering and working with other social, health and educational services providers, the Family Place model aims to ensure that all children enter school ready and able to learn and positions libraries as key early childhood and family support organizations within the local community.
The Quarryville Library Center has been a Family Place Library since 2006 and offers resources including:
- Early literacy programs that are research based and engaging differentiated by developmental stage: babies, toddlers, and preschoolers.
- High-quality developmentally-appropriate toys, manipulatives, puzzles, puppets, and more for young children in our play areas in the children’s area that foster creativity, math and language skills, and curiosity.
- A collection of books, videos, toys, and backpacks available for circulation.
- Community partnerships that allow parents and caregivers access to experts in child development through the Family Place program offered twice annually for five weeks per session.