Children and youth learn in countless ways, anywhere, anytime. And one of the most powerful levers of children's learning--from the early childhood years through adolescence--is families. For families, libraries provide the books, media, and activities that help them open doors for children's literacy and lifelong learning. Libraries are poised to…

Reviews relevant literature dealing with reference service to children and summarizes the developmental stages of children that can influence the interactions between librarians and children. Includes data from observations and interviews of five librarians from a children's room in a Florida public library. (Author/LRW)

Describes a statewide language-development program developed among Maryland's city, county, and regional library systems to help parents prepare their preschoolers for success in school. Discusses child development, the role of libraries, storytelling training, and preschool literacy efforts by the Public Library Association; and lists Web…

Uses general developmental framework to explain relationship of play, toys, and development of young children, and to support toy lending in libraries. An evaluative approach for library toy selection which is based on meeting children's psychological needs is suggested together with 11 titles to aid librarians in establishing toy-lending…

Information and education are crucial for child development. The child's right to information and education protect human values and the human dignity of the child. Formal and non-formal forms of education by parents, friends, schools, and libraries should be based on human rights. The United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child…

The Library/Head Start Partnership Project is administered through a joint agreement between the Library of Congress Center for the Book and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Head Start Bureau. Its purpose is to demonstrate how libraries that serve young children can plan and work with Head Start programs to enhance learning and…

Library-based parent resource centers are an innovative way of providing important parenting information to families, for promoting early identification of developmental needs in preschool children, and for identifying community resources available to address these needs. The centers facilitate information and resource sharing among community…

Explores social-welfare structure for child development in Denmark within the context of the laws and policies of the state and various institutions. The Danish social-welfare system, Danish children's education, out-of-school facilities, culture, books and reading, and public libraries (facilities, materials, and services) are examined.…

The New York State Developmental Disabilities Planning Council and the New York State Division of Library Development collaborated to create 19 library-based parent resource centers to provide information on child development, disabilities, and parenting. Describes program components; impacts on patron satisfaction, library services, and the…

This study was undertaken to: (1) develop a schema from an analysis of research information on child development from birth to three years of age with literature sharing implications for library programs; (2) query librarians in the United States who offer early childhood literature sharing programs about their program practices and attitudes via…

This demographic study outlines changes in society over the last 25 years that have affected children and discusses children's intellectual and physical development; changes in family structure; and the effects of social, economic, and political factors on the environment for children. Implications for children's services in public libraries are…

A survey and demonstration project was undertaken in 1977-78 to identify gaps in the professional preparation of library professionals who work with young children, and to develop and test short course offerings to improve the skills and competencies of school and public librarians. Questionnaires were sent to 400 school and public librarians in…

Realia are toys, articles and other three-dimensional objects that a child handles, manipulates or plays with to gain direct experience and information about his/her environment. Realia may include: models, toys, games, tools, puppets, costumes, and musical instruments. Children of all socioeconomic levels have the same developmental needs for…

Library and health care professionals team up in the Born to Read partnerships in Florida to empower at-risk expectant and new parents to take an active role in the health and education of their children. Designed for Born to Read workshop participants, this manual contains the following sections: (1) General Information, including workshop…