Librarians are helping

As librarians gear up for a fall season of increasing children's programs and library use, they must sometimes wonder how much good their hard work accomplishes. As the School Library Journal recently pointed out, research can demonstrate that public library programs and resources help children become readers. Children who attend public library programs and who take out books from the library tend to have higher reading scores than those who don't. The three states highlighted by SLJ as offering effective children's services--Colorado, Minnesota, and Ohio--offer high levels of support for public libraries. This is an article to read, savor, and send on to library and city administrators. It can make a busy day of story reading and finger plays glow with satisfaction.