HICKORY – Hickory Public Library has been awarded a grant from The State Library of North Carolina to enhance, empower, and engage young library users and their families.
The Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant promotes early literacy for children ages 0-5.
With funding from this grant, Hickory Public Library will expand its early literacy efforts to offer enhanced services and opportunities for growth and education, and to provide new ways to engage through hands-on learning.
Both Patrick Beaver Memorial Library and Ridgeview Branch Library will update AWE early literacy computer stations, add additional circulating kits to popular Kindergarten Readiness Backpacks, offer sensory kits for in-house use, acquire early literacy educational toys that support the six skills outlined in “Every Child Ready to Read” (ECRR), and update and promote the 1000 Books Before Kindergarten program to reinforce the importance of early literacy development.
These initiatives encourage parents, caregivers, and library staff to sing, talk, read, write, and play with children either in-person at the library or independently outside the library setting.
For more information about Hickory Public Library and its early literacy initiatives, contact Head of Youth Services Stephanie Abbott at sabbot@hickorync.gov.
