Play & Learn at Home Unveils Children's Lending Library in Downtown The Dalles
Play & Learn hopes to promote literacy, parent engagement, community and family well-being with their new lending library.
DeeAnn Bohn and Peggy Peterson unveiling the new Children’s Lending Library at 409 Lincoln St in The Dalles, Oregon. Photo: Cole Goodwin
By Cole Goodwin
The Dalles, Ore., March 7, 2024 – Play & Learn at Home has installed a free children’s lending library to promote literacy, parent engagement, community and family well-being at 409 Lincoln St in downtown The Dalles. Play & Learn at Home has filled the mini library with bilingual children's books, books in English and books in Spanish. The purchase of the lending library was made possible by an Equity Grant.
DeeAnn and Peggy filling the lending library with an assortment of childrens books. Photo: Cole Goodwin
The Children’s Lending Library will operate on an honor system.
“Take what you need, leave what you can,” explained DeeAnn Bohn, Program Coordinator and Facilitator.
Community members can stop by the Children’s Lending Library to borrow some reading material and/or add some children’s books for other families to enjoy. If the lending library is full, community members are also welcome to drop by Play & Learn and ring their doorbell to donate books.
But, since Play & Learn operates several play groups and delivers free activity Kits to kids age 0-5 in five counties, there’s a chance they might not answer. In that case they want folks to know they can leave books by their door where they will be safe from the elements or they can contact PlayandLearn@ocdc.net to arrange a drop off time.
DeeAnn said they were happy to offer a lending library location in downtown and emphasized the impact of reading books to children on brain and attachment development.
“It’s a great opportunity to talk and play and bond with your child and it builds their vocabulary and they love the attention from their parents,” added Peggy Peterson
“Reading to your child promotes literacy, teaches language, promotes good attachment, a love of learning, and a love of reading,” agreed DeeAnn.
Spending quality time together is a great way to help children develop secure attachments.
“It’s a great way to spend family time together,” said DeeAnn.
“A lot of people remember curling up with a good book and a parent or adult they trusted,” said DeeAnn, “It’s a great way to spend some time with your kids. Every moment is a possibility of a good memory.”
DeeAnn also had some advice for parents who might not be readers.
“Even if a parent isn’t a reader, you can take a book and just look at the pictures together and you don’t have to follow the story, you can make your own story,” said DeeAnn. “You don’t have to read the words. You can just look at the pictures and use your imagination.”
DeeAnn and Peggy encouraged parents and adults to take a playful and engaged approach to reading to kids.
“You can practice using different voices or point to different shapes and colors on the page to help your children learn,” said DeeAnn and Peggy.
Have kids of all ages?
There’s other lending libraries directed at different age groups all throughout the gorge!
“There are several lending libraries in The Dalles for different age levels. So make a day of it, go find them. Purge your books cause the ones you don’t want to read, someone else might love. And you might find a book you don’t want to read. It’s a free and easy way to spend part of a day,” said DeeAnn.
For more information about Play and Learn click here.
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