Students drawn to new worlds
Published 8:07 pm Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Weekly puppet shows, Selma-Dallas County Public Library Director Becky Nichols said, are a great way to draw students in and encourage them to read. Below, Nichols interacts with a group at the library’s show Tuesday morning. -- Chris Wasson
Nothing opens the minds and imagination of children like books.
Stories can lead to new worlds and heights like nothing else.
It is because of that, the Selma-Dallas County Public Library does all it can to get children interested in reading.
Weekly puppet shows of classic tales provides a key method.
“It’s fantastic,” Becky Nichols, director “We bring in school groups every Tuesday after they sign up and have these wonderful shows. It’s a way to bring students in and get them excited about reading.”
February presents the tale of Sleeping Beauty to groups of 40 children, both from school and individuals.
Eyes lit up and students laughed and clapped to their favorite parts.
“I loved it,” Rivers said. “My favorite part was about the king and the queen.”
Rivers said she loves to come to the library and read books about Dora the Explorer and Blues Clues.
It is that kind of excitement that Nichols and her staff try to bring out in children.
“We are always looking for different ways to keep them coming back,” Nichols said. “The end product is to get them reading, but you have to keep it fun first.”
Weekly puppet shows, Selma-Dallas County Public Library Director Becky Nichols said, are a great way to draw students in and encourage them to read. Below, Nichols interacts with a group at the library’s show Tuesday morning. -- Chris Wasson
The puppet show isn’t the only way the library attracts children.
Each Monday is Big Book Fun, with a new story each month and activities for the students.
“It’s a great way to get them exposed,” Alesia Crum, a pre-kindergarten teacher at Craig said. “”We have been coming to these for year and we don’t plan on stopping. We couldn’t do without it.”
