Babygarten

At the Reedsburg Public Library we offer three main types of Storytimes:

  • Babygarten (Baby Storytime) brings caregivers and babies together for rhymes, songs, books, and free-play. The primary focus is the healthy development of infants aged 0-24 months, emphasizing language enrichment and pre-literacy skills.
  • Storytime (Preschool Storytime) is for children (2-5 years) just as much as their parents/caregiver, it usually includes stories, rhymes, music, and a craft/activity, all geared towards creating a positive attitude around literacy and learning.
  • Family Storytime is a special evening storytime that welcomes all ages to the library to celebrate the fun of reading. Some examples of Family Storytimes (a part of our Family Fun Night programs) are:
    • PJ Storytime, a fun night to come to the library in your pajamas to read stories, sing songs, and do a craft or activity
    • Bilingual Family Storytime, Cuando Cuentas Cuentos, where everyone is welcome to join in the stories, rhymes, music, crafts, and activities during this Spanish-English bilingual program (Todos son bienvenidos a este programa bilingüe que contiene cuentos, rimas, música, manualidades, juegos y mucha diversión.)
    • Family Read Night, a time for families to read to one-another, but also a time highlighting new books in the collection that can be checked out at the end of the night.
  • New as of Spring 2020, is an additional Bilingual Storytime/play group, Colorín colorado, for families with kids from 0-5. 

Expectations for Babygarten:

  • Our Babygarten is a time for infants/toddlers and their grown-ups to engage with age-appropriate books, rhymes, music, and more. But especially for parents and caregivers to learn helpful resources that can be used in the home.
    • For this reason, grown-ups are asked to limit conversation and phone use until after the baby storytime is over.
    • Also, adults are encouraged to participate in the songs and rhymes; words are typically projected onto the screen.
  • Babies and toddlers are NOT expected to sit still, but the early stages of learning boundaries and following directions will begin to develop with regular attendance, so we practice these skills, through repetition, to help prepare participants for Preschool Storytime expectations.
  • After the main baby storytime we participate in free-play. This is a great time for parents to converse and for little ones to practice social skills such as sharing and communication.
  • And as always, after Babygarten, families are encouraged to stay and keep up the learning and conversations in the children's area of the library where toys and books are available.

Hope to see you soon!

Click the image above to visit our Storytime Blog!