Book And Reading Centre

All children love books. Flipping through the pages, looking at the colourful pictures, picking out different objects, colours, shapes, animals, and words is just half the fun. The reading or book centre is also a place where a child can escape the hustle and bustle of the daycare centre or home and enjoy a few minutes of quiet and self-absorption.

A good book centre contains an assortment of:

picture books
nursery rhyme books
number and counting books, and so on.
The more you have to offer, the more you can pique a child's interest in reading.

If you are not sure what books to buy, take the children on a trip to your local library and talk to the librarian. He/she can tell you what types of books children prefer at which age group. Your local or national library association can give you information on purchasing children's books as well. And don't forget to learn from the children themselves. Watch which books they choose from the shelves, which ones they linger over and which ones get tossed aside quickly. Pay attention to the expressions on their faces.

You want books that will generate a lot of different feelings as well as those that offer pure fun and entertainment. Many books come with an audiocassette of the story. Still others come to life on a computer screen and allow children to participate in the story or create their own story. If you have the finances, you might consider setting up a tape recorder or computer (used is fine) in your book centre to allow the children to listen to or interact with their favorite story over and over again. This area should not be used as a substitute for a caregiver's reading of a story, or for the cuddling on the caregiver's lap so many children enjoy during story time. There is no substitution for human interaction.

Children learn a great many things in the book centre.

Turning pages of a book from beginning to end prepares for reading and writing readiness (reading from left to right.)
Having a supply of blank paper, pencils, crayons or felts encourages communication (reading and writing).
Listening to a story and talking about the story enhances listening skills and language development. It also instills in children a love of books, helps them remember details and express ideas.

A good book centre contains the following items:

board books for the younger children
nursery rhymes
poetry books
alphabet and counting books
picture books
fairy tales
animal books, and
books with no text.
Hardcover books will outlast softcover books, particularly in a daycare centre.