– Remember your first library account? The library was an open door to new worlds for many children. It was a place to learn, study, and explore. It is still there.

Most libraries offer summer reading programs and story times for families. However, one organization encourages libraries all over the country to do even more.

The Family Place LibrariesInitiative is a program at the national level that promotes the idea of a library as a community centre for early childhood development and family development.

“Family Place gives the librarians a comprehensive framework,”Kathleen Deerr, National Coordinator for Family Place Libraries, spoke to Publishers Weekly last year in an interview. “It’s about connecting people with everything they need to build healthier, better families.”

Deerr explained to the magazine that the point was to “empower librarians and families.”

It was originally a collaboration between New York’s Middle Country Public Library, and the now-defunct nonprofit Libraries for the Future. Family Place Libraries is an interactive model that provides hands-on, interactive spaces in libraries to support the literacy and early learning of children, from birth through three years of age.

“When we can share the research about how the program can build strong brains and that children learn through play, people begin to understand that we are creating a rich environment where children can explore and discover, and adults can meet friends and get support,”Deerr spoke to the magazine.

Family Place Libraries currently has more than 450 locations in 29 states. It is growing and will continue to expand. The program’s national impact is evident, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services awarded a $450,000 National Leadership Grant for Middle Country to show the value of Family Place. 25 libraries have now established Family Place sites in eight states thanks to this additional support.

Stacey Aldrich was a former state librarian for the California State Library. “to watch the model flourish in California has been immensely satisfying.”

“To see a grown man sitting in a kids’ chair, playing with his child, or a grandparent doing a puppet show — it’s special. It’s gratifying to provide this kind of space, where people can meet, talk to other parents, and learn and grow with their kids.”

For more information, please visit www.familyplacelibraries.org.