Utah State University - » Story time at Hyrum Library feeds joy of reading

Story time at Hyrum Library feeds joy of reading

September 28th, 2014 Posted in Arts and Life

Story and photos by Michael Royer

HYRUM ­— Huge smiles spread across many of the children’s faces could have made anyone think the kids were walking into a candy store.

They weren’t.

They were walking into Hyrum Library for Story Time, a program held four days each month where the city’s children come to read, listen, and interact with each other.

“I love this place and this program,” said Jenifer Morgan, a Hyrum resident whose 3-year-old boy attends Story Time each month. “Four of my kids have participated throughout the years. It is a great thing the library does. It is great to see the kids interact with each other.”

Story Time has been evolving since 1988, when Ginny Tremayne started her job as the Hyrum Library director. She has been in that position ever since. Tremayne said when she started as director, the library was located downstairs in the current city office building.

“When we first started we had very little space to work with,” Tremayne said. “There was too much interest and too many people for such a small space that we were using.”

Story Time originally accommodated no more than 10 children at a time and was scheduled for just one day per month. All of that changed when the new library building was built in 2007. There was a lot of building going on in Hyrum a decade ago, Tremayne said. There were many subdivisions established around the city and citizens — especially those with families — began showing more interest in the library.

The library currently hosts Story Time four days per month and can accommodate 25 children on each of those days for a maximum of 100 children during the four-day program. Three-, 4- and 5-year-old boys and girls are able to participate with fellow children during the program.

“There is a ton of work that goes into the program each month,” said Deliliah Sant, children’s librarian and Story Time director. “Each child who attends receives their own name tag, a learning packet, and a treat. We encourage every child to attend but children can only participate once a month.”

Each month, the library chooses a different Story Time theme. September’s theme is “Watch Me Grow.”

“Everything grows, children grow up,” Sant said. “As a library staff we chose this topic to help children with activities they are going to encounter every day growing up such as counting, different colors and stories about getting older and getting bigger.”

The Story Time program begins in September and ends in May —essentially the same as the school year schedule —and the library sees many children during this time.

“Seeing the kids rush through the doors with big smiles on their faces is the best thing,” said Jill Baxter, assistant librarian. “It is great to see their participation and interaction and just being excited to be here is what I enjoy about this program.”

Although children who attend the program are a very young age, the library works to instill lessons the children will remember forever.

“It is very rewarding to see the kids enjoy their time while they are here,” Tremayne said. “Reading is important. These kids are going to be reading for the rest of their lives and when their faces light up during a book, it feels like they sort of realize how significant reading will be for them.”

NW

Tags: Delilah Sant, Ginny Tremayne, Hyrum Library, Jill Baxter, story time