Documenting Delight: one hundred and twenty five {library love}

A cruisey afternoon in the library, re-connecting with my little ones after working a half day at Finn’s school. A free and simple excursion out of the house but one that always brings calm and moments of joys to Finn and Harper.

Today I watched Finn quietly make his way around the book shelves, eyes gazing over the books on display, fingers gently pulling out titles here and there. This place is familiar to Finn. He doesn’t need direction or encouragement to enjoy this space and the books that live here. He’s a book lover. Writing those words makes my heart sing. As an Early Childhood teacher I always hoped that my children would fall in love with books. It’s not about desiring them to be good readers (although I do know that being an efficient reader makes life easier), more the hope that they engage with stories, bond with strong characters, and view books and reading as a normal part of their day. An enjoyable part.

{Look Mum! We know this one!}

This enjoyment bursts out of Finn and I can see it growing in Harper (as her attention span gradually increases). A while back I read a section in the inspiring book by Jim Trelease ‘The Read-aloud Handbook’ about the importance of surrounding your child with books and being a reading role model. He described the interaction between parent and child when it comes to books and reading as creating a “commercial for the pleasure of reading”. Gosh, this quote has stuck with me. We are advertising to our children what a joy reading is. I want my commercial to be authentic, vibrant and of coarse convincing. I hope little trips like this are helping.