St. Cloud, MN, September 2016: September is Library Card Sign-Up Month, a time when the nation’s public libraries highlight the value of a library card.
Great River Regional Library (GRRL) is encouraging this September’s membership sign-up with prizes including three mini iPads! GRRL provides services at 32 public libraries in Benton, Morrison, Sherburne, Stearns, Todd and Wright Counties. Area residents who get a card in September are eligible for a random prize drawing that includes the mini iPads. Current cardholders who sponsor a new cardholder will also be entered into the drawing. Branch libraries will also have other prizes available.
A public library card is a ticket to free educational resources that support early literacy and lifelong learning for parents and children, as well as recreational resources for all. Card holders have access to a family destination that provides a spectrum of free services including computers, Internet access, downloadable eBooks and eAudiobooks, crafting programs/activities, book clubs, storytimes, and game nights, as well as a shared collection of more than 950,000 books, DVDs, music CDs and audiobooks.
Families are integral to a child’s development, as shown by data collected by the Harvard Family Research Project and the Public Library Association for its report, “Public Libraries: A Vital Space for Family Engagement.” The report highlights the importance of libraries, with their rich digital environment and hands-on resources, and skilled librarians in helping parents to guide their children’s learning. Libraries are spaces, it notes, that embrace the entire family across every generation and offer constructive outlets for family engagement.
Library registration forms can be obtained at area libraries. Locations and open hours are available online at www.griver.org.
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