Storytime Gold: Toddler and preschool read-alouds

August 7, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

It’s a funny thing that it can be much harder to write something short than something long. To tell a story as concisely as possible, you have to cut everything unnecessary. I haven’t counted, but I’d bet most of these books clock in at well under 500 words, and that’s just perfect for young ones, especially at library storytimes (their individual attention spans might be longer in a quieter environment at home).

Rhyming is a plus (Jamberry, Some Bugs, There’s A Bear on My Chair, etc.), concepts are good (The Very Hungry Caterpillar introduces counting, foods, and days of the week; A Seed Grows shows the life cycle of a sunflower), and a story with a pattern helps little ones follow what’s happening – and can deliver humor when the expectation established by the pattern is broken (The Giant Jumperee, Mr. Scruff). Books for littles can deal with managing feelings (The Rabbit Listened, Grumpy Pants), play with sound (Let’s Be Bees, Who Meows?), and even be interactive (Huff & Puff, There’s A __ In This Book).

Here are some of the books I reach for when I need short, captivating books for toddler and preschool storytimes:

The Rainbow Snail by Karin Akesson
Please, Mr. Panda by Steve Antony
Marta! Big and Small by Jen Arena
Every Monday Mabel by Jashar Awan
Roll, Roll Little Pea by Cecile Bergame
If I Was A Horse by Sophie Blackall
Hippos Go Berserk by Sandra Boynton
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
There’s A Bear on My Chair by Ross Collins
Jamberry by Bruce Degen
Some Bugs by Angela DiTerlizzi
The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld
The Giant Jumperee by Julia Donaldson
Oh, No! by Candace Fleming
There’s A ___ In This Book by Tom Fletcher
Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox
Where Is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox
Roller Coaster by Marla Frazee
The Odd Egg by Emily Gravett
Let’s Be Bees by Shawn Harris
Oh No, George! by Chris Haughton
A House by Kevin Henkes
Dig Dig Digger by Morag Hood
Mr. Scruff by Simon James
What Can A Mess Make? by Bee Johnson
Just One Flake / Just One Wave by Travis Jonker
A Cat Like That by Lester Laminack
Will Ladybug Hug? by Hilary Leung
Chicken Wants A Nap by Tracy Marchini
Ten Little Squirrels by Bill Martin, Jr.
Grumpy Pants by Claire Messer
Who Meows? by Robin Page
Mister Kitty Is Lost! by Greg Pizzoli
A Seed Grows by Antoinette Portis
Somewhere in the Bayou by Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey
My Spring Robin by Anne Rockwell
Huff & Puff by Claudia Rueda
Little Penguins by Cynthia Rylant
One of These Is Not Like the Others by Barney Saltzberg
One Little Blueberry by Tammi Salzano
Pete’s A Pizza by William Steig
Goose by Laura Wall
Spots in a Box by Helen Ward
Hello Hello by Brendan Wenzel
More, More, More Said the Baby by Vera B. Williams
Hooray for Hat by Brian Won
Where’s My Nose? by Lucas Zanotti

What are your favorite books to share at preschool and toddler storytimes?

Baby Lapsit Storytime

Great Books to Share with Two- and Three-Year-Olds

Upselling in the library

July 18, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

“Upselling” is a sales term that refers to convincing customers to purchase additional items or a more expensive version of the same item. However, we can “upsell” in libraries too – and it doesn’t cost people anything! It’s just a way of promoting library materials or services that patrons may not be aware of…yet. For example:

Readers’ Advisory: Someone is moving soon, and wants some books about moving to help prepare their child(ren). I can recommend a few – and I can also walk them over to the menu of booklists I made on frequently requested topics like moving, first day of school, new baby, and big feelings. This is also a good time to mention the Book Bundle service, where patrons can fill out a form and get personalized book recommendations.
Museum Passes: If a patron is checking out books about art or natural history, or mentions that they are looking for activities for the family, ask if they know about the library’s museum pass program. Patrons can reserve museum passes from the library for discounted or free admission!
Programs: When talking with families with kids in certain age ranges, make sure they’re aware about any programs you offer for kids in that age group – for instance, baby lapsit storytime for infants, Rhyme Time and Story Time for toddlers and preschool, STEAM and graphic novel book club for elementary-age students.
E-books and Audiobooks: Do patrons know about Libby? Some parents/guardians may even be using Libby themselves for e-books and digital audiobooks, but aren’t aware that there are thousands of kids’ titles too! I make sure to mention this if a family tells me they have a road trip coming up, because audiobooks make long drives much better.
Library Network: Most public libraries belong to a consortium, a network of other libraries in the state that share materials. So, if my library doesn’t have a book, another library will lend it to us. Patrons can borrow it from their home library, return it to their home library, and the system will take care of getting the book back to its place. I use this system daily, but rather than taking it for granted, I appreciate how truly magical it is. And, with the simple but functional library app, patrons can place hold requests, see what they have checked out, renew items, and make lists.
Databases: Libraries have access to databases across a variety of topics: newspapers, language learning, test prep, even crafting! Although, with the administration’s drastic cuts to the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), database access in Massachusetts has been reduced lately.

How do you upsell in the library?

Chalk painting and STEAM

May 28, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

I cannot bear waste, so I’m always seeking ways to use up the last little bits of things – for example, little nubs of sidewalk chalk too small to draw with. Over school vacation week, my handy 9yo assistant happily picked all the small bits of chalk out of the bin and bashed them up (carefully) with a hammer. (She separated the chalk by color into different bags and crushed them on a piece of cardboard outside.) I funneled the colored chalk into separate containers, and waited for good weather…which arrived today! After story time, I mixed the powdered chalk with water in bowls, and we went outside to the library patio for some chalk painting. It was great fun! There’s still plenty of chalk left, so we may do this at STEAM as well later this summer.

Now that I’ve reduced STEAM time for kids ages 5-11 to a manageable frequency (twice a month instead of every week), it’s been going great. Here are some of the activities we’ve done since the program began in January:

Robot Turtles board game
Spot It! card game
Creating and decoding messages with Caesar ciphers
Penny boats (supplies: aluminum foil, watertight bins, water, about $5 in pennies)
Jigsaw puzzles
Word scrambles
Building block challenges with big and regular-size Jenga blocks
Primary color painting
3D paper snowflakes (supplies: paper, stapler/tape, scissors, yarn or ribbon)
Make Your Own Board Game
“Stained glass” luminaria (supplies: old honey or jam jars, tealights, colored tissue paper, mod-podge, brushes)
Make Your Own Tangrams (supplies: cereal boxes, Tangram template, markers/crayons, scissors, glue). This is one of my favorites, because of the way it combines art and math; I’m looking forward to doing tessellations later.
Scattergories Jr.
Origami bookmark corners
Wildflower seed bombs (supplies: clay, compost, seeds; egg cartons to transport them home)

Sometimes, we start STEAM with a book to introduce the topic, or to use as a reference during our activity. For example:

Mix It Up! by Herve Tullet (for primary color painting)
The Science of Seafaring by Anne Rooney, Big Book of Science Experiments (2011), Alpha Bravo Charlie by Sara Gillingham (for penny boats)
Maker Comics: Design A Game! by Bree Wolf (for make your own board game)
Math Lab for Kids by Rebecca Rapoport and Highlights Tangrams (for Tangrams)
Yoko’s Paper Cranes by Rosemary Wells (for origami bookmarks)
Wintergarden by Janet Fox and Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner (for seed bombs)

In general, this has been a fairly easy, low-budget program to run. I keep a running list of ideas, books, and materials in a google doc, and use a lot of recyclable materials (like cereal boxes or honey jars) or ones we already have (like paint and paint brushes), or share new supplies with teen programs (teens made seed bombs too).

Guest presenters occasionally lend their expertise: in early spring, an author from Northeast Wildlife visited to teach about animal tracks, scat, and food sources (lots of animals each acorns!). This summer, our regional health nurse is bringing UV bead bracelets to emphasize the importance of sun protection, and one of our library trustees, who is also a master quilter, is going to lead a session on hand-sewing and help us make a small quilt we can hang in the library. So, we’re STEAMing along!

Everywhere Babies: Baby Lapsit Storytime

May 16, 2025 Jenny1 Comment

Our library’s weekly children’s programs – Rhyme Time, Story Time, and Playgroup – are all open to kids from birth to age five, but until this year we didn’t have anything specifically for babies. In late February, I introduced Baby Lapsit Storytime, for babies from birth to 12 months or walking, and people started coming right away!

Flier made in Canva

As always, Jbrary served as an excellent resource, as did Mel’s Desk, the Show Me Librarian, KCLS, the book Baby Storytime Magic by Kathy McMillan and Christine Kirker, and of course, the Massachusetts youth librarian listserv (a.k.a. massyac).

From these sources, as well as my own favorite board books and memories of the baby storytime I attended at the Belmont Public Library several years ago, I put together a 20-30 minute program of songs, rhymes, books, and early literacy tips (the PLA Early Literacy Calendar has lots of these; I hand out a copy of each month’s calendar and suggestions to those who want one). I collected baby-friendly toys (no choking hazards, easy to wipe down or wash) from our current collection of stuff, plus leftovers from the Toy Swap; I also use the play scarves from Rhyme Time (and bring them home with me to wash).

Room setup: Vacuum the rug and set the bean bags up in a circle. Pull some chairs over too for those who are more comfortable sitting. There’s room for “stroller parking” in the back. The box of baby toys stays on the table until after the more structured part of the program happens. Extra copies of board books go on the little side table next to my chair, and I set up extra books along the window ledge (other board books, picture books for babies, poetry, etc.); if they’re in easy reach, people will check them out!

Welcome and introductions: We start whenever at least one, but ideally two, baby/caregiver pair(s) has/have arrived. Because of what I call “baby time,” this isn’t always precisely at 10am.
Song: “Well Hello Everybody, Can You Touch Your Nose?“
Rhyme/fingerplay: “Open Shut Them”
Early literacy tip (e.g. rhymes and songs are important for babies because they slow down words and help babies hear the different sounds – an important preliteracy skill)
Song cube* song (ABCs, Itsy-Bitsy Spider, I’m A Little Teapot, Where Is Thumbkin?, etc.)
Rhyme/bounce: “The Grand Old Duke of York” (usually twice)
Book (see image and list below)**
Rhyme/play: Peekaboo to the tune of Frere Jacques
Song: “Head and Shoulders” by Ella Jenkins: we do head and shoulders, knees and toes, back and belly.
Early literacy tip (e.g. fingerplays help babies build the small muscles in their hands, preparing them to grip crayons so they can draw and write)
Scarf/rhyme: “Popcorn Kernels in the Pot” and/or “Jack in the Box”
Rhyme/bounce: “Trot, Trot to Boston” (I learned this one as an adult, it’s pretty New England specific)
Song: “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”
Goodbye and closing: announce dates of next baby storytimes, and anything else interesting coming up – for example, we have a babywearing expert visiting next month, and a babies and kids clothing swap later this summer.
Play, socialize, and help! Put the toys on the rug and offer copies of the early literacy calendar. It’s so important for caregivers to have time to talk with each other, to exchange tips, to commiserate, to share information with each other. During this time I often play with babies, read them an extra book, offer info about library resources, or go and get specific books from our shelves.

*I got the song cube idea from another librarian friend. I make mine out of empty tissue boxes, paper, marker, crayons, and clear packing tape. Each side has a picture that corresponds to a simple, well-known song, e.g. a teapot for “I’m A Little Teapot,” a spider for “Itsy-Bitsy Spider,” a rowboat for “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” a rocket ship for “Zoom zoom zoom, We’re going to the moon.” You can see a couple of examples from this Step Into Storytime post.

Visual book list made in LibraryAware

**A week or so ahead of time, I request a board book or full-size picture book for myself, and extra copies of the board book for caregivers to read along if they want. Here are the books we’ve read so far:

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox and Helen Oxenbury
Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers and Marla Frazee
More, More, More Said the Baby by Vera B. Williams
Happy Hippo, Angry Duck by Sandra Boynton
Alma, Head to Toe by Juana Martinez-Neal (this one is bilingual, English/Spanish; there is also Alma and Her Family, Alma at Home, and Where Is Pajarito?
Jamberry by Bruce Degen
How Kind! by Mary Murphy

Baby storytime has been an absolute delight, and I’m excited to keep it going. I’m grateful for the advice of other librarians and early literacy specialists, and to the caregivers for bringing their babies to the library. It’s never too early to begin reading with babies (or to sign up for 1000 Books Before Kindergarten!).

Unreasonable Hospitality in the Library

May 1, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

Last fall, the Massachusetts Library System (MLS) Youth Services Section (YSS) hosted a virtual “Lunch and Learn” with the folks from the Westwood Public Library‘s PR/marketing team. They spoke about being proactive and intentional instead of reactive, about brand consistency, quality control, and increased engagement with the community, and about sustainability and succession (so all the institutional knowledge doesn’t walk out the door when one person leaves).

Toward the end, they recommended three books: The Non-Designers Design Book by Robin Williams, This Is Marketing by Seth Godin, and Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara. I just read Unreasonable Hospitality, and was thinking about ways we can offer excellent service and hospitality in libraries. (Guidara writes mainly about his area of expertise, restaurants, but the core principles are applicable to any service industry.) How do we make people who visit the library feel welcome, at home, seen, listened to, and cared for? What needs can we anticipate and fulfill?

One thing public libraries in Massachusetts do that often strikes people as magical when they first learn about it is our inter-library loan system. If a local library doesn’t have the book you want on its shelf when you want it – either because they don’t own it or it’s checked out – you can request a copy, and another library in the consortium will send it over. You can return the book to your home library or any other library in the network, and that library will make sure the book gets back to its owning library. It’s the magic of sharing! (And an algorithm, and van drivers, and sorters at the central facility, etc.) This saves people time and money, and it’s a pretty cool service.

ILL is a core service of libraries as far as I’m concerned, and so are programs: author talks and book signings, storytimes, Lego and games, book clubs, ELL and language learning groups, knitting and sewing groups, history and science lectures. The library is that “third place” where people can gather for entertainment, education, and community, without having to purchase anything. Being responsive to what the community wants – making sure people know that staff are open to ideas and willing to try new things – is part of building community and trust. It’s why I encourage patrons to talk to me in person, contact me by e-mail, or put a note in my desk mailbox. A lot of the new programs I’ve developed over the past year and a half have come out of these interactions, including Pokemon Club and the toy swap.

Hospitality means going beyond your organization’s core functions, however; beyond the “black and white” and into color, as Guidara puts it. What are the special, small, meaningful things you do to make people feel comfortable? In a children’s room, that might mean making sure all the outlets are covered, there’s a place to hang coats and park strollers, and there’s a changing table in every restroom. It could mean that books face cover-out as much as possible, there are toys to encourage play, and signage is friendly and informative. It could mean you have a first-aid kit ready to hand, bookmarks to give away, and stickers or hand stamps to ease the transition of leaving the library. It means greeting people who walk in the door, learning the names of the regulars…even remembering their tastes and preferences and making personalized recommendations.

What touches of hospitality have you put in place in your library (or bookstore, or other service workplace)? Where have you experienced remarkable, unexpected, “unreasonable hospitality” yourself?

A big part of what made “unreasonable hospitality” work in Guidara’s restaurants was that the staff was empowered to enact ideas, make exceptions, etc. without getting approval from a manager. This approach made me think of the organization and management of public libraries course I took in grad school; the teacher, an adjunct who had worked in many libraries, told us that the manager’s job is to make it possible for everyone else to do their jobs, and then get out of the way. In other words, don’t micromanage; instead, train and trust your staff, empower them to handle their responsibilities, make sure they have what they need to succeed, and be there to back them up. Unreasonable Hospitality is a beautiful example of that principle in action.

On Maintenance

April 4, 2025 Jenny1 Comment

Innovation is exciting and splashy; maintenance doesn’t get the same attention, but it’s absolutely essential. As Jenny Odell writes in How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy (2020), “Our very idea of productivity is premised on the idea of producing something new, whereas we do not tend to see maintenance and care as productive in the same way.” And here’s John Green quoting Kurt Vonnegut in The Anthropocene Reviewed (2021): “[O]ne of the flaws of the human character is that ‘everybody wants to build and nobody wants to do maintenance.'”

My own human character is certainly flawed in other ways, but for the most part, I really enjoy “doing maintenance.” (Although it would also be really nice to trim my nails to the right length once and have them stay that way forever. Alas.) In the context of library work, though, it can be challenging to show how much time and care go into maintaining the programs, services, and space; nothing runs on autopilot, and everything takes time. Some tasks are daily, some weekly, some monthly, some quarterly or annually or as-needed, but it all adds up.

Library jobs are not the only ones affected by “scope creep” or “mission creep.” We’re often asked to – and praised for – “do(ing) more with less” (usually less resources and/or staff) but at some point, just maintaining everything you’re already doing takes all of your time, so in order to add something new, you have to take something away. In my current job, I’m fortunate that I’m not being pressured to do more all of the time, and I don’t have to push back and set those boundaries. (If you are in that position, a helpful phrase is, “Yes, we can do [new thing]. What are we going to reduce or stop doing in order to do [new thing]?” or some variant of that.)

My approach for the first year or so of this job was to maintain the programs that were already in place and popular, and try some new things too: the “Throw it at the wall and see what sticks” approach. Some were successful and are still going (Lego & Games two afternoons a week); some never got off the ground (Girls Who Code, Caregiver Cafe); some were successful for a while but ran their course (Pokemon Club, Comics Club, My First Book Club). When introducing a new program, you want to give it a few chances; don’t cancel it if no one shows up the first time.

As the new calendar year begins, I’ve made some changes to our programs: I replaced Comics Club/Comics & Crafts with STEAM Time, and My First Book Club is going on hiatus until summer; it might be a summer-only program, as it’s especially helpful for families with rising kindergarteners. Caregiver Cafe didn’t work out, but Baby Lapsit Storytime has been a great success.

Again, I’m fortunate that I have the autonomy to make these decisions and these changes, and respond to community needs. “That’s how it’s always been done,” on its own, is not a good reason to continue doing things that way; at the same time, new is not always better. What programs are most popular in your library? What programs have flopped? Which have been successful?

The art of the pivot

February 8, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

Last summer, I piloted “My First Book Club,” a program for rising kindergarten and first grade students and their grown-ups. It was successful at first, but attendance dropped off after the fall – partly, I think, because I had to alternate between the more popular Saturday morning time and Friday afternoons, which didn’t work as well for everyone. (If we had another Children’s Librarian who could also offer weekend programs…)

I decided our February book club would be the last one until summer, when I would run it again for a new group of rising K/1st graders. No one showed up for the program…but, there were plenty of kids and adults in the children’s room, so I invited them all in for a storytime instead. We read the same two books – Arihhonni David’s The Good Game and Who Will Win? – and used the coloring sheets I’d printed (a flying squirrel and a bat, characters in The Good Game), I just sprinkled in a few songs and rhymes as well: “Open Shut Them,” “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider,” and the Ella Jenkins version of “Head and Shoulders.”

So, instead of having a book club with zero attendance, I had a storytime with eleven kids and grown-ups, all of whom were pleased and grateful. With experience, it’s fairly easy to pivot from one program to a very similar one, even for a different age group – going from a music program to STEAM would be a different story – but in this case, it worked out for everyone!

STEAM Time

January 11, 2025January 10, 2025 Jenny1 Comment

After nearly a year, Comics Club/Comics & Crafts had run its course, and it was time to try something new. I came up with STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) Time: once a week, kids in kindergarten through fifth grade can come and try out something new and different, from building challenges to puzzles to coding games to art projects.

Our first STEAM Time was a success! Nine kids of various ages showed up, and I presented the options: Robot Turtles (a board game that teaches the basic principles of coding) and Caesar ciphers (I had prepared several of these – from this PDF – with cardstock and brads for kids to create and decipher each other’s codes). As a backup option, I also brought Spot It, a picture-matching game.

Robot Turtles box Three of the younger kids started with Robot Turtles, and the others began making codes for each other to decipher. I gave a basic explanation about how to use the Caesar cipher (or shift cipher), then helped the kids get Robot Turtles set up, then helped the ones who were having trouble figuring out the ciphers. (I think one thing that tripped them up initially was the letter-letter correspondence, rather than letter-number correspondence; the only number you need with this kind of cipher is the “shift,”; it’s not an A=1, B=2 kind of code.) But eventually, everyone figured it out, and then they could swap ciphered messages to decipher!

Meanwhile, back in Robot Turtle land, each kid got a chance to give instructions (the coder role) and follow instructions (the turtle role). And when the Caesar cipher kids got tired of (de)ciphering, they switched to a rousing game of Spot It!

Cover image of Mix It Up by Herve Tullet In the next few weeks, we’ll have a building challenge with blocks (we have both regular and life-size Jenga), a puzzle challenge (a 36-piece jigsaw with the picture showing, then upside down), penny boats, Snap Circuits, primary color painting (think Mix It Up!), and more. What STEAM activities do you like to do with kids?

What can you draw in six seconds?

January 10, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

Cover image of Lucky Scramble The kids’ graphic novel book club I started last fall is still going strong, with about 4-7 kids attending each month. This month we read Lucky Scramble by Peter Raymundo, about a kid named Tyler who goes to a Rubik’s cube competition. Our icebreaker question was “What’s your favorite kind of puzzle?” and a lot of the kids said “Rubik’s cube,” even though none of us could solve one. (I said word puzzles, like wordle, and it turns out all of the kids also do the NYT puzzles!)

We discussed the different characters and storylines, what we expected and what surprised us, parental pressure, and attitudes toward competition and winning. We each had a copy of the book for reference, and the kids are so good about citing page numbers so we can all be on the same page, literally.

I asked them what they thought they could do in six seconds – the length of time champion speed-cubers can solve a 3×3 – and that turned into “What can you draw in six seconds?” So we moved over to the tables, got paper and pencils, and tried it! Turns out, not much – but after having only six seconds to draw something, a minute feels like a long time! So we did a one-minute drawing, a two-minute drawing, and finally a five-minute drawing (during which one of the kids turned out a staggeringly impressive dragon drawing).

Cover image of Puzzled by Pan Cooke Last, the kids voted on which book to read next. The choices were Curveball by Pablo Cartaya, Pebble & Wren by Chris Hallbeck, and Puzzled by Pan Cooke. The first two got one vote each and Puzzled got two votes, so that will be our February book – but all three books got checked out. It was a good afternoon!

Stuffed Animal Sleepover

January 2, 2025 JennyLeave a comment

First things first: gratitude to the youth librarians on the statewide listserv, massyac, for their generosity in sharing tips and tricks for a stuffed animal sleepover program! Their collective advice was quick, clever, and invaluable, as usual. Being part of a profession whose core values include sharing really has its benefits!

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Above: Group shot! All the stuffed animals on the library boat (or in the ocean)

So, what’s a stuffed animal sleepover? Kids bring their stuffed animals to the library, leave them overnight, and pick them up the next day. While the cats (people) are away, the mice (stuffed animals) do play! They make friends with each other, take rides on the book cart, play with library toys, and snuggle up to listen to a story. At pickup time, each stuffed animal gets a little packet to take home with photos and a note about their overnight activities, and a library book recommendation, which they can choose to check out.

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Above: Three stuffed animals in rocking chairs read a picture book together

Here are the most important (and repeated) pieces of advice I received and used from massyac responses:

Allow more time than you think you need for setting up and taking photos; use an assistant if you can!
Collect information (kid’s name, stuffed animal’s name, adult’s contact info) at drop-off time, and attach a tag to each stuffed animal.
Make a take-home booklet, post to social media, or create a slideshow of photos

Thank you, massyac! I employed my nine-year-old as assistant, and she was an excellent helper. Staging and taking the photos didn’t actually take that much time – an hour or less. Creating the personalized book recommendations and packets, creating the photo album, and posting to social media took about two hours. If you wanted to save some time, you could do less personalization and give everyone the same booklet – it’s still fun!

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Above: All the stuffed animals snuggling on bean bags, reading a story together

At drop-off time, kids filled out a “sleepover permission slip” with information about their stuffed animals (name, personality, favorite book, a portrait), and a tag we tied on with ribbon. The favorite book question helped us decide which book(s) to recommend.

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Above: Pigeon and Piggie play in the Lego bin

Miraculously, everyone who registered for the program showed up during the drop-off window, and everyone came to pick up their stuffed animals the next day! There was a waitlist for the program – again, on the advice of other librarians, I capped registration at 10 (and still ended up with 12) – so we’ll be doing it again in the spring, and those on the waitlist will get priority.

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Above: Grapes, Munchkin, and Peanut Butter hang out in a cool MagnaTile house

Overall, our first stuffed animal sleepover was a success! Have you hosted one at your library? What are your favorite tips and tricks? Is this the most adorable program, or what?