Ahh, the library. It’s a place that retains a great deal of
nostalgia for older students, teachers, and parents alike. The library is not
just a building or room with a bunch of rows, shelves, books, and women named
Marge who are going to tell you to keep it down. It’s a place—a nexus of
adventures. Children and adults alike can go there to escape into a multitude
of worlds. Whether it’s fantasy or the reader has an interest in our world and
its wonderful animals and nature. One thing is for certain though, in these
hallowed halls, there must be order. Most libraries can’t afford to hire someone
who will remember your face, keep order and make sure that you return the
things you borrowed. That’s okay though, at Hygloss, we have all the right
tools to keep things in order for teachers and staff, as well as fun for
children!
Reading is Highly
Important for Development
Reading is an incredibly important activity for children and
adults alike. The choices and actions we take are a product of how we think,
and how we think is a product of how we exercise our thoughts. When we practice
reading and writing, we are actively learning to organize our thoughts in a
specific way. Reading is a phenomenal way to get a mental workout, but also get
outside of your own mind and take in the experiences of others—whether
fictional or real or somewhere in between. Reading is still the predominant
gateway to knowledge, and literacy is one of the most fundamental cornerstones
of basic education. Not everyone needs to have high verbal ability, but having a
basic and well-practiced ability to read and discern information is something
that will set children up for success in their endeavors.
How though, how can we get
children to read? There are many tactics and exercises that can be used in
classrooms, but that would warrant an entire post of its own. There is one
thing that children do respond to though…
They respond to fun!
Here are a few items that can spice up classroom life for
your students:
Bright Library Cards
The basic staple of library rentals, the card! I recall many
books with beat-up library cards that had been used and abused. The handwriting
was barely legible and space ran out so you had to find some awkward place to
scribble your name. How frustrating must that be for a librarian who has to
check these things?
Perhaps you’re a teacher that has a little personal collection
of books for your students so that they can borrow for designated reading
periods in class. What better way to foster a love of reading than carrying
some prime choices that you know children will love? Things do get lost in the
shuffle though, and these cards are a fantastic way to keep track of what
students have borrowed your books.
The cards are made up of sturdy stock paper which will
guarantee that they won’t bend, fold, or rip easily. You can get them in white
or an assorted color pack which has red, yellow, orange, green, blue, pink, and
white.
Mighty Bright Library
Pockets
These colorful library pockets are useful for a wide variety
of things in the classroom or the library. They are seats and resist fading and
can accept all mediums of writing so that you never have to worry about
something easily smudging! You can purchase them in adhesive or non-adhesive
styles. These pockets have their most basic use as folders to hold classroom
documents like packets of graded papers being returned. They can be hung up on
walls and used to hold attendance sheets, children love doing tasks that
involve getting out of their seats. Imagine a very young child’s joy of being
handed a bright red or blue folder and being asked to put it on the wall slot
where the attendance goes!
You can pin multiple folders on bulletin boards for various
activities or even use them creatively for certain games. One fun use we’ve
seen is pinning 3-5 of them on the board and playing group educational games for
treats or small prizes. You take the students through a series of questions on the
material they should know and they’ll put their answers in the right folder
depending on what the answer is.
Book Buddies
There’s perhaps a no better way to encourage children to
read than to be able to show them their progress in a colorful and enticing
way. Book buddies are just the way to do that! It’s simple, a book ring where
you can insert as many book buddies as you’d like. We’ll be excited and proud if
any of your students can fill the ring up! Book buddies are a fantastic way to
keep track of what books your students have read. They can be used as
assignments for young children too! Since short stories have long since been
mainstays of primary school literature due to their shorter length and easier
to grasp concepts, book buddies can be a great way to give your students a
sense of accomplishment and satisfaction by being able to look at their book
buddies at the end of the year and go over how many short stories and books
that were covered in class. The act of adding one more to the ring is addicting
as well!
Buy Classroom
Supplies Online
Reading is one of the most important skills and interests to
foster in young minds. Using the right tools in the classroom to spice up the
reading experience can make all the difference. We offer a wide variety of
educational supplies that are sure to appeal to teachers and students alike!
If you’d like to learn more about our products, contact us or give us a
call at (973)-458-1700!