Senator Fiona O’Loughlin has announced the roll-out of the First 5 Little Library Initiative to encourage a love of reading among young children. The project aims to support the development of little libraries in early learning and care settings and encourage a love of books and reading among our youngest children. Under this initiative, more than 4,500 early learning and care settings are invited to collect free book bags and other resources from their local library as they reopen next week.
“I’m delighted to announce today the roll-out of the First 5 Little Library Initiative, which officially links our early learning and care services to the national library service,” said Senator O’Loughlin. “The hope is to encourage a new generation on a life-long love of reading, and that this project will bring even more connections between local libraries and early learning and care services and the families and communities they serve.”
The First 5 Little Library Initiative will:
- Distribute a selection of books and resources to all early learning and care services, through the national network of libraries;
- Ensure this selected collection of books is also held in libraries which can be loaned out to young children and their families;
- Encourage membership and use of the library network among early learning and care services and among young children and their families;
- Support the early learning and care services and families in use of this resource;
- Encourage ongoing collaboration between the early learning and care services and libraries and support families in establishing or developing the practice of reading.
Contact your local library for more information.