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Whether passive, virtual, or face-to-face, use these ideas to plan programs that promote reading, literacy, interactive games and more.
For Kids, Tweens & Teens
For Kids, Tweens & Teens
10 Fun Library Activities for Kids
10 Fun Library Activities for Kids
Make the most of library time with these engaging activities from TeachStarter, including everything from StoryWalks® to library lingo bingo.
Aren't familiar with StoryWalks®? Created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, Vermont, with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library, use these FAQ to plan your own walkable experience in your library or school.
Library Scavenger Hunt from TeachStarter
Books Books Books
Books Books Books
Book Speed Dating
Have your students try Book Speed Dating where they are paired up for a quick "date" with a book, get to know the book and note their first impressions before moving on to the next one. After each round, the students rate how interested they are in the books they've "met" and borrow their favorite(s). Try it with novels and high-interest fiction, or use this guide from Karin Greenberg and experiment with nonfiction titles.
Making Books
With the free app Book Creator anyone can combine text, pictures, audio, and video to create an interactive experience like never before and with the comic book template, creating original graphic novels and comic books has never been easier. Content is as easy to create as it is to share. See the brief self-paced guide below.
Learn how to make a mini-book and watch the Library of Congress demonstration video on a simple book conservation technique.
Book Clubs
Book clubs for kids can be a huge success if you follow this guide from School Library Journal with some helpful tips such as starting small and using multimedia as part of the fun.
Teen books clubs can be just as popular if you follow this Teen Book Club guide from Teen Services Underground's Jenni Frencham, and these helpful tips from Sheri Schubbe at Teen Librarian Toolbox.
Virtual Author Events
Helpful resources to find and schedule virtual author visits.
Authors Who Skype with Classes and Book Clubs – Kate Messner Blog
Book a Scholastic Author Visit
Penguin Young Readers: Authors & Illustrators Available for School & Library Appearances
SCBWI Digital Directory of Virtual Author/Illustator Visits and Workshops
Simon & Schuster's Children, Teen & Young Adult Authors Available for School and Library Appearances
The Shelburne Museum's Apothecary Shop virtual escape room. Photo courtesy of the Shelburne Museum.
Escape Rooms (Virtual) for Kids
Escape Rooms (Virtual) for Kids
Escape from rooms in virtual depictions of actual historical buildings at the Shelburne Museum in New England.
Check out this wonderful collection of free virtual escape rooms collected from Tech & Learning.
Teachers interested in creating their own digital escape rooms using Google Forms can watch Youth Services Librarian Sydney Krawiec's how-to video here.
Escape Rooms (Virtual) for Tweens & Teens
Escape Rooms (Virtual) for Tweens & Teens
A huge selection of virtual escape rooms from White Oak Library District.
Six of Crows-themed Digital Escape Room - Created by Abigail Hsu, the Young Adult Librarian at the Morristown & Morris Township Library, challenge your teens with this virtual escape room.
Games & Gamification
Games & Gamification
Use Kahoot or Quizzizz to create online learning games and quizzes that can be accessed and played from any web browser, or search for ready-made quizzes created by fellow educators.
Jeopardy! is played and loved by millions, so create your own Jeopardy-style board using JeopardyLabs or follow this tutorial that uses a freely available PowerPoint template.
Board games in the library have been a hit with all who participate, according to Dustan Archer at Teen Services Underground. Follow this guide on how to host a board game night from John Pappas, a Head Librarian in Pennsylvania.
Harmony Square is a game that help students learn how social media can lead to fake news being used to mislead people.
Kahoot game in action. Photo courtesy of Kahoot.
Genius Hour (All Ages)
Genius Hour (All Ages)
You've probably heard about genius hour, or the time tech companies such as Google give to employees to pursue their passion projects. Implement a genius hour in your classroom or as part of an after school program and watch your students' creativity and critical thinking skills flourish!
How to Implement Genius Hour in Your Elementary School Classroom - A helpful guide from EdTech Classroom on how to introduce and implement a genius hour at your school.
Here's a great sample letter to parents from Sarah Simac, a teacher from Eagle River Elementary School, about the diverse possibilities of genius hour projects, from knitting and science to cooking and magic tricks.
Lessons learned from teacher Meshelle Smith on implementing a genius hour and tips on sharing and showcasing students' work.
Be sure to also check out the ebook Bringing Genius Hour to Your Library by Elizabeth Barrera Rush in our Educator Library collection. Visit the Educator Library page for more information on access and borrowing.
STEM & STEAM Activities (All Ages)
STEM & STEAM Activities (All Ages)
Art - Putting the A in STEAM
Create works of Pixel Art out of low-tech sticky notes following these tips from Post-it®, this how-to video, and this Google Sheets trick to help get you started.
Find an 8-bit image online or make your own with graph paper.
Make sure you have wall or window space for your design (each sticky note is 3x3 in.).
Count how many sticky notes of each color you need and make sure you can find that color.
Create your Pixel Art!
Coding
At the Raspberry Pi Foundation, find coding projects for any level of experience using the software or hardware of your choice.
At Tynker's Hour of Coding students in all grades can learn coding through games, puzzles, and projects. Or, they can start coding right away in the programming language of their choice.
Math
Prodigy Math is an online fantasy-themed game that teaches students math concepts in fun and engaging ways.
This site from School Library Journal is chock-full of fun and engaging library programs for teens, both face-to-face and virtual.
You'll find inspiring and creative ideas for library activities, with everything from Instagram art galleries to crafts, STEM, game nights, book clubs, and more, like this activity on making Mexican sugar skulls out of clay or Percy Jackson After Hours.
A creative and expansive list of ideas to keep tweens and teens engaged with activities, programs, and after school events.
Check out the pages on adding tween programs from Andrea Sowers, reverse scavenger hunts from Amanda Borgia, and adulting 101 from Amanda Heidema.
Also find ideas on STEM, crafts, and the arts, such as planning a Lego night for teens from Jenni Frencham or tips for turning YA novels into musicals.
Break It Down, a teen activity on music production & remixing from Evan Mather.
For Parents & Families
For Parents & Families
Family Engagement Library from LAUSD
Family Engagement Library from LAUSD
An electronic library of family engagement resources from the Parent Institute and Los Angeles Unified School District.
Family Literacy Event Planning
Family Literacy Event Planning
Find out why Family Literacy Events are so important and how to plan them in this handout from Rotary International and Save the Children's Together, We Read program. Book Swaps and Nighttime Story Book Fairs are just a few of the great ideas ready for you to try out in your school or library.
Explore all the free Activity Kits that are available from Library of Congress for families to use, from creating your own comics to bringing your favorite stories to life.
Read Aloud Workshops
Read Aloud Workshops
Use the helpful resources below when planning a workshop on read alouds and family literacy.
Use these customizable resources and videos from Treasure Bay Books and easily incorporate them into your read aloud workshops.
Share these tips from Jodi Durgin, or these from Reading Rockets, or these from the Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy.
Or share these resources, including materials in Spanish, directly with parents.
Find charming Spanish read-alouds of beloved fairy tales and fables for children at The Spanish Experiment. You can even take some free Spanish lessons!
Explore Aprendiendo juntos en casa (Learning together at home), Leer en el jardín de infantes (Reading in Kindergarten), and Ayude a su niño a aprender a leer (Help Your Child Learn to Read) from Colorín Colorado.
Check out this nice selection of video read alouds in Spanish at Érase una vez (Once Upon a Time), read by Leticia Jiménez García.
HowtoSelectReadAloudV2_Spanish.pdfResources in both English and Spanish.
Find many helpful resources, tips, activity ideas, and video tutorials to help your child on their reading and literacy journey.
Reading and family literacy resources including worksheets, flyers, tips, and more.
Literacy skill building video tutorials for parents of elementary school-aged children.
Wonderful online storytimes, author read-alouds, and other virtual reading resources.
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