SAN ANTONIO – Remember Story Time at the library? When we were little, many of us listened in awe as a librarian read aloud a book and took us to another world.
With iPads and Kindles, it sounds like another memory from days gone by.
But Story Time at Parman Library is so popular, families are on a waiting list to go.
“Welcome, welcome everyone,” the toddler class sings.
Story Time begins with a rhyme – wordplay for rugrats.
He loves it,” mother Stacy Rosas says. “He lights up."
She says she was lucky to snag a spot for little Gabriel.
“In the beginning, it was a waiting list because you had to come and sign up here at the library,” Rosas says.
Hold that thought – a waiting list to read books – what year is this again?
“I can’t believe I get paid to do my job, actually,” Story Time leader Carrie Vance says. “My job is the most fun job in the whole world.”
For one second, let’s pretend Story Time class is a book.
“This is ‘Big Fat Hen’ by Keith Baker,” Vance says as she shows the book to the toddlers.
Vance would be the pages, who at every turn, puts a smile on a child’s face.
"The physical turning of the page creates pathways in the brain that I don't think happen as much with an iPad,” Vance says.
In this digital age where, it’s safe to say, every child in the class can navigate a touch screen, Story Time is a trending topic.
Parman Library even put a max on group sizes because demand is so high.
"Books still matter,” Vance says. “With a book format, the pictures in the book are quite larger than most of the books would appear in iPad format."
Vance says when she hands a child a book, they learn language and vocabulary skills that will last a lifetime.
"It's indescribable because I know when they're excited about books and reading it will open up doors for them later in their life."
A lesson no computer can erase, or replace.
Visit
Parman Library's website to learn how to sign up for classes.
