Kids break stuffy silence during playful day at Winnipeg libraries

Parents and kids filled Winnipeg public libraries Saturday to celebrate the joys of a good book — and to fill the often quiet stacks with a little noise.

"Our kids are so used to coming to the library, trying to be quiet and very serious, so coming here today is a nice way to mix reading and pleasurable and fun activities together," Nathalie Pambrun said during Take Your Child to the Library Day festivities at the St. Boniface Library.

The special event promoted literacy through games, crafts, story stations and more at public libraries across the city.

"The activities of Take Your Child to the Library Day spark learning through reading and creative play, making it an ideal time to discover all the library has to offer," Ed Cuddy, manager of library services with the city.

Gisele Normandeau brought her four-year-old granddaughter to the St. Boniface Library Saturday. Normandeau said the times have changed a lot since her kids were young, and so have libraries.

"It's a variety that they're offering, which we didn't have when our kids were small, and so this is great for our grandchildren," she said. "I think the grand parents are having as much fun as the grand children."

She said lifting the no-noise rule a every now and then, and offering kids the chance to take part in playful activities, can only serve to encourage young readers to develop a love for libraries.

"The kids can learn that you can come to the library and have fun. It's not just books and you have to be serious.…  We don't have to be quiet all the time," she said.

"And probably if you start when they are young it will initiate them to come to the library when they're older, when they're adolescents, and they'll know that a lot of things are happening at the library."