Our YouTube Channel is under construction this summer but be sure to enjoy some of our previously recorded programs!
Summer Reading Program – Rebuild & Read!
Join our summer reading program, Rebuild & Read! The program runs from June 1-July 31. You can download a kids log (Ages 2 years old-6th grade) or a baby log, or pick them up at our Children’s Services Desk. Kids can also track their progress and receive raffle tickets using our online system. Use this link to register: Rebuild and Read You can also watch our summer reading video for more info.
Summer Fun!
Chalk Your Walk
Before our library undergoes construction, we want you to draw our building using chalk so we can always remember the way it looked. Pick up your kit from the Children’s Services Department while supplies last. Take a picture of your chalk drawing and email us a photo at childrens@lplibrary.org. Include the child’s name, age, and phone number. At the end of summer, three winners will be chosen! Program runs June 1 through July 31. For ages 2 years old-6th grade.
Around Town Scavenger Hunt
Get out and explore with our Around Town Scavenger Hunt! Check our Facebook page each Tuesday in June at 9 a.m. for a new video clue, then see if you can recognize the location. Pick up a clue sheet at the Children’s desk or make your own! When you have all 5 answers, visit the Children’s desk for a prize!
Community Caring Cards
Sharing is caring, especially during this challenging time. If you love to write or draw this is the perfect opportunity for you! Sign up to send cards that show you care to our neighborhood seniors at Bethlehem Woods and to the kids at Cards for Hospitalized Kids. Pre-addressed and stamped postcards can be picked up at the library. All you have to do is decorate them and drop them in the mail.
Grades PreK-6 contact margaret@lplibrary.org to participate.
Grades 7-12 contact samantha@lplibrary.org to partcipate.
Fill out this form and we’ll pick out books and more for you!
Local Schools
- La Grange School District 102 — (Forest Road School, Ogden School, Park Junior High)
- Brookfield-La Grange Park School District 95 — (BrookPark School, S. E. Gross Middle School)
- Saint Francis Xavier School
- Saint Louis de Marillac School
Homework Help
- TumbleBooks — e-Books for kids
Talking Books
- Talking Book and Braille Service — The Talking Book and Braille Service (TBBS) provides audio and braille library service via mail or digital download to any Illinois resident who is unable to read standard print material due to a permanent or temporary visual or physical disability.
Educational Sites
- Black Lives Matter Instructional Library with Read Alouds
- How to Talk to Kids About Race: Books and Resources That Can Help
- We Need Diverse Books
- Virtual Field Trips
- Astronauts reading books in space! Many of the storytimes also include worksheets and discussion questions for kids to complete.
- Scholastic offers talking points about coronavirus for kids of all ages.
- RAILS for Schools has free access to classic books and other educational resources, including some in Spanish. RAILS also has this list of free virtual tours and entertainment.
- NASA STEM Engagement has a variety of videos, games and homework help.
- Experience the Field Museum from home! You can even message Máximo, the titanosaur.
- You can also experience the Museum of Science and Industry and do some experiments.
- This is The Ultimate Guide to Virtual Museum Resources, E-Learning, and Online Collections.
- Fostering Readers provides the information and resources needed to plan, implement, and evaluate research-based literacy programs for K-3rd grade children who are learning how to read.
- Visit the internet’s largest dinosaur database, featuring very realistic pictures of what the dinosaurs would have looked like!
- CoBuildAtHome has a ton of maker activities!
Webcomics
Check out these great webcomics for kids! You can read them online for free!
Breaking Cat News
This hilarious comic by Georgia Dunn (which is now available in book form also) is inspired by the author’s real cats.
Audrey’s Magic Nine
This comic by Michelle Wright, Courtney Huddleston, Francesco Gerbino, and Tracy Bailey post updates three times a week and is great for kids and adults.
Cucumber Quest
This comic by gigi d.g. is about bunny kids going on adventures and having fun.
The Wormworld Saga
This comic for older readers by Daniel Lieske is about a boy who finds a painting that transports him to another world. It’s also translated into several different languages on Lieske’s site.
Safe places to play games and read books online
And much, much more…
- Visit our YouTube Channel for story times and other programs for ages birth-6th grade.
- Great Websites for Kids posted by the Association for Library Service to Children
- See the International Space Station on Google Maps!
- BiblioBoard – E-resources available to anyone in Illinois free of charge courtesy of RAILS’ partnership with BiblioLabs. Tons of fun stuff, but also a great educational resource for kids, teens and adults!
- Kate Messner’s page includes herself and several author friends reading from their books and giving lessons on drawing, science and more. This content ranges in age from PreSchool to High School.
- Doreen Cronin has printable worksheets that feature her books.
- Grace Lin is reading excerpts from her books, including her new Mulan book, on her YouTube page.
- We can’t Read to the Dogs right now, but we can email them and other therapy pets! Visit the Hinsdale Humane Society’s Therapy Pet Page to choose an animal to email. They’ll be so excited to hear what you’ve been reading and doing until we can all be together again.
Families Together Booklist
This booklist features resources for children, teens and adults about family separation and how we can help keep families together.
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Caldecott Medal & Honor Books
The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
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Newbery Medal & Honor Books
The Newbery Medal is awarded annually to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
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Coretta Scott King Book Award
The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.
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Mildred L. Batchelder Award
The Batchelder Award is given to the most outstanding children’s book originally published in a language other than English in a country other than the United States, and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States.
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Pura Belpré Medal
The Pura Belpré Award is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.
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Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal
The Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal is awarded annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished informational book published in the United States in English during the preceding year.
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Theodore “Dr. Seuss” Geisel Award
The Geisel Award is given annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year.
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Stonewall Book Awards
The Mike Morgan and Larry Romans Children’s and Young Adult Literature Stonewall Book Award honors books for exceptional merit relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender experience.
View »Schneider Family Book Award
This award honors an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent readers.
View »Américas Award
CLASP (Consortium of Latin American Studies Program) founded the Américas Award in 1993 to encourage and commend authors, illustrators and publishers who produce quality children’s and young adult books that portray Latin America, the Caribbean, or Latinos in the United States, and to provide teachers with recommendations for classroom use.
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Asian Pacific American Librarians Literature Awards
The goal of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature is to honor and recognize individual work about Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage, based on literary and artistic merit.
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Association of Jewish Libraries Sydney Taylor Book Award
The Sydney Taylor Book Award is presented annually to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience. Presented by the Association of Jewish Libraries since 1968, the award encourages the publication and widespread use of quality Judaic literature.
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American Indian Youth Literature Award
The American Indian Youth Literature Awards are presented every two years. The awards were established as a way to identify and honor the very best writing and illustrations by and about American Indians. Books selected to receive the award will present American Indians in the fullness of their humanity in the present and past contexts.
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Children’s Notable Lists
Each year the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) identifies the best of the best in children’s books, recordings, videos and apps.
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We Need Diverse Books
We Need Diverse Books™ is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and a grassroots organization of children’s book lovers that advocates essential changes in the publishing industry. Our aim is to help produce and promote literature that reflects and honors the lives of all young people.
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The Walter Award
The Walter Dean Myers Award for Outstanding Children’s Literature, also known as “The Walter,” celebrates the legacy of author Walter Dean Myers (1937-2014). naugurated in 2016, the annual Walter Dean Myers Awards for Outstanding Children’s Literature recognize diverse authors (or co-authors) whose works feature diverse main characters and address diversity in a meaningful way.
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South Asia Book Award
In recent years an increasing number of high-quality children’s and young adult books are published that portray South Asia or South Asians living abroad. To encourage and commend authors and publishers who produce such books, and to provide librarians and teachers with recommendations for educational use, the South Asia National Outreach Consortium (SANOC) will offer a yearly book award to call attention to outstanding works on South Asia.
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Latinxs in Kid Lit
Exploring the world of Latinx Young Adult, Middle Grade and Children’s literature.
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Rose Hopkins-LaRocco
Children’s Services Director
Miss Rose has spent a good amount of her life in libraries. Her grandmother was a librarian and in high school, Miss Rose’s first job was as a page at her local library. She strayed briefly to receive a degree in Theater at Columbia College Chicago and work in children’s theater, but she always came back to the library. Some of Miss Rose’s favorite books are the Harry Potter series (don’t ask her to pick a favorite book from the series unless you want to have a really long conversation ;-), When I Reach You by Rebecca Stead, Dinosaur Kisses by David Ezra Stein, and Jazz Baby by Lisa Wheeler & R. Gregory Christie.
Email Rose
Margaret Whalen-Stec
Children’s Services Librarian
Before coming to The La Grange Park Library, Ms. Margaret worked in a bookstore and taught first grade for several years. She believes being a children’s librarian is the perfect mix of her two favorite things: books and children! Working in the library has been a great opportunity to use her teaching experience for planning story times, after school programs and reader’s advisory skills. She really enjoys connecting young readers to new books and developing their passion for reading. Some of her favorite childhood stories include: Millions of Cats, The Little House, The Secret Garden, James and the Giant Peach and Mouse Tales.
Email MargaretChristina McPhail
Children’s Services Assistant
Miss Christina has spent most of her life with a book in her hand. As a child, she would walk to the library almost every day, searching for a new story to read. Not much has changed since then, except that now she gets to help children find new stories that they will love! Her favorite children’s books are Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz and Unicorn Thinks He’s Pretty Great by Bob Shea. When she’s not reading a book, Miss Christina enjoys playing guitar and relaxing with her cat, Olive.
Email Christina
Lydia Raabe
Children’s Services Assistant
Miss Lydia is happy to be a part of the La Grange Park Library community! She has always loved reading and spending time in the library. Now, she encourages kids to be curious, to try new things, and to get excited about learning. Miss Lydia likes reading graphic novels, books with courageous female characters, and anything that will make her laugh! Two of her favorites are A Place at the Table by Saadia Faruqi and Wendell the Narwhal by Emily Dove. Outside of the library, Miss Lydia likes making arts ‘n’ crafts, hiking with her dog Daisy, and trying new vegetarian recipes.
Email Lydia
Sam Prado
Children’s Services Assistant
Miss Sam comes from Summit Public Library District. She loves working in a library setting where she can interact with children and assist those who need help finding a book! Her favorite childhood books included Amelia Bedelia, Junie B. Jones, and Judy Moody. When Sam is not at the library, she enjoys painting, working on fun DIY projects, walking her dog, and watching movies. She is very excited to be a part of the Children’s Department at La Grange Park Public Library.