I was just wondering. We're homeschooling for free this year, so maybe we use it more than most, I dunno...but I NEVER see anyone from my homeschool group (that meets right beside the library,mind you) there. Never see them at any events, never bump into them, never hear them speak of the library. So I was just wondering..... I use it for books for me and the kids. We go at LEAST once a week. We have a ton of books out at once. We go to events there. My son takes the origami classes they offer. My hubby and I plan to go to a couple of adult classes they are offering this summer. I place books on hold from home all the time. How many kids do you have? What are their ages? How often do you use the library?
Oh we are library junkies. My girls devour the books. We go most weeks at least once. I'm always putting stuff on reserve and I belong to two different library systems in town. Often I can get one thing at one and something that the other doesn't have. I have 2 girls - twins almost 8 years old. My one friend teases me that when I go I need to be buried next to the library. lol!
DH and I are currently schooling Other People's Kids. As it happens, my little school is catacornered to the library. This spring, we went once a week - the librarian did Storytime for the youngers (books and coloring and other art projects), while I set the olders a research project of sorts (not very detailed). The other librarian showed them how to use the e-card catalog to find books, but I outlawed using the internet for research -- Let's get real books in our hands, please! During February I gave them a list of Black Americans to choose from to look up. After that, famous women in history (not modern celebrities but those who had accomplished something of historical note). After that, inventors and inventions. They had to gather the info, then bring it back and write from notes what they had discovered. I also checked out a ton of books to read to the first grader for our little units on our state and on birds. I also stayed in touch here on the Spot when my internet was out of commission here at home - what a lifesaver!
we use the library all the time. dalton and i go at least every other week to get books. i let him pick out a few books he can read, and then i pick out a few i think he can read (he's 5). we go to the programs they have when we're able to. i also love that we can get educational dvd's, too. we have an awesome library system here in cincinnati.
I have three girls ages 10, 8, and 5. We practically live at the librarys in our area. We go to one in a nearby town once a month for a homeschool group called homeschool lunchbunch where the kids eat together in the community room and then enjoy a program the library puts on just for them. This year we had a walking tour of the town with a local historian, a weather class put on by an anchor from the local weather channel, made walking sticks for hiking, ..... Another library closer to home has a once a month book club for the homeschoolers which we attend. We also just head there every week for books and to attend the afternoon programs they put on for everyone. I am very excited though that the library closest to me has started to have once a month meetings in the evening with the homeschool parents so we can work together to come up with more ways they can help us. YEAH!! They are also going to start their own lunchbunch (I'm hoping for a different day of the week so we can go to both) and plan on offering more programs during the day for us to enjoy. I can hardly wait.
Wow, that sounds like fun! Wish there were more homeschoolers around here. I don't think our library has any programs for homeschoolers. Maybe I should look into it, post something on their bulletin board or something.
We go once a week during the traditional school year, and usually 2-3x week during the summer (because of special events).
I know ours has a once a month thing for homeschoolers during the school year. But I've never been to it. One of the librarians homeschools. But that's all I have seen they have for homeschoolers. And I never went to it, so I don't know how many showed up. I'm assuming since that's all they have there just isn't much interest in it around here, cause there are plenty of homeschoolers around here.
Actually, Sonita, I think that's a bit! We have LOTS of hs'ers in our area, but the library doesn't do anything special for us. However, the children's librarians where we go are very homeschool friendly, and are always more than willing to help. One time, they got hold of a math book of some kind that had a DVD with it. They said they couldn't put it on the shelf for some reason, but saved it just for me, knowing I homeschooled and that if I couldn't use it, I would have a good idea who might. I often find school-age kids there when I go with my children!
In the past school years, we went to the library often. For some reason, this past school year we only went a few times.
We'll practically be living there this summer. My dd will be taking an ocean animals class on Monday, a watercolor class and drama club on Tuesday and a few other things mixed in. I'm also mandating her to be involved with the summer reading club. We're doing that, geography and some Latin. Otherwise we're there at least weekly and use a ton of books. I have 50 out now and have had 80 - 90 out at once before. I don't have a lot of time to read (single mom who homeschools and owns her own freelance writing biz) but I do use them whenever I can for myself as well. I'd even thought of being involved with the adult summer reading club but can't ever seem to find anything I want to read anymore LOL (I love nonfiction if anyone knows any good books
It has depended on the library. Because we have only one car, which DH takes to work most days, we have to use the library we're close to. When we're in Houston, we go daily (we're only there for about 3 days a month). At home, we go 1-2x a week. When we lived in LA, we went weekly (at least). But at two places we've lived, we ended up going rarely. Interestingly, now that I'm thinking about it, both libraries (two different states) had really rigid, difficult policies regarding things like fines or inter-library loan. Then, at the house they lived at last, they fired a really nice children's librarian and replaced her with someone who is not homeschool friendly. Not homeschool-hostile, either, but very oriented toward daycare and public school children, and we're expected to fit into whatever she has going on for them (this is a regular day, not a special event). We do buy some books, but I am such a fan of books available online. There is such a wealth of literature that is getting ignored because it's not marketed to Barnes & Noble and public/private school systems.
We go once a week, but mostly only get "recreational reading" books. (And they LOAD UP every week.) I tend to buy everything we use for academics.
Never. We haven't used a library in over 3 years. Ours in our town is very small, and not worth our time. I don't usually have the time to travel to one of the neighboring towns to use their libraries and then to drive again to return books, so if I want a book, I buy it.
At least 3x's a week year round. My dd's are 14 and 12. My library doesn't have homeschooler classes but they do have a ton of activities for my dd's to do. Both dd's are in the Teen Advisory classes on Wednesdays. The library asks the teens to decorate the library with that months theme, put books back on the shelves, dust the shelves and be helpers in the toddler classes when they can ( they even read to the toddlers or put on a puppet show once a month). Thursdays is either Art classes or Drama. With Art its a 12 week program and at the end each child has 3 pieces of work displayed in the library for a month. With Drama that is also a 12 week program and at the end the put on a play for the public to see. Then we are there on other week nights for demo's or classes ( last year my youngest dd, then 11, did a Junie B. Jones class and since her and her friend were the oldest there they were helpers in the class too.) like Mad Science or magic lessons. Plus we are there to just pick books! My library system is great and it helps keep homeschooling cost LOW. I can get any public school textbook plus Muzzy or Rosetta Stone CD's. They have online test quizzes, homework helpers (online links to good sites) and tons of educational DVD's.
I live next door to the library (ok, well, a couple of houses away), so we are there all the time. We have a regular time that we visit, since it's across the street from where my 5 yo takes drum lessons. We walk up to the music store, drop Quin off, then go across to the library. It's just enough time for my 7 & 4 yos to pick new books (and a few for Quin). We go a few more times throughout the week, too. Our city has a like seven branches of the library and the one by my house is the smallest. So they don't have a lot of activities. I could drive across town to take them to a bigger branch, but I'm spoiled with this one so close. lol
Oh, Amie!!! I'd love to live that close!!! We're close enough to ride bikes to one of our branches, but I REALLY don't like it! They made changes that made it rather unfriendly for kids. So now we go to one that's farther away, but the librarians are wonderful and know my kids by name. It's worth the extra drive, especially if we stop on the way to AWANAS or something. We will use the closer one to drop things off sometime, since they are branches of the same system.
My boys are 5 and 8 and we are at the library once a week. I've learned that if I always go on the same day of the week it makes my life much easier to keep track of when things are due Our library doesn't offer alot class or activity wise, but the librarians are very nice and always willing to help, not that I ask many questions since I usually have done my research before I go.
