Families help spread the word about BookTrust Storytime in Brent
Dhurata Loku, a Development Officer with Brent Libraries, got involved with BookTrust Storytime when the first pilot was launched in 2021.
Here she shares her experiences of running BookTrust Storytime in two libraries.
Which libraries did you run BookTrust Storytime sessions in and why?
We chose Willesden Green Library and Ealing Road Library. We chose these two libraries because Ealing Road is in an area with a lot of children. It's the library for the children around this area. It's their playground or their back garden. Willesden Green Library is also the flagship library in Brent. For these reasons, we thought it would be the best library to introduce BookTrust's Storytime pilot here.
How did you encourage families to come along to the sessions?
We asked ourselves, 'How can we make this work?' So we put posters around everywhere and used social media. We used everything we could to engage families and make them aware of what BookTrust is all about.
For the first session, not that many people arrived. I think this was because people were apprehensive; they didn't know how the library works and they were worried about social engagement with other people. So we started the first session by explaining what BookTrust is all about, and how Storytime works. Essentially, the first session was all about introducing people to the BookTrust Storytime prize.
It went so well. It was something new for the families. We introduced them to BookTrust, the activity sheets, and to the new books which were selected by BookTrust. It was such a good introduction, to start a new session with families and introduce the new brand as well.
What was really interesting was, it wasn't so much what we did; it was them, the young families that were engaging with each other. They were using WhatsApp to say to each other, 'Please do come, take part in the under-five session, the BookTrust event that is going on at Ealing Road Library.' That helped to promote the next session. We had 12 families at the second session and at the next one we had 18. So as the word spread, more people came in.
What did your families think about BookTrust Storytime?
What was very interesting was that children came, not just with their parents, but with their grandparents too. Our event was like a family day out for them. It was a good introduction to live events in the libraries. We were sharing stories; making sure the children engaged with their families, with the library staff and with other people as well.
The children were engaged, moving around the library, engaging with others, and borrowing books. They are interested in what's going on here in the library. It was a good incentive for people, especially young families, to come into the library.
What did you think of the BookTrust Storytime resources?
The books were chosen by BookTrust, and interestingly, we may not have chosen those books. We held training to explain the aim of BookTrust Storytime to all the branch staff, so they know BookTrust Storytime, the incentives, the activity sheets, and the stickers. Most important were the resources - they were such good incentives to encourage families to come. We would say, 'We've got another story next week and then you'll have your chance to vote for the story, whether you liked it or didn't like it.' So that was really good to engage with children, which doesn't really happen with under-fives particularly often.
The end result, which I thought was a brilliant thing that BookTrust did, was to give out certificates after finishing the books. The families that came, they wanted their sticker, and at the end, some of them received their certificate and took a photo with it. It was something new for them.
For the new families that started coming here, receiving a certificate was kind of a sense of pride. It might be their first certificate ever. So that was delightful.
Were there any other benefits of taking part in BookTrust Storytime?
A misconception that families have about libraries is that libraries are not for them. Maybe because they don't know the area. If they don't have many books on their shelves at home, they might think that books are not for them. Going to the library might be a very intimidating experience for them.
[Now] families were visiting the library; we were introducing them to what the library is about and what we do here. Telling them about the services we offer, all the under-five stories we have and our activities to help complement the stories. We also explained the half-term activities we run. We would say, 'You can come sit in the library, sing songs with us, share stories, take the story home and share it with your own family.' It helped them to understand what we offer. That's one of the benefits of BookTrust Storytime.
Three things to take away
- Grandparents may be bringing children to BookTrust Storytime events, so when you're advertising sessions, think about where they might be - whether that's community centres, doctor's surgeries or somewhere else.
- Families will help to spread the word about BookTrust Storytime. Encourage them to tell their family and friends and post about it on social media.
- The BookTrust Storytime certificate might be the first a child has received - include awarding the certificates as part of your BookTrust Storytime session to make it more of a celebration.
