Babes & Tots Storytime - NEW!
Wednesdays
10:30 am
The Storytime Room

In response to our community's changing needs, we have adjusted our Storytime format to focus more on the needs of our littlest library users: babies and toddlers! Our Babies and Me and Preschool Storytime programs merged into Babes & Tots Storytime. This combined program at 10:30 am on Wednesdays focuses on songs, rhymes, stories and some movement for children ages 0 - 3.

Preschool aged children up to age 5 are very welcome as well — activities will adjust to our older attendees' needs. And everyone needs social time and to wiggle... we expect and welcome short attention spans, lots of movement, and noise during this Storytime. We hope you can join us Wednesday mornings in the library's Storytime Room!

Snowmen at the Library
Saturday, December 10th
2:30 - 5:30 pm
The Pinedale Library Lovatt Room

The Pinedale Library is participating in the Sublette County Chamber of Commerce's Mountain Man Christmas events on Saturday, December 10th. From 2:30 - 5:30 pm, you can stop in to the library for snowman crafts themed around the favorite children's book Snowmen at Night. There will be cookies and hot chocolate too! This afternoon event replaces our Kids Christmas Party of years past.

Get in the holiday mood and make an afternoon of it... shop local downtown businesses, enjoy our winter Story Stroll in Boyd Skinner Park, warm up with crafts, cookies, and hot chocolate at the library between 2:30 - 5:30 pm, then watch the town parade at 6 pm and town tree lighting at 6:30 pm.

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Library Playhouse
Monday afternoons
4 - 4:45 pm
The Pinedale Library Storytime Room

Library Playhouse, our informal program for elementary school aged kids to drop in on after school has moved to Mondays! Kids will enjoy themed activities each Monday afternoon; here's a peek at what's coming up:

Monday, December 12th: Origami Animal Bookmarks
We'll practice refining our fine motor skills with adorable animal papercrafts!

Playhouse takes a short break for the holidays on December 19th, December 26th and January 2nd.

Monday, January 9th:Yoga
Let's get the wiggles out with gentle stretches and movement.

Monday, January 16th: No School, no Playhouse.

Monday, January 23rd: STEM Project: Balancing Robot
We'll explore balance and center of gravity by creating a balancing robot!

Monday, January 30th: Puzzles
We'll celebrate Jigsaw Puzzle Day by tackling our favorite sets from the library's collection!

Reading Therapy Dog Visit
2nd Tuesdays of the month: next visit on Dec. 13th
4 - 5 pm
The Pinedale Library

Reading therapy dogs can help children read better because for them it can be easier to practice reading aloud with a dog rather than in front of classmates or parents — it helps them gain confidence without fear or embarrassment of making mistakes. We've invited Peggy Weber and her certified reading therapy dog Rosie to visit the library and sit quietly while children read aloud to her. Rosie has been certified as a reading therapy dog through Teton County Pet Partners, the local chapter of the national organization Pet Partners.

Peggy and Rosie will be available on these days from 4 pm until 5 pm. Sign up your child to read with Rosie for one 15 minute session:

• Tuesday, December 13th

Please call the library at (307) 367-4114 or stop in to the Children's Room to reserve a time slot.

Spectacular Single Parents
1st Thursdays of the month - Next meetup on January 5th
5:30 - 6:30 pm
The Pinedale Library Storytime Room

Are you a single parent? Step right up for one hour each month to make new friends, exchange tips, tricks and free resources, and share solidarity in the circus juggling act that single parenthood can be. Children are welcome and snacks will be provided. This casual monthly meetup will be facilitated by Alise Watson.

Contact Alise at the library for more info: awatson@sublettecountylibrary.org | (307) 367-4114.

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Kids... Read the best books and vote on your favorite!
Voting open until mid March 2023

Children in grades K - 6 across Wyoming are invited to read the top books for their age group and determine which one they think is the best. Sponsored by the Wyoming Library Association and the Wyoming State Reading Council, the Buckaroo Book Award provides the opportunity for Wyoming children in grades K-3 to select favorite books they have read or have listened to and to honor the authors of these books. The Indian Paintbrush Book Award provides the opportunity for Wyoming youth in grades 4-6 to select a favorite book and honor its author. Participating helps Wyoming students:

• Become acquainted with the best contemporary authors.
• Become aware of the qualities of good books.
• Become accustomed to concepts of choice, critical reading, and voting procedures which will help them participate in choosing other book awards.
• To honor an author whose book has been enjoyed by Wyoming children.

View the Grades K-3: Buckaroo Book Award nominee list

View the Grades 4-6: Indian Paintbrush Book Award nominee list

Stop by the Children's Room for a voting card and to get started reading the best books. Voting is open until mid March 2023. One vote per child.

1000 Books Before Kindergarten

Reading to babies, toddlers and preschoolers is beneficial for their brain development and academic success. It is correlated with improved attention spans and better concentration. Early reading also ignites the child's creativity and imagination, teaches them sight words and expands vocabulary.

The 1000 Books program is designed be a fun approach to establishing strong early literacy skills. Parents, you can choose between a sticker log to simply keep track of the number of books read, a book list log so you can have a record of what books the kids have read, or download an app to your mobile device to keep track that way.

When kids reach 100 books, their photo goes up on our bulletin board. They get a sticker for every 100 books read, and when they reach 1000 books, they get to choose a book prize and the 1000 Book sticker goes on their photo.

Get started fostering a lifelong love of reading today... pick up book logs in the Children's Room.

Check out a Wonderbook

It's so beneficial to read aloud to children often and they certainly love being read to. But.... sometimes we just can't make it happen as often as we'd like. Introducing Playaway Wonderbook! Wonderbooks are print books with a ready-to-play audiobook inside. Kids can just press play to hear the story and read along. We have purchased a collection of beautiful Wonderbooks that are ready for check out now at Pinedale and Big Piney libraries. Stop in and take a Wonderbook home this week!

Preloaded Nook® HDs for kids available for check out

Any time is a great time to introduce a new way of enjoying books to your kids — our preloaded Nook® HDs allow kids to enjoy old and new favorites in a safe and age appropriate manner. Both the Pinedale and Big Piney libraries have Nook HDs preloaded with dozens of ebooks for preschoolers (most with a "read to me" option), for early readers, and for 3rd graders and up. All Nook HDs come with parental controls and do not access the Internet or games — they are just for reading. Just power up and go! Nook HDs check out for 3 weeks.

Ready4K: Text messages to boost your child's learning

Parents of preschoolers, you can now sign up for a new, free texting service that delivers fun facts and easy tips to your phone. Called Ready4K, the texting service shows parents how to boost children’s learning and get them ready for kindergarten. In the last year, the University of Wyoming's Literacy Research Center and Clinic teamed up with Stanford University to develop and research Ready4K to make this service available in Wyoming. Research shows that receiving these helpful texts can significantly increase children’s learning. Parents and caregivers with children, ages 3 to 5, are invited to sign up for the free service, which provides three texts per week. The service is available in English and Spanish.

Learn more about Ready4K and sign up