STORY HOUR, READING INCENTIVE PROGRAMS AT CAPE LIBRARY

Baby Bags for parents with newborns, Toddler Time, Story Hour, a Teen Center, Book Buddies, Reading Is Fundamental and adult programs are all part of the reading enhancement activities at the Cape Girardeau Public Library.

"A public library provides information to all ages of people as they go through life," said librarian Elizabeth Ader. "As such, the library is a life-long learning center. The library is here to disseminate and serve all viewpoints."

Baby Bags and the Teen Center will be the newest additions to the library program, both scheduled to start Monday, Sept. 19. The equipment and supplies for the programs are being funded through federal grants, almost $5,000 each.

Baby Bags is designed for parents who have newborns to children age two. The parents will be able to come by the library and pick up bags filled with books and videos on parenting tips and developmental toys and cloth books for the children.

The Teen Center will give those in fifth grade and above a "place to hang out," said Tasha Saecker, coordinator of youth services.

Books and a computer will be placed in the library's community room. It will have a relaxed atmosphere, giving the teens a chance to talk with one another or just listen to music.

The Teen Center will be showcased in a grand opening Saturday, Sept. 17, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Toddler Time for kids 18 months up to age three and Story Hour for those ages three to five are regular features at the library. Three sessions are usually scheduled through the year. The next ones begin Monday, Sept. 19.

Toddler Time will run through Dec. 12 on every Monday at 10 a.m. The youngsters will hear stories and make crafts.

Fall Story Hour will meet on Mondays at 6:30 p.m., and on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 10 a.m. through Dec. 14. The title of the Sept. 19-21 program is "My Body." The program the following week will be about dinosaurs.

"Some people are very dedicated to these programs," Saecker said. "They wait for our flyers to announce the program and then sign-up the first day.

"I think the programs help to instill a love of books," Saecker said. "You can always tell when a child has been read to. They are familiar with how to handle books. They're less likely to rip out pages and they have a better vocabulary."

Mary Hahn of rural Cape Girardeau is one mother who usually visits the library once a week with her two children: Jessie, 3, and Aaron, 2. Hahn and her husband, Mark, have both read to their children since they were very young. He is a science teacher at Cape Central Junior High.

"Jessie started paying attention to the pictures when she was about two months old," said Hahn, a certified public accountant who works part-time with a Cape Girardeau accounting firm. "She liked the flipping of the pages and looking at the pictures. She was interested in any kind of book as long as there were pictures."

When the family comes to the library now, they usually get six or seven books and a couple of videos, Hahn said. Her interest in reading came from her father who told her, "You could always learn anything you wanted from a book."

Hahn said her husband's interest in reading traces back to his mother, a kindergarten teacher who said a person could tell what children had been read to as youngsters. She gave lots of books as gifts to her grandchildren.

"Literacy is important to a democracy in general," Ader said. "People need to know what's going on in order to make decisions on community projects and concerns.

"Literacy has always been associated with reading," Ader said. "Now we are also providing videos and tapes of books. People have to be critical about what they see, hear or read.

"The library is here to put people in touch with the information they need. The library can serve as a resource for the whole community," Ader said.

The Cape Girardeau Public Library is open Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Friday and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday afternoon hours are planned.