Blog: Children and Parenting

Kwanzaa and the Meaning of Unity

Satisfy your thirst for cultural exploration by learning about Kwanzaa. Explore its creation, learn about the seven principles of Kwanzaa, and digest new foods on your way to expanding your knowledge.

Local Veteran’s Brewery Business Set to Make History Twice

Ten years ago, Christopher Harris made history when he opened the first Black-owned brewery in Northwest Ohio. During our Entrepreneurship Week kickoff event on November 12 he’ll share more about how his Black Frog Brewery was uniquely sought out to open a second location, and the first of its kind in Northeast Ohio.

Intentional Choices, Endless Rewards

Read about local educator and lifelong learner Dondra Coleman’s path to building two successful businesses centered on supporting families. She will be a featured panelist during our Entrepreneurship Week kickoff on November 12.

Celebrate Pura Belpré

You may have heard about the Pura Belpré Award for children's books, but have you heard about the woman who inspired it?

Hot Dog!

It's National Hot Dog Day! Here are 10 fun books to celebrate.

Babies Need Words: Diversity

To build a positive sense of self, children need to see themselves, their families, and their cultural traditions in the books we read to them.

D-Day for Young Readers

The 80th anniversary of the Normandy Landings is June 6th. Here are 10 books for curious minds to learn more about it and the war in general.

100 Years of Summer: 1945-1964

It's the 100th year of Summer Read! Here are books popular from 1945-1964. You're sure to recognize some of these classics!

15 Books for New Dog Owners

To all the dog parents out there, here are some recommendations for you and your kiddos on raising your newest addition to the family!

10 Incredible Real Life Mysteries

May is National Mystery Month! Learn about incredible heists, mysterious places, disappearances, and unexpected discoveries with these books.

What’s Funnier Than 24?

Are you ready kids?! Your favorite sea sponge turns 25! Dive into nautical nonsense in celebration of SpongeBob SquarePants' 25th Anniversary.

Babies Need Words: Hello, Baby!

Faces play an important role in infant development, as babies learn to mimic facial expressions and determine meaning based on facial cues.

10 Youth Novels Written in Verse

Celebrating National Poetry Month by reading poetry? Out. Celebrating National Poetry Month by reading entire novels told via poetry? In. (Actually, reading poetry is still in, but you know what I mean).

Autism Awareness Month

Explore titles that teach our littlest ones about autism that include autistic characters, and help address important concepts.

Trail Blazing Women

10 amazing books for kids about women explorers, adventurers, and pioneers in their fields.

10 Vocabulary Building Books for Rising Readers

One of the many ways we can improve reading comprehension is to strengthen children’s vocabulary and background knowledge. Try these tips from the Library's Ready to Read team to raise a confident reader.

5 Books to Develop Fluency in Young Readers

Fluency is the ability to read with the speed, accuracy, and inflection needed to approximate natural speech patterns. Try these resources as you help strengthen your growing reader's fluency.

Animals In Winter

Squirrel yourself away with these books about animals getting through the winter.

20 Hockey Books for Kids

It's Hockey Night in Toledo as we welcome the Walleye back to the ice. Before enjoying a little family fun at the Huntington Center, be sure to share a few great hockey books with the young skaters and readers in your life.

World Hello Day

Hi, there! How do you say, “Hello?” Do you sing, “Hello, hello?” Do you yell, “HELLO, HELLO?” What will you do for World Hello Day on November 21?

Hey, That’s My Picture Book!

November is National Picture Book Month! Picture books are meant to a shared reading and visual experience. What picture books are your favorites?

World Nursery Rhyme Week

Help children learn to read by celebrating World Nursery Rhyme week singing or rhyming your favorite rhymes!

Goblins Are Good

Goblins get a bad rap. But here are five picture books that will make the case that J.R.R. Tolkien and company are probably wrong.

100 Years of West Toledo Branch

You may have heard West Toledo Branch is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Read this to drop some historical knowledge at the event (and check out some staff book recommendations too).

LGBTQIA+ Nonfiction for Beginners

Talking about feelings is hard. Talking about feelings when you don't have the right vocabulary to describe them is even harder. And it's hardest when you don't know if those feelings are okay to have. (Hint: They are).

Food Friends!

It's a food frenzy! Check out these funny books with food as characters. We hope you'll find them a-peeling!

Dyslexia-Friendly Books for Juvenile Readers

Fact: Dyslexia is one of the most common learning disabilities to affect children. Here is a selection of juvenile fiction about dyslexia, some even written in dyslexia-friendly typeface.

Meet Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur!

One of Marvel's newer comics, it's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur! Being a girl superhero is already hard enough: fight the bad guys, save the city, basic stuff, right? Well, add in a T-Rex companion and face off a gang of space villains, all before class starts!

Decodable Books for Young Readers

Learning to read takes a lot of practice. Let the Library's Ready to Read team help you discover a few decodable books to try with early readers at any stage.

History of Crayons

Crayons have been around for a long time! Here are some great titles featuring crayons and their history.

10 Fractured Fairy Tales for Big Stinking Ogres

Okay, not all of these have ogres, but Shrek is a type of fractured fairy tale, and while the next installment doesn't have a release date, we can still get excited. Read these if you want to get in the spirit.

I Need a Vacation!

Involve your kids in the vacation planning or take a no-cost virtual vacation with these Library resources!

The Elephant on the Screen

The classic children’s author and Newbery award winner Kate DiCamillo has another page-to-screen adaptation out while I’m still recovering from Because of Winn-Dixie.

Top 10 Worst Schools in Books

By now everyone's gone back to school for fall. Which is sad. But at least you're not at one of these schools. So that's something.

StoryWalk Challenge

Enjoy fall while walking through TLCPL StoryWalks and earn a cozy prize. *while supplies last.

Dial-A-Story September 15-28

Our call-in line is open! Free, recorded stories for children, teens, and adults. Listen by phone any time of day or night by calling 419-745-9700.

Children’s Library & Teen Recommends – Summer 2021

Youth Services Librarians love to read, too! Check out what your favorite Children’s and Teen Librarians at Main Library are reading, whether it be a picture book about penguins, a middle grade adventure in a treehouse, vampires in Louisiana, or a time-traveling phone booth!

YA Books Featuring Characters with Mental Illnesses

Struggling with anxiety or any type of mental illness is usually up there with resounding themes of Young Adult Fiction, including first love. That is because our teenage years are often very complicated, especially when mental health issues start to first arise. There are so many other factors that young adults face (besides growing up) that can push anyone over the edge.

Ready to Read Early Literacy Tip 5- Playing

Parents and caregivers, save the chores for later, you have important work to do by playing! This month, Ready to Read's blog is all about play and how doing just that will help your child build essential early literacy skills for future reading success!

Red or White?

Unfortunately, this blog is not about Italian Chianti or Chardonnay. It is about Mother's Day.

Mother’s Day

With Mother’s Day coming up, here are some books about moms.

Race and Police Violence in Children’s Books

News items about police violence involving Black Americans have become so prevalent even young kids can't help but become aware of them. Here are some books to help them make sense of it all.

Ready to Read Early Literacy Tip 4- Writing

In this month's Ready to Read blog, we explore writing. Writing begins at birth! Learn tips and tricks on building fine motor skills to get your little one ready for future school success!

Ready to Read Early Literacy Tip 3- Reading

There are so many benefits to reading to your child, but did you know that reading to infants is one of the best ways to start building early literacy skills? This month's Ready to Read blog includes reading tips and research that shows it's never too early to start reading!

Boost Your Resilience – Children’s Edition

Merriam-Webster defines resilience as “an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change.”  This is not an ability we typically associate with young children; instead, we picture the terrible twos, what it’s like

Beverly Cleary, Age 104

Beverly Cleary, who died March 25 at the age of 104, was once named a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, and rarely has such a distinction seemed so well-deserved.

Comics About Girls By Women For Kids

There was a time in human history when some people didn’t think comics were suitable reading material for girls. (There are some, even today, who don’t think comics are suitable reading material for anyone, but that’s a whole other outrage.)

Ready to Read Early Literacy Tip 2- Singing

Parents and caregivers, warm up your voices! It's time to sing! In this month's Ready to Read blog, learn about all the ways that singing has positive impacts on the success of your future reader.

Realistic Fiction for Grades 4-5

Read these fictional inspiring stories that resemble realistic situations, issues or experiences that could have happened in real life.A Library card and PIN will be required to access many of the resources listed. Need

Celebrate Toni Morrison Day!

On December 21, 2020, Governor Mike DeWine signed House Bill 325 declaring Toni Morrison’s birthday, February 18, Toni Morrison Day in Ohio.

Children Love Everything About Music

Whether it’s banging on a pan or plastic tub to hear the sound or dancing enthusiastically to toddler tunes, music has the potential to engage children in fun and unique ways. Music may even help reduce stress and alleviate boredom, which is something we all need from time to time.

Homeschooling Resources for Grades PreK-12

Below are just some of the materials that may be helpful to teaching children at home. Whether you’re new or experienced, there are resources available to help you. The Independent Learner’s Guide to Successful

Ready to Read Early Literacy Tip 1-Talking

The more words children hear before they enter kindergarten the better readers they will become. Check out this month's Ready to Read blog on all the ways talking benefits early literacy!

Caldecott Contenders – Part 1

Toledo Lucas County Public Library’s 48th Annual Caldecott Read-In is going virtual this year. It will be held Saturday, January 23 from 10-11:30 AM. A live discussion and voting will choose our local winner

Potty Training Tips and Resources

Getting ready to take on the challenge of potty training? Don't know where to begin? Here are some great resources to help get you going in the right direction!

Our Favorite Apple Books

Sit down with your family, one of these books, and a mug of hot apple cider for a fantastic (and warm) fall experience.

Online Learning for Families & Kids

We are all officially tasked with social distancing in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus. While our 20 locations might be temporarily closed, we’re still open in many ways to our customers –

LGBTQ+ Chapter Books For Kids

I am pleasantly surprised with recent books for middle schoolers which feature kids and parents who are LGBTQ. Engaging books with compelling characters are a welcome addition for LGBTQ kids who want to read

Yoga @ the Library

The Library has programs and resources designed to help the entire family on their wellness journey.

The Human-Nature Connection

The Library and Metroparks are great community resources that enrich the quality of life in the communities in which they serve.

Fun Read Alouds

Fun picture books your preschooler will want to read again and again.

Diverse Voices in Juvenile Literature

A small collection of juvenile books for middle graders exploring the complexity and diversity of experiences children are faced with in our society today.

Ruth Bader Ginsblog

In her twenty-five years on the Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg has become both an influential jurist and a pop culture icon, and the library has books about her that are as idiosyncratic as she is.

A Year Of …

How much can one person accomplish in the span of a year - continue reading to find out.

DIY Baby and Toddler Food

Making baby food is easier than you might think. This blog post includes tips, recipes, and baby food cookbooks.

Kids in the Kitchen

Featuring library and web resources to help you and your family with creative culinary creations.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

Explore the world of Dr. Seuss and learn more about the man behind the infamous children's books - Theodor Seuss Geisel.

Caring & Compassion

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” - the Dalai Lama. Continue reading for a list of resources exploring the topic of compassion.

Caldecott Contenders 2

Did you know that the Toledo Lucas County Public Library hosts a Caldecott Read-in? This year marks the 44th and TLCPL has correctly predicted the winner several times!

Caldecott Contenders

Award season is upon us. Take a look at some 2016 titles that may win the much coveted Caldecott Award!

2016 Run, Turkey, Run!

Story time for preschoolers is a joy and a challenge ... it's the one place the title "The Librarian of Organized Chaos" fits perfectly.

Holy 50 Years, Batman!

Sanger Branch is celebrating 50 years of Batman in film with a special showing of the 1966 Batman movie, the movie that started it all.

Children and Grieving

Helping children cope with the loss of a loved one can be quite challenging. We have a selection of books that may help open up a dialogue between you and your child and in turn help with the grieving process.

Back to School Book Lists

Is your child experiencing the back to school jitters? Check out our list of books to help kids deal with everything from riding the bus for the first time to making new friends at school!

We Will, We Will Rock You … To Sleep?!

Songs from popular musicians are turned into plinky, plunky instrumental lullabies with a few bells and barks thrown in for good measure. It’s soothing music for your little ones that won’t drive you crazy.

Family Movie Night

Beat the last of the Winter Blah Blahs with some animated fun for everyone. Stay home and cozy up for some family time with these fun family movies!