This week (April 3-April 9) is National Library Week. This week is used to celebrate the nation's libraries, the contributions of library workers and promote library use and support. To celebrate we have a couple of interactive activities that you can take part in at the library.
Our first is about making connections. We have a large map of Bridgewater and the surrounding towns on the first floor near the circulation desk. Connect with Bridgewater Public Library and leave your mark on the community map. Visit the Bridgewater Public Library and ask at the circulation desk for a push pin. Place the push pin where you live. Watch as more push pins are added during the week.
Next, we invite you to share what you love about the library. Our archivist has found some old photographs of the town and has turned them into postcards that you can fill out and tell us why you love the library. These postcards will be collected and displayed in the library once they are completed.
Finally, in the children’s room, we invite children to help us decorate our Hello, Spring! Bulletin board by writing their names on a pre-cut butterfly. We will hang the butterflies on our bulletin board, and each time you come in, you can look for your name in the group of butterflies (which is known as a flutter- we are always learning!).
Speaking about always learning, how about some fun facts about libraries?
- One of the oldest public libraries in the country opened in 1790 in Franklin, Massachusetts.
- There is a library in Vermont that stretches into Canada. The Haskell Free Library and Opera House sits directly on the border between the United States and Canada.
- The lions outside the New York Public Library's main location are known as Patience and Fortitude.
- There are more public libraries than Starbucks in the U.S.—a total of 17,566 including branches.
- The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, with more than 167 million items on approximately 838 miles of bookshelves
