BOOK CLUBS ARE ON HOLD UNTIL JANUARY 2026
What can a book club do for your child?
- Builds Community: Kids meet others from outside their own school at our monthly meetings, prepping them to merge into the bigger pool of middle school students. Additionally, regular library use is a great way to nurture future civic participation.
- Fosters a love of reading: With no grades to worry about and a safe space to discuss their likes and dislikes, kids will develop habits of life-long learning.
- Improves reading and communication: The deep exploration of books and stories builds reading comprehension, critical thinking skills, and social skills like public speaking and civil discussion.
The library offers two book club options for kids in third, fourth, and fifth grades:
- Comic Book Club: A graphic novel book club
- Rhodey Readers: A chapter book club
Book clubs meet once a month, generally on a Thursday evening at 6:30 PM in the library’s Children’s Room. Our online calendar lists specific dates and the books. Register for a book club by visiting the library to pick up your child’s book. The Friends of the Cumberland Public Library have provided limited copies of book club titles for children to keep.
Storytimes
Spring Storytimes run weekly until November 15th.
When in session, our weekly storytime schedule runs as follows:
- Tuesdays at 10 AM: Babies & Books, for birth-23 months with a caregiver. Gazebo or Community Room (2nd floor) in bad weather.
- Thursdays at 10 AM: Family Storytime, for all ages with a caregiver. Front lawn or Children's Room (first floor) in bad weather.
- Saturdays at 10 AM: Saturday Storytime, for all ages with a caregiver. Children's Room.
We do not require registration for storytime.
Storytimes run weekly in six week sessions, with no registration required. Please keep an eye out on our event calendar, website and/or social media for information storytime cancellations due to illness or bad weather.
1000 Books Before Kindergarten
"Children need to hear a thousand stories before they can begin to learn to read. Or the same story a thousand times!” - author Mem Fox
1000 Books Before Kindergarten is a reading activity for preschoolers and their families. Reading aloud to children is the #1 way to prepare them for reading! It instills a love of books and familiarizes children with print, words, sounds, and how it all comes together to create language and reading. "1000 Books" is a great way to track and celebrate reading aloud!
Families simply begin by picking up a log for the first 100 books at the Children's Desk. With their child or on their own, they keep track every time they read a book together. Repeat readings count - so even though you might be sick of your child's favorite repeated book, each of those times checks off another book on your 1000 books goal! You can also count books the librarian reads at storytime, or books they may hear in daycare, from older siblings, and the babysitter!
Every time they reach 100 books, the child gets a sticker and a new log. There is also a halfway prize, and a display in the children's room for kids to show off their progress. When families reach 1000 Books, they are rewarded a new picture book and a tote bag with our 1000 Books Logo. Caregivers will also receive a $10 gift card to a local dining establisment, thanks to a generous donation from Coastal1 Credit Union.
This event is sponsored by The Friends of the Cumberland Public Library and Coastal1 Credit Union.