Book Week about more than just books at Ocean Grove Toy Library

THE 77th annual Book Week is in full swing and local children’s institutions are joining the celebrations.

Book Week activities are on at local institutions including the Ocean Grove Toy Library, a toy-borrowing service that is playing its own role to help children enjoy reading during Book Week, from August 20 to 26.

“For us here at Ocean Grove Toy Library we try to celebrate a lot of national events, particularly based around children, and Book Week has become massive in recent years,” Toy Library co-ordinator Lin Grant said.

“Learning from books is the easiest thing reading-wise for a child growing up and we aim to add to that experience with the toys on offer at our library.

“If a child likes a book about firefighters, we can offer firefighter toys for families to borrow, making the reading experience more enjoyable for the child as an example.”

Schools and public libraries are creating colourful displays, developing activities, running competitions, and telling stories to highlight the importance of reading during Book Week and the Ocean Grove Library is doing the same.

“In addition to toys on offer we have a whole range of outfits for children too, from dinosaur outfits to police officers to princesses, there are numerous options to select from during Book Week,” Ms Grant said.

“Bearing in mind this year’s theme is ‘Dreaming with eyes open’, it has got an Indigenous element attached to it and thanks to a grant we received last year we chose to expand our Aboriginal and multicultural toys on offer.

“Given we don’t actually loan out books at the Toy Library, we would definitely advise people to check out one of Ocean Grove’s regular libraries for a good read.”

The Ocean Grove Toy Library will be open at the Boorai Centre, next to Shell Road Reserve, this Saturday, August 27 from 10-11am.