About the Program

Bringing Books to Life

We are a preschool literacy program committed to the importance of early literacy skills by educating teachers, preschoolers, and parents. Designed around the library’s award winning marionette shows, we promote books and reading for young children.  Bringing Books to Life was established in 2003. In 2009, the program won the Marshall Cavendish Excellence in Library Programming Award.

 What is the need?  

A child’s first five years of life are a time of enormous growth.  School readiness means that a child is ready to learn and loves books.  Parents can help this along by letting your baby handle books;  reading your toddler’s favorite books over and over again;  pointing out  letter sounds, words and numbers to your preschooler, singing together, creating a puppet or art experience, or visiting a library. Bringing Books to Life and the Puppet Truck provide these activities to meet the needs of educating children, families, and teachers.

Who do we work with?  

Bringing Books to Life works with Day Care Centers and Preschools in Nashville and Davidson County.  Our staff leads teacher workshops on the best practices for developing literacy skills. Our curriculum encourages the integration of books into every center of the classroom. The in-agency program culminates when the Puppet Truck visits the agency and performs a marionette show that complements the literacy unit.  We then host a “Family Literacy Celebration” at a neighborhood branch library for all parents and children from the center, complete with singing, storytelling and refreshments.

Parents and children   

For families, we also offer “Loving and Learning” workshops, which help parents to engage in activities at home that promote a love of books, and enjoyment of the library. This outreach program encourages parents to read with their children and makes the final connection from classroom to home that is vital to school-readiness.