Elkins Park Free Library: A Family Place Library

The Family Place Libraries ™ initiative:

  • Promotes a national model for transforming public libraries into welcoming, developmentally appropriate early learning environments for very young children, their parents, and caregivers.
  • With the help of partnerships with other social, health, and educational service providers, aims to ensure that all children enter school ready and able to learn.
  • Positions libraries as key early childhood and family support organizations within the local community.
Interested in learning more?

Stop by the Elkins Park Library to experience Family Place firsthand! For more information about the initiative or upcoming Play & Learn parent/child workshops, contact us at 215-635-5000 or elkinspark@mclinc.org.

Visit Family Place Libraries to learn more!

 

Core Components & Resources

Parent-Child Workshops

Five-week play-based programs for toddlers and their caregivers that provide a rich environment of toys, books, and art activities, as well as opportunities for caregivers to connect with each other and interact with experts from various child development fields.

Collaborations & Partnerships

Connecting families to community resources and programs through partnerships with health, education, and Human Service agencies.

Specially Designed Spaces

A welcoming space featuring interactive materials where children and their caregivers can explore, play, learn, and grow together.

Collections

Special collections of books, toys, early literacy kits, music, and multimedia materials for babies, toddlers, parents, and caregivers.

ParentTV

ParentTV offers thousands of on-demand parenting videos and courses with expert-created content designed to support those who care for children, from pregnancy through teenage years. Topics covered include general parenting, play, behavior, child development, mental health, sleep, nutrition, technology, and more. The database is also available in multiple languages. Cheltenham library card required. This resource is provided by Family Place Library™.

Additional Programs for Babies & Toddlers

Specialized, age-appropriate programming that supports the importance of play and healthy parent/child relationships in early childhood development and learning.

Outreach

Identifying and reaching out to new and underserved families, via in-person, partner, media, and social media contacts enables the libraries to engage and build trust with new families.