Little Library Book Bags for all children starting school this year

To help children to navigate starting school, libraries have put together a bag with a book just for them that can be collected at any library.

The ‘My Little Library Book Bag’ initiative is a collaboration between libraries, the Department of Rural and Community Development, and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth as part of the First 5 Strategy.

As part of the initiative, a ‘My Little Library Book Bag’ is available free for every child starting school in 2024 to help them to prepare for this big step. Children and their parents or guardians can collect the bags at any library throughout the country from June 2024.

Each My Little Library Book Bag contains:

• A book on starting school, or making friends or being comfortable to be yourself.
• Their very own library card and special ‘My Little Library’ cardholder.

Book bags are available in both Irish and English.

We can’t wait to welcome all the 4 and 5 year old children in to collect their book bags and begin their library membership journey.

We hope that once they visit the library to pick up their book bag, our new library members and their families will come back regularly to keep their bag filled up with borrowed books and to take part in story-times, classes and all the other events we have to offer at the library.

More supports to help the transition to primary school are available on the Let’s Get Ready page on Gov.ie.

You can find out more about library services to ELCs and childcare settings here