Virtual Reading and Storytime Resources
Free Public Library of Philadelphia – The digital resources of the Free Library of Philadelphia are as vast as the archives of the institution’s citywide branches. A few clicks and a library card unleash access to ebooks, audio books, movies, TV shows and electronic editions of publications like The New York Times. Plus, more than 100 searchable academic, research, media and visual databases provide access to full-text articles and citations. Not sure where to start? Try TumbleBooks’ animated talking picture books for kids or the Smithsonian Global Sound for Libraries, which offers more than 35,000 streaming music tracks by American artists.
New York Public Library – Welcome to our Remote Learning Resources for Kids & Teens page, a vital digital tool for young learners and their parents and caretakers while NYPL is temporarily closed. Check out some of the wide array of online resources NYPL offers: Academic Support, Reading, Activities.
Scholastic Online learning and reading – Resources
Dav Pilkey at Home – WHEN AND WHERE: Via Scholastic and the Library of Congress every Friday at 8 am – Dav Pilkey, author of the Captian Underpants and Dog Man series, is posting a free online video series featuring read-a-louds, drawing lessons and other kid-friendly fun. Remember, “Never underestimate the power of underwear!”
Story Time! from Penguin Kids – WHEN AND WHERE: Via Instagram and Facebook every weekday at 11am – Authors and illustrators published by Penguin Kids will read their stories every weekday at 11am.
HarperKids from Home – WHEN AND WHERE: Via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube every weekday at noon. The team at HarperKids will hold a storytime with read-alouds and activities pure entertainment every day at noon.
Snack & Read with Simon Kids – WHEN AND WHERE: Via Facebook every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 2pm – Parents and children are invited to grab a snack and watch live read-alouds and activities from Simon & Schuster. This half-hour video series streams live on Facebook every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 2pm.
Mo Willems’s “LUNCH DOODLES” – WHEN AND WHERE: Via the Kennedy Center – The first-ever Education artist-in-residence at the Kennedy Center, New Yorker Mo Williems held LUNCH DOODLES every day at 1pm for three weeks, letting your kiddos peek into the mind of the author of Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, Knuffle Bunny and other contemporary classics. Now all 15 episodes of LUNCH DOODLES are archived on YouTube.
READ TOGETHER, BE TOGETHER from Penguin Kids – WHEN AND WHERE: Via Instagram or Facebook every day at 3pm – Every day a celeb will read a book on his or her Instagram or Facebook at 3pm. The lineup is terrific—Alan Cumming reads on Thursday, April 9!—and you’ll find a complete schedule with links here.
Oliver Jeffers’s readings – WHEN AND WHERE: Via Instagram every day at 2pm –The author Oliver Jeffers will read one of his books every day at 2pm, then archive the reading on his website.
Goodnight with Dolly – WHEN AND WHERE: Via the Imagination Library every Thursday at 7pm – Dolly Parton, the Smoky Mountain Songbird, is also known as the Book Lady: The Imagination Library, a nonprofit she founded to support children’s literacy, gives away more than 1 million children’s books every month. Now the Queen of Country will read your little one to sleep every Thursday night.
Jarret J. Krosoczka’s “Every Day with JJK” –WHEN AND WHERE: Via the author’s website every day at 2pm Join the bestselling author of Peanut Butter and Jellyfish, National Book Award finalist Hey Kiddo and the Lunch Lady series for an all-ages drawing masterclass on his homepage and his YouTube channel.
Read & Learn with Simon Kids – WHEN AND WHERE: Via the YouTube channel for Simon Kids – Parents and educators will find videos by Simon & Schuster authors and illustrators hosted on the Simon Kids YouTube channel. On Read & Learn with Simon Kids you’ll see read-alouds, drawing tutorials, and more from authors such as Tony DiTerlizzi, Hena Khan, Lita Judge and Aaron Reynolds.
Storytime Saturdays from the Children’s Museum of Manhattan – WHEN AND WHERE: On the Children’s Museum of Manhattan website every Saturday – Storytime Saturdays is a part of the weekly lineup of CMOM at Home, the online programming from the Children’s Museum of Manhattan. There’s a new video, game, sing-a-long or online activity every day!
Brooklyn Public Library – WHEN AND WHERE: The library’s website and Facebook – The Brooklyn Public Library is taking its storytimes online, and live-streaming via its website and Facebook.
Storyline Online – WHEN AND WHERE: Any time via the Storyline Online website – This incredible resource from the SAG-AFTRA Foundation is an archive of hundreds of children’s books read by some of the greatest actors of our time, including Viola Davis, Chris Pine, Lily Tomlin, Rami Malek, Annette Bening and James Earl Jones. Yes, Storyline Online is where you can watch Betty White read Harry the Dirty Dog.
#OperationStorytime – WHEN AND WHERE: Any time via Youtube – The #OperationStoryime tag on Facebook will bring you to a growing collection of children’s book authors and illustrators reading their own works. Check back regularly: #OperationStorytime is adding new titles every few hours.
Disney Storytime with John Stamos – WHEN AND WHERE: Any time via Disney’s YouTube channel – The Full House star reads A Kiss Goodnight, by longtime Disney collaborators Floyd Norman and Richard Sherman.
Time for Kids – A Closer Look- Media literacy for photojournalist.
Many of the resources sourced from: Strand, O. (2020, March 16). Virtual storytimes for kids: Authors and venues go online amid coronavirus. Retrieved from https://www.timeout.com/new-york-kids/news/virtual-storytimes-for-kids-authors-and-venues-go-online-amid-coronavirus-031620