Dinosaurs are pretty cool. But they are even cooler when they are wearing a tutu and delivering free books to children stuck at home during our campus closure. Librarians from all over North East ISD are getting creative and making sure students still have access to books, even though they may not be able to visit a library right now.
"A good book can transport you to any place and any time even when you are physically confined," said librarian Sheri Watkins.
That's why she and fellow librarian Rachel Downen picked up 100 books from First Books, an organization that provides free books to children in need. Together, they handed out books to students during curbside lunch pick up at Montgomery Elementary School on Wednesday.
"There's nothing like having something that belongs to you, is yours, and that you can keep and enjoy," said Watkins.
And while getting a book is undoubtedly exciting, getting one from a dinosaur is even cooler. That's why Downen donned an inflatable T-rex costume to hand out the books.
"Getting out and giving away books gave us a way to connect, to say hello, to see our kids and their parents," said Watkins. "For Rae and me - her standing out there dressed as a dinosaur and interacting with kids made them smile, which in turn made us happy."
Watkins says the team of NEISD librarians will be handing out books at curbside sites as often as they can.
"Ordinarily, we'd be face to face with our students. We check their books in and out, we read to and with them. We talk about books. We talk about school assignments and lessons. We talk about life in general," said Watkins. "Bottom line, I'm sure I speak for my colleagues when I say, we miss our kids!"
There are some great online resources and books available to NEISD students, click here to find out more.
