New Children’s World Languages Collection Expands Access
Albany Public Library now offers expanded access to books for young readers in the top non-English languages spoken by families in the city’s school district: Spanish, Arabic, Pashto, Farsi, and Karen.
The new Children’s World Languages collections are housed at the Washington Ave. (161 Washington Ave.) and Arbor Hill/West Hill (148 Henry Johnson Blvd.) branches, and they can be requested via interlibrary loan by anyone with a library card, just like any other book in APL’s circulating collection. The Children’s World Languages collections were purchased with special legislative funding awarded to APL by New York State Senator Neil D. Breslin for the improvement of library services.
“Reading and hearing stories in your family’s native language is a profoundly important way to encourage a love of reading, as well as strengthen a family’s cultural bonds,” said Andrea Nicolay, APL executive director. “The launch of this collection marks the first year of a multi-year effort to increase our holdings in all of the languages spoken in Albany, and it wouldn’t be possible without these special funds.”
“I was happy to support the Albany Public Library and provide funding for their new Children’s World Languages Collection,” said Sen. Breslin. “One of the great things about Albany is our diversity, which should be promoted and celebrated. This collection will help strengthen the connection between families and their heritage.”
When deciding what languages to feature in this collection for young readers, APL selected the five most common languages, other than English, spoken at home by students in the City of Albany School District. The district has about 1,600 English as a New Language students, a number that grows ever year. About 18% of the school district’s students speak one of the five languages featured in the book collection.
“We’re grateful to APL for expanding their collection in a way that’s meaningful and relevant to our wonderfully diverse community,” said City School District of Albany Superintendent Joseph Hochreiter. “We applaud APL’s steadfast support of literacy and our schools, and we appreciate the opportunity to be part of this important work.”
The Children’s World Languages collection contains over 300 new books for pre-kindergarten to eighth grades. The collection features popular titles like Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney, available in Arabic, as well as picture books that speak to life in upstate New York like the cheerfully-titled I Love Winter by Shelley Admont, available in Farsi. Children’s World Languages books can be found in the children’s area of the Arbor Hill/West Hill and Washington Ave. branches, with bilingual spine labels. Library staff, many of whom are multi-lingual themselves, are ready to help connect kids and families to these collections, and the library’s online catalog can also be used to locate and request items using keyword search terms like “world languages collection.”
APL is also promoting the Children’s World Languages collection by expanding children’s story times and cultural programs in languages other than English. The library is reaching out to community organizations that support immigrant communities and invites anyone to nominate themselves or someone they know to help with this programming, especially people whose first language is represented in the new collection. Please reach out via our online contact form and use the “Programs & Outreach” topic on the drop-down menu.
Stephanie Simon
Stephanie Simon is manager of APL's Communication and Creative Services Department, which provides content and information for the library's website, social media, publications, videos, podcasts, and other outlets. Stephanie also manages APL's public relations and marketing efforts.