Imagine entering a plain brick building on a lovely summer day. You pass a dozen parked strollers and hear the giddy laughter of babies. To your right, toys are strewn on a soft carpet where toddlers, babies, and mothers play.

Young voices sing "Four and Twenty Blackbirds" with gusto. At computers to your left, three boys work on their own online sports magazine. Two girls solve the design problems of a machine they created. An instructor guides some parents through the Web in Spanish.

In a corner, caregivers are coached on reading aloud "The Three Bears" with dramatic flair. Small children color the alphabet while their mothers learn about childhood nutrition. A woman arranges to send a Story Van to a housing project for a cultural festival.

In a meeting room, a half-dozen teachers learn how to make better use of the Internet. In an adjacent room, a child with frequent ear infections is tested for toddler speech development and delay.

And, oh yes, you see books. Lots and lots of books.

What is this place, you ask? An expensive child care center? A private computer school? A bilingual community center?

No, it's the local branch of a public library. 

Library Reading Program Has Evolved Into Family Learning Centers

A lot has changed at the library. It's been a quiet revolution until now, librarians being the brilliant but modest folks we've always admired.

But a buzz is building. As old barriers crumble, the image of the staid old library is giving way to the noisy, online, family-friendly learning center that is the destiny of libraries of the future.

Summer is the perfect time to see where your library is heading on this revolutionary trail. While not every library offers all the opportunities I've described, many now offer far more than stacks of wonderful books. For example:

• Free parent workshops on how to raise a reader
• Videos, CDs, and toys to take home ideas for kids on fun summer reading
• Summer reading programs with goals and rewards
• Opportunities to pair children with adult reading tutors
• Access to computers for those already skilled
• Training on computers for those seeking skills
• Arts activities to help children communicate
• Toys and books for children with special needs
• Books and classes in a family's home language
• Literacy workshops for teachers and child care providers
• Free materials on child nutrition and development
• Adult literacy support, so parents can teach their children

Library Filled With Learning for Summer Activities

Sound good? For a smarter summer, drop by your local branch and see what's cooking. Maybe your kids can borrow toys, go online, or sign up to win a pizza for reading a dozen books. Maybe you can sign up for a computer class, learn how to better buckle a car seat or pick up a schedule of literacy activities for your childcare provider.

You might even borrow some good books!

There's a revolution going on at your community library -- check it out!

Carol H. Rasco was director of the America Reads Challenge.