ALSC and LEGO® DUPLO® celebrate importance of play

CHICAGO — LEGO® DUPLO® and the Association for Library Services to Children (ALSC) have joined hands to celebrate and support local libraries.

The two organizations recently concluded their “Read! Build! Play!” project. Nearly 550,000 people participated. The most nominated library, Mount Airy (N.C.) Public Library, in the "Read! Build! Play!" project will receive $5,000 for books and supplies. The top 200 libraries will receive a special LEGO DUPLO Read! Build! Play! toolkit chock full of cutting edge, early literacy programming that combines preschool books with a versatile collection of DUPLO bricks.

“We’re extremely grateful to all of the libraries that participated,” said ALSC President Carolyn Brodie. “We’re very pleased with our partnership with LEGO DUPLO and we look forward to continuing to promote the role of play in early literacy.”

Libraries can visit www.readbuildplay.com to access more information about working with younger children. The site offers a downloadable parent activity guide as well as a librarian toolkit for working with children to spark imagination through creative library programming.

On its website, ALSC offers resources for libraries on the Importance of Play. This includes a white paper – “The Importance of Play, Particularly Constructive Play, in Public Library Programming” - written for the Association for Library Service to Children by Sue McCleaf Nespeca, an early childhood literacy specialist, that was adopted by ALSC's Board of Directors on Sept. 10, 2012. The site also includes examples of constructive play submitted by libraries around the country.

“We are thrilled to have partnered with ALSC to support libraries across the country with a DUPLO program,” said Michael McNally, brand relations director, LEGO Systems, Inc. “Today’s libraries play such a central, yet often unrecognized role in engaging children in creative programs that encourage reading and writing skills, so we’re heartened by the support we’ve seen from local communities through the project.”

For more on LEGO DUPLO, visit: http://duplo.lego.com

ALSC, a division of the ALA, is the world’s largest organization dedicated to the support and enhancement of library service to children. With a network of more than 4,000 children’s and youth librarians, literature experts, publishers and educational faculty, ALSC is committed to creating a better future for children through libraries. To learn more about ALSC, visit ALSC’s website at http://www.ala.org/alsc.

LEGO and DUPLO are registered trademarks of The LEGO Group. ©2012 The LEGO Group.