{"id":34913,"date":"2026-02-03T00:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T05:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/?p=34913"},"modified":"2026-01-22T13:16:51","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T18:16:51","slug":"exercise-more-creating-movement-friendly-library-programs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/2026\/02\/exercise-more-creating-movement-friendly-library-programs\/","title":{"rendered":"Exercise More: Creating Movement-Friendly Library Programs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This year, I’m viewing “traditional” New Year’s resolutions through a library lens<\/a>. This month, we’re focusing on the resolution to exercise more. While the library may not be the ideal place for exercise classes, it can serve as a space for physical activity, exploration, and growth. Instead, we’re looking at ways to incorporate intentional, accessible movements, adaptations, and spaces in our programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Why Movement Matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Movement is a key component of early literacy and learning. Moving in storytimes and programs provides oxygen to growing brains, a crucial element of growth and development. Practicing gross motor motions helps little ones understand how their bodies move in space, developing a sense of self. Fingerplays and action rhymes help develop fine motor skills that are critical to writing. For more kinesthetic learners, moving provides opportunities to engage more senses in the learning process. However, movement only works if we find ways for everyone to engage. As we see more diversity in ages and abilities in our libraries, it’s important to make sure that we’re considering options for everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Incorporating more movement in your library means considering not only how patrons move, but also how we make motions accessible and appropriate for everyone. Here are some ideas to start.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo courtesy of Plano Public Library, provided by Jaime Eastman, ALSC member.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Consider developmental differences.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How children move varies greatly. As you craft your outlines, consider how movement aligns with developmental stages. For infants, use simple motions that are easy for caregivers to mimic or complete on the baby’s body. Look for whole-body motions that build gross motor skills and capitalize on enthusiasm for toddlers. For preschoolers, consider ways to incorporate simple directions and challenges that demonstrate independence and self-control. If you have a mixed-aged audience, make sure that your introductions and actions incorporate this diversity. For example, in a Rhyme Time that includes ages 0 to 24 months, we demonstrate rhymes in two different ways. The first addresses the needs of small infants and pre-walkers, and relies largely on the caregiver’s interpretation of the movement. The second encourages larger motions that toddlers perform independently or with some assistance. This ensures that all families can participate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Create movement-safe library spaces.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In order to encourage movement, we must first create spaces where moving is both acceptable and safe. As you set up your room, consider ways that participants will move and interact. Identify crowded or cramped areas, then look for solutions. For example, hosting a stroller parking area outside our children’s program room allows more movement space. Arrange seating in ways that allow caregivers to move freely, assist children, and model actions. If your program includes large motions, ensure there is ample space for everyone to participate. Think about where it’s safe to move, and where it isn’t, and set those expectations from the start. For example, in my storytime, the back of the room remains open for moving, away from the main audience. This lets families take a wiggle break if needed, but ensures that those seated still enjoy the stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Offer thoughtful movement modifications.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It’s important to remember that patrons come to programs with different abilities and comfort levels. Not only should you think about the abilities of the children attending, but also the adults coming with them. Consider offering at least two participation options, or a seated option for those with mobility or balance concerns. It also helps families consider their engagement when you introduce movements with clear instructions. Use simple language and demonstrations. For example, when introducing the rhyme “Zoom, Zoom, Zoom,” I might say, “With our next rhyme, we’re going to take a trip to the moon. We’ll zoom, zoom, zoom with our hands before climbing into our rocketships and counting down for a blast off. You can blast off by waving your fingers, putting your arms above your head, or, if you’re comfortable, lifting your little one or jumping out of your seat.”<\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo courtesy of Plano Public Library, provided by Jaime Eastman, ALSC member.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Design programs for different developmental needs.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addition to considering developmental differences, it’s also important to create unique programs that reflect those differences. This creates spaces where participants are more likely to engage with content similarly, making it easier for you to customize the content to the audience. As you develop more program options, you can create more participation opportunities for families as their child grows. One of our most popular movement programs is Parachute Party, where we use giant parachutes to share songs and rhymes. However, the enthusiasm and abilities of preschoolers can be overwhelming and unsafe for toddlers. To address this, we created a Toddler Parachute Play. We use smaller parachutes, and more of the rhymes focus on seated or simple motions that a caregiver and child can do together. This ensures that everyone has a chance to play with the parachutes, but that everyone stays safe doing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plan for wiggly participants.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We all have different tolerances for sitting through activities, even when they seem fun. If you’ve ever sat in a meeting, trying not to fidget, you know the feeling. It’s important that we recognize this in our audience, too. Children have shorter attention spans, coupled with less skill in managing their emotions and behaviors. We should be mindful of this when structuring our programs. This can be as simple as including regular wiggle breaks or having movement transitions between elements. Or, you can keep an extra movement element on hand, just in case. When I’m planning for storytime, I include an option for both engaged and wiggly groups. If the group seems wiggly, I’ll incorporate more active participation and movement, or drop an element to move directly into a dance break. For more ideas, check out this post<\/a> for movement songs in storytime.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Book cover image courtesy of Pajama Press.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Picture Book Tie-In: Animals Move<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As you resolve to move more, check out Animals Move<\/a> <\/em>by Jane Whittingham. This simple title pairs gorgeous photos of baby animals with accessible movements for children. Photos of children in action demonstrate ways that we can move. As an added bonus, check out the tips for caregivers at the end of the book for more ways to explore healthy movement. Give this title a try in storytime or recommend it to active families. Then, compare ideas for how you can move. This book works particularly well for creating shared caregiver and child movement experiences. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stay tuned next month as we explore the resolution to live life to the fullest by embracing big and messy programs. What movement-based changes will you incorporate in your library this month?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This post addresses ALSC Core Competency<\/a> #1: Commitment to Client Group<\/strong><\/em> and ALSC Core Competency #3: Programming Skills<\/strong><\/em>. Featured image created by Jaime Eastman, ALSC member.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Jaime Eastman is a senior Public Services Librarian and Early Learning Coordinator at the Harrington Library, one of the Plano (Texas) Public Library locations<\/a>. Jaime is also working on at least two ambitious cross-stitch projects, dreaming of future travel plans, and reading far too many books. As a child, she wanted to grow up to be an author. Writing for the blog and publishing with Children and Libraries<\/em> feels like a good start, and she regrets nothing about her adult decision to be a librarian doing storytimes, who didn\u2019t have to grow up too much.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This year, I’m viewing “traditional” New Year’s resolutions through a library lens. This month, we’re focusing on the resolution to exercise more. While the library may not be the ideal place for exercise classes, it can serve as a space for physical activity, exploration, and growth. Instead, we’re looking at ways to incorporate intentional, accessible movements, adaptations, and spaces in our programs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":378,"featured_media":34990,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[2650,1605,38,1607],"tags":[1006,1007,115],"class_list":["post-34913","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogger-jaime-eastman","category-commitment-to-client-group","category-programming-ideas","category-programming-skills","tag-gross-motor","tag-movement","tag-programming"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/378"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34913"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34913\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}