dalby library | Western Downs Libraries

Mar, 2020

It is never too early to read to your baby

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: Babies, baby, books, children, children's books, dalby library, Early Literacy, family, kids, literacy, read, reading, storytime | Comments: 0

In the first years of life, your child’s brain develops faster than at any other stage. During this time, the simple things you do together each day can have an enormous impact. Even though your baby isn’t reading yet, sharing books and reading stories is such a valuable way to develop your baby’s pre-literacy and language skills. It is important to familiarise your child with how a storybook works, the beginning, the end, and how text reads from left to right. Tips for reading to your baby Choose a book […]

Mar, 2020

The benefits of listening to audiobooks are extensive…

By: Janette Quince | Tags: bell, Chinchilla Library, dalby library, Early Literacy, education, first five forever, Jandowae Library | Comments: 0

Available online for free through BorrowBox or RB Digital Audiobooks are immersive, educational, instructional, entertaining and they’re perfect for the time rich and the time poor. Audiobooks can also change the way we listen, read and learn, improving the literacy of young readers and those for whom English is a second language. There are plenty of benefits to regularly listening to audiobooks, including: Increasing reading accuracy by 52% Increasing reading speed, expanding vocabulary and improving fluency Teaching pronunciation Improving comprehension by 76%; and Increasing test scores by 21% when engaged in multi-modal learning. […]

Feb, 2020

Debut Australian Authors

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: Australiana, author, books, dalby library, great reads, Historical fiction, New Releases, reading | Comments: 0

Sink your teeth into one of these debut novels from Australian authors! We highly recommend: Beneath the mother tree “Beneath the Mother Tree plays out in a unique and wild Australian setting, interweaving Indigenous history and Irish mythology.” Sign “A captivating novel full of strength, courage and the struggle to overcome silence.” The Van Apfel Girls are gone “Blackly comic, sharply observed and observed and wonderfully endearing, this is Picnic at Hanging Rock for a new generation. A haunting coming-of-age story with a shimmering, unexplained […]

Jan, 2020

Audiobooks at Western Downs Libraries

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: bell, Chinchilla Library, dalby library, Jandowae Library, meandarra library, Moonie library, Tara Library, Wandoan Library | Comments: 0

Audiobooks have become the fastest growing format in publishing today. Smartphones, tablets and the need for multitasking have made them ideal for the 21st century. But, did you know that they started when Edison recorded Mary Had a Little Lamb on a tinfoil phonograph in 1877? The first novel-length talking book was made for blinded World War I veterans and today it is a billion-dollar industry. You can listen to them on long drives, on walks or even in the bath. Audiobooks are great if your sight is failing and […]

Jul, 2019

What’s on Trevor’s bookshelf!

By: Janette Quince | Tags: children, dalby, dalby library, Early Literacy, education, first five forever, reading, storytime, storytime for bubs, Storytime for Kids | Comments: 0

How did Trevor get so clever? Well he reads books – lots of books. His favourite non-fiction book is The Big Book of Tricks for the Best Dog Ever by Larry Kay and Chris Perondi and Teach My Dog to do That by Jo-Rosie Haffenden. He also loves the book Lucky Dog Lessons by Brandon McMillan and Dog Training 101 by Kyra Sundance. Trevor also loves picture books and his favourite ones are the Pig the Pug series – yes, he is named after Pig’s best friend. Trevor also loves […]

Feb, 2019

Let’s talk about Conversational Reading

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: books, dalby, dalby library, education, family, first five forever, reading, storytime | Comments: 0

Children are actively involved in conversation reading. Conversational reading goes back-and-forth. The child does not always have to talk in the “conversation”. He can take part by looking and by pointing. Ask your child to respond on three levels – See, Show and Say. Step 1: See – watch your baby’s eyes. Does she look where you point? Name anything your child sees or touches in the book. Say the key word first. Then, point to and name pictures or words your child is not looking at. Point to lots […]

Feb, 2019

Rosie and Don are back

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: Australiana, books, dalby library, education, great reads, New Releases, review | Comments: 0

Lovers of The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect will be happy to see that Graeme Simsion has released a third book The Rosie Result featuring the unlikely couple of Rosie and Don Tillman. Rosie and Don have moved back to Melbourne after a decade in New York and their son Hudson is now 11 years old. Hudson is struggling at school: he’s socially awkward, not fitting in and his parents suspect he has Autism. Don, having spent a lifetime trying to fit in and manage his own idiosyncrasies, embarks on The Hudson Project in […]

Nov, 2018

Silence can be deafening

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: books, dalby library, great reads, New Releases, patriarchy, reading, women | Comments: 0

“Jean McClellan spends her time in almost complete silence, limited to just one hundred words a day. Any more, and a thousand volts of electricity will course through her veins. Now the new government is in power, everything has changed. But only if you’re a woman. Almost overnight, bank accounts are frozen, passports are taken away and seventy million women lose their jobs. Even more terrifyingly, young girls are no longer taught to read or write.” Vox is the debut novel by Christina Dalcher and a great book to read […]

Nov, 2018

Milkman takes the prize

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: author, dalby library, great reads, reading | Comments: 0

“A novel that is at once unlocated and profoundly tethered to place is surely a novel for our times.” Milkman is a tale of gossip and hearsay, silence and deliberate deafness; a story of inaction with enormous consequences and decisions that are never made, but for which people are judged and punished. It is the 2018 winner of the Man Booker prize. Set in a society divided against itself, Milkman explores the insidious forms oppression can take in everyday life. Middle sister is the protagonist and we follow her as she navigates her way through […]

Aug, 2018

Solving problems through books: Bibliotherapy

By: dalbywordpress | Tags: books, dalby library, Early Literacy, education, family, first five forever, reading, storytime, Storytime for Toddlers | Comments: 0

Reading can and often does serve as a tool for personal growth and adjustment. Reading frequently helps the reader to accept himself for what he is, to obtain insights into his own problems, and to evaluate his own strengths and weaknesses. Almost everyone has to face some personal problems. These range from the trivial distress caused by straight or unkept hair to the tragic loss of hearing or eyesight. There are a myriad of problems that may be an issue for your child. Perhaps through reading about problems that children […]