The Library provides information literacy resources so residents seeking to become better parents can acquire these tools. Beanstack is our primary reading program application for Summer Reading, Winter Reading, and 1,000 Books before Kindergarten. For reading recommendations, try our NoveList K-8 Plus resource.

Early education

Children's events and story time

The Library offers a variety of events. According to Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library, Talking, Singing, Reading, Writing, and Playing is important for developing early literacy skills.

Select Library Children's Events for the following age-appropriate events.

  • Babies up to about age 2
  • Music & Motion is designed to teach children through music, actions, and the use of musical toys. Participants will use shakers, rhythm sticks, a parachute, and other objects to learn vocabulary, patterns, and to follow directions.
  • Ages 2-3 (short attention span)
  • Ages 3-5 (starting to understand story structure)

If you work during the week, the Hoke Library in Jensen Beach offers Music & Motion every other Saturday.

1,000 Books before Kindergarten

This popular early literacy program aims at encouraging parents to read one-thousand books to their child before they enter kindergarten.

ABCmouse.com

From Age of Learning, Inc., the award-winning ABCmouse.com curriculum is designed to help young children (ages 2-6+) build a strong foundation for future academic success. ABCmouse.com is 100% educational, with 3,500+ learning activities across all major subject areas-reading, math, science, social studies, art, and music. Best of all, kids love it! Use it for free at any Martin County Library location.

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free books to children from birth to age five (0 to 5). Specially selected high-quality, age appropriate books are personalized with each child’s name and mailed directly to their home to create a gifting experience that makes books exciting and encourages families to spend time enjoying books together. 

Early literacy iPads

Early Literacy iPads are available for use in your local MCLS branch. You are welcome to bring your child into any branch of the MCLS to share the joys of early literacy on one of our dedicated Early Literacy iPads full of fun learning apps. These iPads will allow you to offer new and exciting ways to discover the joy of reading through games and early literacy applications. The following apps are available for use on these iPads:

  • Toy Story Read-Along
  • PBS Kids Video
  • Bob Books Reading Magic
  • Colorful Aquarium
  • Cut the Rope
  • Fruit Ninja
  • Toddler Teasers
  • Air Hockey Gold
  • The Frog Prince Story Chimes
  • Wild Dolphins
  • History: Maps of the World
  • Planets
  • Paint Sparkles Draw
  • Virtuoso Piano
  • Khan Academy

VOX Books: Books that Talk!

Make learning and literacy development more exciting with VOX Books. VOX Books are physical books equipped with an audio player that narrates to children as they follow along.

Playaway® Bookpacks

Playaway® Bookpacks bring together the simplicity of our all-in-one audiobooks and their print versions to deliver a fun and educational read-along experience to children of all ages.

Grades K-2 Readers Book List

Provided by the Sunshine State Young Readers Award Jr.

Elementary school resources

Florida Kids (History)

This resource provides Florida history, facts, and symbols and can be accessed from home.

Grades 3-5 Readers Book List

Provided by the Sunshine State Young Readers Award

Elementary Gale In Context

This database is developed especially for beginning researchers in Kindergarten through Grade 5. Featuring a developmentally appropriate, visually graphic interface, the most popular search method is moving from a broad subject to a narrower topic using the subject-based topic tree. The curriculum-related, age appropriate, full-text content is from the best elementary reference sources and magazines. This database covers geography, current events, the arts, science, health, people, government, history, sports and more. Available for home use.

New Worlds Reading

The New Worlds Reading Initiative mails free books to students who are in grades K to 5, enrolled in a Florida public or district-sponsored charter school, and are not yet reading on grade level. Learn more and apply to receive free books.

Middle school resources

Grades 6-8 Sunshine State Young Readers Book List

Provided by the Sunshine State Young Readers Award

LitFinder

Covering world literature and authors throughout history, LitFinder contains a wealth of literary works including over 150,000 full-text poems and 800,000+ poetry citations, as well as short stories, speeches, and plays. For students or patrons seeking a deeper view into literature, LitFinder also includes secondary materials like biographies, images, and more! From Shakespeare's sonnets to poems by Donald Hall or short stories from Edgar Allan Poe to works by Annie Proulx, LitFinder has you covered. Available for home use.

Middle School Gale In Context

Bringing together content from the former databases, Middle School Gale In Context is cross-disciplinary in nature—spanning literature, science, social studies, and U.S. and world history. This database is specifically designed for student researchers grades 6-8 and is available from home.

High School Edition Gale OneFile

Available For Home Use. Now with over 1100 titles, cross searchable with E-Books, High School Edition Gale OneFile is designed for high-school students with access to a variety of indexed and full-text magazines, newspapers, podcasts, and reference books for information on current events, the arts, science, popular culture, health, people, government, history, sports and more.