Kids
FUN AND LEARNING
An adventurous, knowledge seeking, wonderland designed to allow kids and teens to explore the outer reaches of their imaginations.
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Storytimes
Richmond Public Library strives to provide quality storytimes that stimulate children’s minds, promote brain development, and give children the tools they need to succeed in school.
We use an overall brain development curriculum called The Basics that uses 5 simple principles:
- Maximize Love, Manage Stress
- Talk, Sing, and Point
- Count, Group, and Compare
- Explore Through Movement and Play
- Read and Discuss Stories
These principles can be used at any age but studies show that the younger children are when they start learning the principles, the more prepared they are to start school. These basics will instill in your child a love of learning to last a lifetime.
You can learn more about The Basics at https://thebasics.org
School Readiness
Children are remarkable. Even before birth, the foundations for language, literacy, health, well-being and the ability to form positive relationships are being built.
Babies are born full of potential and the best opportunity to help them achieve life-long success is in the first years of life when more than 1 million new connections are formed each second. Because this trajectory to success begins well before school does, parents are children’s first and most important teachers.
The Richmond Public Library is free, trusted, and a welcoming hub of resources for families and children. We want to help nurture children’s early literacy skills and support families in preparing them for promising futures.
The time to start preparing your child for school is now and we can help!
Discover
Online Learning and Fun
Read eBooks, research a topic, learn new skills, play games, or watch educational videos.
RPL Presents
View our Storytime and Craft Videos on the RPL YouTube channel.
VACU Financial Success for Kids
VACU helps RPL with Kiosks of children’s books about money.
Young Writers Workshop
Do you have a great idea for a story, but not sure what to do next? We can help!
Parents & Caregivers
RVA Reads
We recruit volunteer readers to read to each preschool class at Richmond’s Five Regional Preschool Centers.
Sensory Kits
Sensory kits help individuals manage sensory overload.
SOL Resources
Find links to videos, hands on activities and more to help your child understand concepts or enhance their knowledge with extension activities.
Latest from the Blog
07 Jul
02 Jul
25 Jun
Storytime at Home: Ocean!
Sarah Fenninger
July 7, 2025
Welcome to the Storytime at Home series! Every other week, we share a list of book options tied to a kid-approved theme, a craft you can set up to go […]...
Booklists for Kids
- Pre-K- K
- 1st – 2nd Graders
- 3rd – 5th Graders
- Adoption
- Alphabet
- Babies and Toddlers
- Bilingual
- Bullying
- Caldecott Book Award
- Colors
- Construction
- Coretta Scott King Award
- Dinosaurs
- Diverse Families
- Emotions (Feelings)
- Fairy Tales
- First Day of School Books
- Genre – Diaries, Journals, and Letters 4th/5th
- Genre- Folk Tales 4th & 5th
- Genre – Historic Fiction 4th/5th
- Genre – Mystery 4th/5th
- Genre- Myths 4th & 5th
- Genre – Poetry 4th/5th
- Genre – Realistic Fiction 4th/5th
- Genre – Sci-Fi 4th/5th
- Going to Kindergarten
- Graphic Novels (Grades 4-5)
- Helping Your Child Go to Bed
- Helping Your Child Go to Bed 2
- Manners
- Mental Health / Mindfulness
- Monsters
- More Colors
- More Shapes
- Newbery Book Award
- Numbers
- Opposites
- Pets
- Picture Books with Onomatopoeia
- Potty Training
- Princesses, Fairies, and More!
- Rhyming
- Self-Acceptance
- Shapes
- Siblings/New Baby
- Superheroes
- Theodor Seuss Geisel Award
- Transportation
- Wordless Picture Books