Your library can help you keep learning costs low!
Check out your local library’s website to see what they have to offer online, or take a trip to the library and ask about the free services they offer their patrons within the library and online. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you find out!
Downloadable eBooks – Free
These days most libraries offer their patrons downloadable ebooks that can be chosen online, and expire in a period of time. This helps to keep learning costs low while your family stays current on the authors, books, and topics they find the most interesting.
Online Program Subscriptions – Free
Some libraries subscribe to a variety of programs such as, language programs, programs where children and adults can read books online or have them read to them.
Test Practice & Courses – Free
If a patron needs to study for the SAT, GED, or a similar test, check to see if your local library offers practice exams online. While you’re at it, check to see if they offer any online courses!
What to check for within the library…
Ancestry Information – Free
If you’re interested in learning more about your family tree, some libraries offer computers, set up within the library, to help with genealogy research.
Programs & Events – Free
Check to see if your library offers story-time or activities for young children, book clubs for adults and children, summer read programs, craft programs, movies, speakers, and/or any other special programming or event.
Learning Resources – Free
A great way to set up your own personalized learning program, is to use the library! Many libraries offer a variety of learning resources for different needs. In addition to the online resources and books, many libraries have music CDs and videos you can borrow for a period of time, games and puzzles you can play within the library, exhibits, reference materials, braille and talking books, and much more. Don’t forget to look for an audio book on a topic of interest while you’re there!
Book Sales = Deep discount
Many libraries have books sales and/or a used book shop where you can get seriously deep discounts on fictional and non-fictional books, cds, movies, dvds, and audio books your family may enjoy. It’s a great way to start a home library or add to it.
One last tip: Stay Informed!
If your library has a membership program such as, ‘Friends of the Library’, sign up! You’ll have to pay a small fee to become a member, but it’s well worth it because they will send you a monthly newsletter letting you know about all the great programming and events they have to offer.
What does your library have to offer?
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FranW.com 
These are fantastic tips! We have a friends of the library program. You are right, I need to sign up. Our library offers wonderful things. Really! During the summer, they bring all kinds of people to perform – science, animals, magic and more! The shows – on average are every other Tuesday – 2 different times. They also offer free preschool and toddle programs during the day – weekly. They have Read to a Dog, where you sit for 5-10 minutes and read out loud.They just had a lego building day. They have train day in the fall and the list goes on and on and on!Thanks for this post, Fran. As always, thanks for linking up with us!
Wow, Lisa! Your library offers as much as ours does! I bet they offer as much on line to their patrons too! Libraries are such a wonderful resource! Thank you for the comment and thank you for offering such a wonderful sharing resource on your blog! For anyone interested in learning more about Lisa's homeschool link ups, check out her site: http://squishablebaby.com/
Great resources! Our library offers free foreign language lessons through Mango, too.
Thank you, Tavia! I think our libraries are going to keep offering great resources to their patrons!