Library Card Sign-up Month

Library Card Sign-Up Month is an American event that occurs annually in September. It is scheduled to coincide with the start of the school year in most areas of the country, and its primary focus is encouraging school children to sign up for and use a library card. Getting a library card can be a rite of passage for youngsters as it is often the first formal membership a child is eligible to get.

While a main goal of Library Card Sign-Up Month is to get library cards into the hands of school children, activities throughout the month encourage people of all ages to get and use a library card. It is estimated that about two-thirds of the American population holds at least one library card. Events are held to increase awareness of the many types of resources available in libraries besides books and to inform people of the cost savings they can experience by using them. Other events encourage reading and help people learn about book clubs, STEAM and STEM learning, homework help, story times, and other programs run by individual libraries and library systems.

Background

Library cards are membership cards issued to indicate the card holder has privileges to borrow books and other resources from a specific library or library system. Originally called borrowers’ cards, these were simple paper cards, often in a specific color and printed with information about the issuing library. The library patron’s membership number, name, address, and other pertinent information was written on the card, which also had a line for the patron’s signature. The cards often included other information, such as whether the holder was an adult or child and the number of books that could be borrowed with the card at one time. The first libraries were private and charged membership fees, but eventually many communities began to support free public libraries.

Librarians checked out books manually by removing a card kept in a pocket inside the cover of the book the patron was borrowing and recording the patron’s information on the book card and the date the book was due to be returned. This card was then kept on file in the library. As technology advanced, librarians used other methods to check out books, such as a form of photocopying that scanned the book’s card and the patron’s card together.

Contemporary library cards are often plastic and more closely resemble a credit card, with a longer membership number and a bar code that is scanned to record the information. Libraries may even offer a smaller keychain version to make carrying a library card even easier.

Some libraries have dispensed with physical cards altogether and use cellphone apps as virtual cards. In many cases, the membership number associated with a patron’s account can be entered on the library’s website or app, allowing the member to access electronic resources such as e-books and online research libraries. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many libraries adapted to allow patrons to use their membership numbers to reserve and check out books, magazines, and other materials online or to request to get their books through contactless pickups.

Library cards can give patrons of all ages access to the resources in a library. In some cases, parents of newborns and young toddlers are given packets with information about library programs for young children and sign-up forms for library cards. Some libraries even issue library cards to babies so their grownups can check out picture books, videos, and other resources for the children. On the other end of the spectrum, library cards give senior citizens access to computers and the internet that they might not have at home. This can help them with health care and financial information in addition to providing books, videos, and other resources for entertainment. Internet access is also important to many people who use library computers to find and apply for jobs.

Overview

The first Library Card Sign-Up Month was held in 1988. The idea originated as a comment by William Bennett when he was the US secretary of education. Bennett suggested creating a national campaign to put a library card into the hands of every American school child. The American Library Association (ALA) made Bennett’s suggestion a reality and rapidly organized an event to announce the first Library Card Sign-Up Month later that year. Five hundred children attended the official kick-off, which was held on the National Mall in Washington, DC, on October 14. However, the ALA chose to use September as the event month going forward to coincide with the time most children went back to school.

Library Card Sign-Up Month campaigns are conducted on library grounds, in schools, at senior centers, and at public events. They often include fun events, such as contests and games. For example, a library might hand out a BINGO card where patrons have to complete library-related tasks, such as borrowing a novel, signing up for a program, or taking a picture with their library card and posting it to social media, to win prizes.

Libraries also make a concerted effort to educate people about the resources available in libraries. The campaigns often emphasize library cards as a very important and free back-to-school supply. They also stress that money-saving educational opportunities are available in libraries year-round for people of all ages. Some libraries use the month to encourage people who have cards but have not used them in some time to return to the library, for example they may offer prizes, waive overdue book fees, and organize events and entertainment as enticements to invite them back.

During Library Card Sign-Up Month, libraries often try to raise awareness of their importance to the community. Public libraries serve all members of a community, regardless of income, race, age, or other factors. In addition to books, periodicals, and research resources such as online encyclopedias and interlibrary items, libraries generally have computers and internet access. Many also allow patrons to borrow videos, videogames, audiobooks, and music. Some have libraries of things, which offer items such as power tools and guitars that patrons may borrow. Because all of this is available for free to people who live in the area serviced by the facility, public libraries are often considered social equalizers.

Bibliography

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