Award-winning musician and Bloomington resident Emmy Brockman will perform a musical storytime event Saturday at the Monroe County Public Library, library children’s strategist Lisa Champelli said.
The event will feature children’s stories, songs and rhymes performed by Brockman, Champelli said.
Some of these songs will feature Brockman playing her own guitar. The event will be entertaining and educational for children, Champelli said.
“In addition to reading and talking with children, singing with children also helps to develop literacy skills since singing slows language down and allows children to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words,” Champelli said.
The event is intended for children between the ages of two and six, though families are encouraged to experience the event with their children, library senior information assistant Brandon Rome said. The event will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
This is will be Brockman’s second time participating in this program after performing for the first time in December, Champelli said. She said children who attended the December musical storytime were engaged, dancing and singing along with Brockman’s music.
“We are thrilled that Emmy could repeat this program at the library on a Saturday morning in January and February,” Champelli said.
Brockman is currently working as the director of education for the WonderLab Museum of Science, Health and Technology, according to her website. Champelli said Brockman’s music earned her a Parents’ Choice Award and an Independent Music Award for her debut album “Dragon Dreams.”
Brockman’s album is available for sale on her website, and she offers free listens to the songs “Dinosaurs Are For Roaring,” “Tricky Way” and “The Hoity-Toity Tortoise.” Brockman provides the lyrics to all the songs she sings on the album. This availability allows for further practicing with the children after the event.
The Monroe County Public Library puts on a variety of other events for children to increase its service capacity, Champelli said. These events usually feature other educators and performers like Brockman to present the educational material in a creative way.
“The library is very fortunate to have a number of librarians skilled in providing programs for children, including musical storytimes,” Champelli said.
Like the musical storytime event, all other programs the library offers are free, Champelli said. This provides more incentive for people to attend.
“We always want children and their families to regard the library as a fun place to visit,” Champelli said.
Champelli said the experience between Brockman and the families should create a bonding experience between the parents or other caregivers and their children.
Champelli said she hopes adults at the event will take time to learn the songs Brockman sings so they can practice them later with their children to practice children’s language skills.
“The event itself will be a fun way for children and families to spend time together, but parents and other caregivers who attend a program with their children have a shared experience that they can talk more about even after the event itself has concluded,” Champelli said.
