Early childhood education is essential.

Therefore, in an effort to provide resources to parents, more than 40 games and toys, geared towards learning, will be available at the Warren County-Vicksburg Public Library beginning this week.

“The purpose of this collection,” Warren County-Vicksburg Public Library director Katrina Stokes said, is to help parents prepare their children for pre-school.

The collection of games and toys will be located on the lower level of the Warren County-Vicksburg Public Library in the newly formed Parent Resource Center. Stokes said funding for the addition was due in part by a grant through the Library Services and Technology Act and from Excel by 5.

“Excel reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in a program like this,” Stokes said. “And of course we said ‘yes.’”

In addition to the toys and games, the resources will include puzzles along with manipulatives that will aid children with their fine motor skills.

These resources will also focus on helping preschoolers learn their shapes, colors, letters and numbers.

toys and games

These toys and games will be available for check out during the regular business hours, which is from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

“The check out will work just like the books,” Stokes said, however, there will be a limit of two items per person over a two-week time frame.

Excel by 5 is also providing electronic tablets with links to information for parents about their children’s growth and development at the Parent Resource Center.

“And of course the library has a number of books in our non-fiction collection as well as online resources,” Stokes said, that provide information on a child’s early developmental progress.

Stokes said the tablets will serves as an added resource offered to parents. 

To celebrate the addition of the new Parent Resource Center, a ribbon cutting ceremony will be held at 4:30 p.m., Thursday prior to a Back to School Bash, which will be upstairs in the library meeting room.

Stokes said local elected officials from the city of Vicksburg and Warren County will be in attendance and immediately following the ribbon cutting the public is invited to the Back to School Bash, where light refreshments will be served.

“The library will also have displays and further information concerning library materials and services,” Stokes said.