Brooklyn Book Festival- Children’s Day
Saturday, Sept 20 at 2:00 PM

Enjoy a boisterous read-aloud of Let’s Rumble! A Rough-and-Tumble Book of Play and energetic play activities with author and children’s librarian Rachel G. Payne. Kids can make their own rough-and-tumble comics. Parents will learn why rough-and-tumble play is good for kids! Learn how to rumble (safely) with your siblings in this unique story about play.

Corner Bookstore
Saturday, Setpember 27 at 10:00 AM
1313 Madison Ave
New York, NY 10128

Join us for a read-aloud of Let’s Rumble! A Rough-and-Tumble Book of Play! and some boisterous play activities with author and children’s Librarian Rachel G. Payne. Kids will get creative and make their own rough-and-tumble play books. Parents and caregivers will learn why rough-and-tumble play is actually good for kids!

Easthampton Public Library
Saturday, October 4 at 11:30 AM
9 Park Street
Easthampton, MA 01027

Join us for a read-aloud of Let’s Rumble! A Rough-and-Tumble Book of Play! and some boisterous play activities with author and children’s Librarian Rachel G. Payne. Kids will get creative and make their own rough-and-tumble play books. Parents and caregivers will learn why rough-and-tumble play is actually good for kids!

Powerhouse @ Industry City
Sunday, November 2, 2025 at 1:00 PM
238 36th St Building 2
Brooklyn, NY 11232

Join us for a read-aloud of Let’s Rumble! A Rough-and-Tumble Book of Play! and some boisterous play activities with author and children’s Librarian Rachel G. Payne. Kids will get creative and make their own rough-and-tumble play books. Parents and caregivers will learn why rough-and-tumble play is actually good for kids!

New York Library Association Conference
Saratoga Springs, NY
Friday, November 7, 2025
11:00 AM-12:15 PM

Discover StoryTeen, Brooklyn Public Library's unique teen internship program, where young adults explore early literacy practices, the art of creating storytime, and careers in early childhood education and librarianship. Through support from children's and young adult librarians, StoryTeens constructed their own storytimes, both virtual and in-person, increasing BPL's multilingual storytime offerings and the diversity of storytime leaders. Session participants will learn best practices for creating teen volunteer/internship programs serving young children, as well hear powerful testimonials from the teens themselves as they deepened their relationship with the library, with participation in projects like Books Unbanned and Ready, Set, Kindergarten.

New York Library Association Conference
Saratoga Springs, NY
Saturday, November 8, 2025
11:00 AM - 12:15 PM

Young children and families are deeply impacted by growing attempts to ban and challenge books for young readers, so it's essential we include them in the Freedom to Read movement. Picture books comprise an increasing percentage of school and library book bans, impacting access to diverse books and even reading outcomes. According to Pen America, most banned and challenged picture books present LGBTQ+ themes, feature characters of color, or discuss racism. We know young children need diverse books to see themselves represented, feel empowered, develop a sense of belonging, and grow their understanding of our diverse world. The books being removed from schools and libraries are arguably the books young children need most.At this timely presentation, participants will learn how book banning limits access to picture books nationwide and get the tools they need to meaningfully include families and young children in the Freedom to Read movement. Participants will leave with resources they can use immediately, including Banned Book Story Time plans, tips for handling community or library leadership pushback, strategies for addressing challenges to diverse storytime content, and plans for family anti-censorship activities. Participants will learn through active participation, story time demos, and will leave with tools for their communities, including a "Family Toolkit to Fight Book Bans."