Multilingual storytelling for children

Storytelling is a tradition at the Vienna Public Libraries: Many of the branch libraries organise storytelling sessions for children. They show children in a playful and lively way that reading, listening to and making up stories is fun. The programme for pre-school children has been extended to include multilingual storytelling sessions that take place at the branch libraries with an intercultural focus once a month.

A wealth of languages and cultures

A committed group of storytellers, who represent the great diversity of mother tongues spoken in Vienna, tell children about foreign cultures and languages. They read or tell stories from their home countries in English, Czech, Turkish, Russian, Persian, Spanish, Italian or Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian during the bilingual storytelling sessions for children between four and eight years of age.

Bilingual storytellers

Majda Kovacevic, who organises target group specific events at the Vienna Public Libraries:

We attach great importance to bilingual storytellers who support children with a migration background in enhancing their skills in their mother tongues and, at the same time, present to the German-speaking children the many foreign languages spoken in Vienna. All children from Vienna are welcome at the storytelling sessions!

Reading is fun - and not just for children

There is much more to the multilingual storytelling sessions than just storytelling: Children learn many words in the foreign languages and find out more about cultural differences and similarities in a playful way. The sessions include activities such as drawing, playing, dancing and singing, and the children can enjoy their time together irrespective of their cultural background and mother tongue. It is also a good opportunity to show parents that reading stories benefits their children’s language skills. The multilingual storytelling sessions provide a good example for parents and show them how to create a nice atmosphere for storytelling at home.

Branch libraries with an intercultural focus

Multilingual storytelling sessions are held at the following branch libraries:

• Bücherei Zirkusgasse, 1020 Vienna, Zirkusgasse 3: on the third Tuesday of the month, 4 pm
• Hauptbücherei am Gürtel, 1070 Vienna, Urban-Loritz-Platz 2a: one Friday of the month February, May and November, 3 pm
• Bücherei Alsergrund, 1090 Vienna, Alserbachstraße 11: on the third Monday of the month, 4 pm
• Bücherei Per-Albin-Hansson-Siedlung, 1100 Vienna, Ada-Christen-Gasse 2: on the third Friday of the months January, March, May, September and November, 3 pm
• Bücherei im Bildungszentrum Simmering, 1110 Vienna, Gottschalkgasse 10: on the second Friday of the month, 4 pm
• Bücherei Philadelphiabrücke, 1120 Vienna, Meidlinger Hauptstraße 73: on the third Wednesday of the month, 4 pm
• Bücherei Hietzing, 1130 Vienna, Preyergasse 1-7: on the third Thursday of the month, 4 pm
• Bücherei Ottakring, 1160 Vienna, Schuhmeierplatz 17: on the last Friday of the month, 4 pm
• Bücherei Hernals, 1170 Vienna, Hormayrgasse 2: on the first Tuesday of the month, 10 am
• Bücherei Pappenheimgasse, 1200 Vienna, Pappenheimgasse 10-16: on the first Friday of the month, 3 pm
• Bücherei Weisselbad, 1210 Vienna, Brünner Straße 27: on the second Tuesday of the month, 3.30 pm
• Bücherei Billrothstraße, 1190 Vienna, Billrothstraße 22: on the second Tuesday of the month, 4 pm
• Bücherei Liesing, 1230 Vienna, Breitenfurter Straße 358: on the first Thursday of the month, 4 pm

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