Our library is more than just books
Credit: Kidsday illustration / Christie Trabold, Garden City
A fun and welcoming spot in Bridgehampton is the Hampton Library, just a short walk down Main Street from our school. It won’t take even an hour to become great friends with the staff. This place is great for kids and adults.
For kids, a nice part of the library is the young adult, or YA, room, which has books for older children and teens, a desk with crafts, fun bean bags that you can lie on with your friends, and a chalkboard wall. The YA room is where older children do their homework and talk to each other.
Downstairs is the children’s section, mostly for toddlers and young kids, and in the program room next to it, there is another cool space for older kids to hang out. Every Tuesday at the Hampton Library is “Teen Tuesday,” when the staff chooses a fun activity. If the kids don’t use up all of the materials that day, they can keep on having fun with the activity later that week.
One activity they have done in the past is virtual reality, a game where you enter and it feels like real life. Other activities were making candy sushi or sugar body scrubs to shower with. One time, the staff found a website that showed you how to connect wires to vegetables, and tap the vegetables to make sounds with the computer, just like a piano. Every year on Halloween, they have an activity called “DIY Last-Minute Halloween Costumes.”
The Hampton Library is also a great resource for research or help with school projects and papers. Each member of the staff will help you find whatever it is you are looking for, as well as give you suggestions or ideas to help out.
There are many options to choose from when it comes to places to sit, but if you prefer working in peace and quiet, the top floor is a good choice. It has two balconies with chairs in which you are able to see the floor below, and it is also the most quiet place in the library.
The library means a lot to us kids here in Bridgehampton. It is a place where we can really be ourselves and make friends. We honestly can’t thank them enough for being such welcoming, fantastic friends. Our library is at 2478 Main St., Bridgehampton, and online at hamptonlibrary.org. But that is just our library — you should check out the one in your hometown.
Marie Hand and Thomas House’s sixth- and seventh-grade students, Bridgehampton School
