Barton County Library has been awarded an Early Learning Collection Development Grant from the Missouri State Library. This grant is designed to help public libraries develop or improve their services for young children from birth to six years of age. With this grant funding, the library will purchase the 2018 Missouri Building Block Award Books and the Show Me Reader Award Books. Both sets of books are designed to encourage reading and are recognized as favorites among Missouri school children. The library will also purchase early literacy supplies to enhance Story Time programs and improve the library’s children’s area. This includes items such as blocks, puzzles, magnetic centers with letters and numbers, flannel board sets, STEM kits, a kitchen playset and a brick building activity table. All three of the library’s branches will be receiving some of the new books and activity materials. Each branch will hold a family literacy event showcasing the new additions to each children’s area and highlighting the new items added to the book collection. The time of each event will be announced at a later date. This project is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the Missouri State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.

Barton County Library has been awarded a Technology Mini Grant in the amount of $9,145. This grant has been used to replace four patron computers and five staff computers. These new computers will provide our patrons and staff with the latest technology from Microsoft Windows 10 and Office 2016, increasing the speed and ease with which they can access the Internet, create and save documents, and post on social media. We have also purchased four Android tablets for patrons to use in the library. These tablets are loaded with games geared toward both children and teens and will allow patrons to read eBooks and browse the Internet. These new tablets and computers are available at all three of our library branches. This project is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the Missouri State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.