The bookpack project: the wellness benefits of reading

Tuesday 23 January 2024

Front row, from left to right: Marcelle Bouchard, assistant, Mgr. W.J. Conway Public Library; Debbie Smyth Ringuette, member of the Resilience Action Committee; Patrick Provencher, Regional Director of Haut-Saint-Jean Library Region; and Martine Michaud, member of the Resilience Action Committee. Second row, from left to right: Édith Routhier, librarian, Haut-Saint-Jean Library Region; Sarah Dereumetz, Director of Mgr. W.J. Conway Public Library; Tina Ouellette-Plourde, member of the Resilience Action Committee; Mélanie Cyr, member of the Resilience Action Committee; Mélanie Moreau, member of the Resilience Action Committee; Karine Pelletier, member of the Resilience Action Committee; Véronic Boucher, dietitian; and Véronique Thibault, member of the Resilience Action Committee.

Public Health professionals and the Northwest Resilience Action Committee have teamed up with New Brunswick’s public libraries to develop the bookpack project.

Bookpacks are small school bags containing three to five books on a theme fostering healthy child development. They can be borrowed by children and families at no cost using a library card.

Four themes have been developed to support families, promote learning and strengthen language skills: Emotions, Create Connections, My Body and Me, and Let's Explore Food.

These educational resources are available in the Saint-François, Edmundston, Saint-Léonard, Grand Falls, Saint-Quentin, and Kedgwick public libraries, but all New Brunswickers can reserve them using the online catalogue.

Books are available in English and French.

“Bookpacks are a great way to develop the joy of reading and communicating, as well as to create a parent-child moment or to spark conversations between children,” points out Debbie Smyth Ringuette, Public Health Nurse. “We encourage parents and early childhood educators to make the most of them.”

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