More kids in Mokena are finding that the library is the after-school place to be.
“I meet my friends here and do homework,” said Toni Dunne, 10.
A cozy corner lit by a floor-to-ceiling window and furnished with easy chairs, tables, board games and, of course, shelves of books has been set aside for the community’s teens and almost-teens.
“We put it over here so they could have a place (to gather),” library director Phyllis Jacobek said.
Their younger brothers and sisters have their own niche, full of picture books and puzzles and kid-friendly child-sized furniture, on the lower level.
Moms and dads and researchers have their own quiet sections where they can read and reflect.
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But teens and junior high-schoolers needed a place to call their own, Jacobek said. “We need to address people on their level.”
Courses in promoting literacy emphasize making libraries easier to use, she said, so the corner is set up for both reading and socializing.
“We have a lot of kids who come in after school,” Jacobek said. “They mostly come in for school assignments, but we find that if we can lure them into the library for pleasure, they’ll become readers.”
The assortment of literary works range from the classics to such popular series books as “The Baby-Sitters Club,” “Nancy Drew” and “Goosebumps.”
Eric Wordelman, 11, had strictly academic reasons for his library visit. “I’m just here because I’m doing a project (for) math. (It’s about) calories.”
For Jim Darling, 13, the library is a stopping-off place. “I pass here on my way to jump (at a nearby skateboard park),” he said.
Others, such as Nick Beebe, 11, and Kyle Grossheider, 12, who show up at the library “almost every day,” come to engage in the youthful version of the stock market, trading Pokemon cards.
Nick said the library is a good place to meet fellow traders. “(Otherwise) you’ve got to go all over town.”
Anthony Klipczarek, 11, has a dual purpose for his visit. “I draw, and I trade.”
Beside setting aside a special place, library teen adviser April Bakutis has set up a program for teen readers. The teen book discussion group meets Saturdays.