Central Library: Children's Library
Boylston Street Building, Second Floor
617.536.5400, ask@bpl.org
The Children’s Library at the Central Library in Copley Square is a vibrant space for our young visitors and their caregivers, featuring whimsical, colorful designs that evoke the City of Boston.
The Children’s Library is for children in grades eight and under in the company of a parent, teacher, or adult caregiver. Everyone is welcome to browse the collection or look for a book, but seating in the Children’s Library is limited to children and their accompanying adults only. For more information, please see our Safe Child policy.
Programs
The Children’s Library hosts a wide variety of programs for children and their caregivers. Check our calendar for upcoming events for children at the Central Library.
Upcoming Events
Collections
The children’s room has a large & diverse collection, including:
- Books, including fiction, nonfiction and graphic novels
- Audiobooks
- Music CDs
- DVDs
Technology
The Children’s Library features public computers for use with a child’s Boston Public Library card. Four AWE Early Literacy Stations, featuring games and activities for young children, are available for half hour sessions with no library card required.
For general information on public computer use and printing at the Boston Public Library, please visit Computers and Technology.
Related FAQs
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Services vary by location. If you are hoping to visit one of our branches please contact the specific branch directly.
The Central Library offers many services for classes, including obtaining library cards, library orientations, research support, Art & Architecture tours, and other activities. For grades K-6, please contact the Children's Library. For grades 6-12 please contact Teen Central. For college or adult groups, please contact ask@bpl.org to schedule a research visit or tours@bpl.org to schedule an Art & Architecture tour (guided or self-guided).
We are happy to collaborate to design a visit that best serves your group and learning objectives!
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If you are hoping to visit one of our branches please contact the specific branch directly.
For visits to the Central Library, please use the following contact information:
- For grades K-6, please contact the Children's Library.
- For grades 6-12, please contact Teen Central.
- For college or adult groups, please contact ask@bpl.org to schedule a research visit or tours@bpl.org to schedule an Art & Architecture tour (guided or self-guided).
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The Boston Public Library buildings are free and open to all. However, to avoid overcrowding our spaces and to foster an enjoyable experience for group visits and all of our patrons, we strongly encourage groups to register in advance.
Groups visiting the Central Library's Children's Library or Teen Central must register in advance with those departments. Groups who would like an Art & Architecture tour of the Central Library must also register in advance.
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To schedule a class visit with the Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center, please review their K-12 education page and contact them with the information provided.
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Yes! Have your students fill out a library card application and send it to the library one week before your scheduled visit. As long as your students live or work in Massachusetts, they can get a BPL library card. It not only lets you borrow books, music, magazines, and movies from our buildings, it also lets you use our electronic resources.
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Contacting the children’s librarian at the location you’re visiting is the best way to ensure your class will receive the materials they need on the day of your visit. Getting in touch ahead of time allows children’s librarians to request books from other library branches if needed, especially if your class is studying a seasonal or topical subject. Two weeks’ notice will improve the chances of the material arriving in time.
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An initial visit, including a tour, library card distribution, and a chance for the children to choose books to take home with them takes at least forty minutes for a group of twenty five children. If you’ve arranged to have book talks or a story as well, you should add in an additional fifteen minutes.
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Yes. You can fill out one of the forms below and bring it to the circulation desk in any BPL location, to get a library card.
You do not need one of these forms to get a library card, but we recommend it if you will be bringing a group of students with you to get library cards. We recommend giving the forms to the students about two weeks before the scheduled visit and reviewing them for errors. Then, allow us about a week to create the library cards before your visit. If you bring applications on the day of the visit, we can’t guarantee that there will be sufficient staff available to get it all done.
Here is the library card application form you can print and fill out, in nine different languages:
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See our Central Library Tours page for more information.
