The Professor Joel Martins Library, at the Unicamp School of Education (FE/Unicamp), has stood out for promoting weekly activities with children aged 4 to 6 from the Unicamp Early Childhood and Supplementary Education Division (Dedic), especially from the Children's Community Center (Ceci), with the aim of encouraging literary reading from early childhood.
The initiative, which is part of a university extension project, since 2024, has been transforming the library space into a lively environment for coexistence, learning and enchantment — a direct result of the articulation between professors, students and staff of the University.
The library coordinator, Simone Lucas Gonçalves de Oliveira, states that the experience in libraries, with access to books in a fun, interactive and pedagogical way, is an excellent antidote against isolation and excessive attachment to screens, very frequent problems with children who were born during or after the Covid pandemic, according to reports from early childhood education teachers.
Every week, in the morning, the Library has welcomed students for a guided tour of its space to contemplate the book collections, the Garden of Ancestral Knowledge, the study areas and for moments of meeting, relaxation and literary experiences in the children's library.
“From the moment the bus parks in front of the Faculty of Education, until the entrance to the library, the corridors are invaded by children’s voices and smiles, which transform the academic environment into a space for everyone”, says the library supervisor, Rosemary Passos.
Visits take place on Tuesdays and involve everything from enchantment in the Garden of Ancestral Knowledge to special storytelling moments in the children's library, with the notable participation of storytellers such as Wander Paulus and teacher Patrícia Veiga.
Storytelling is a very enriching experience. “With charisma and mastery, Wander fills our children’s imaginations with beautiful stories and many fantasies,” says Simone. Teacher Patrícia, in turn, values the knowledge of the indigenous peoples of Brazil, introducing children to readings and instruments related to this story. According to Simone, “It is impossible not to notice the sparkle in the children’s eyes, the participation, the interaction, and especially the enchantment of the teachers who accompany the visit and the staff assigned to the reception.”
The proposal came about in partnership with teachers, such as Gabriela Tebet and Lilian Nascimento, in addition to the engagement of employees, researchers and undergraduate and postgraduate students, says Simone, adding that the visit to the library is planned, in a curatorial process that involves, develops and contributes to the formation of the future reader and to the habit of reading, permeated with joy and enthusiasm.
Fabiana Alves, from the library's research support department, points out that, in addition to the children from Ceci, public schools outside Unicamp also participate in the activities, using the space as an extension of the classroom. Pedagogy students such as Ana Claudia Morais Alves and Maria Angélica Teixeira de Andrade have been fundamental in mediating these actions, which include not only physical visits, but also the loan of books for use in the visiting schools.
With around 300 children served in the first half of 2025 alone and more than 50 titles circulating among the institutions, the project reaffirms the role of the university library as a living organism, which forms readers and citizens from childhood. The presence of children transforms the academic environment, breaking down barriers between university and society and projecting a more literate and more human future. “These moments reinforce the real meaning of the library for the University, making it a living and renewing organism. The children of Tuesdays will, in the future, be our students of tomorrow”, reflects Rosemary.
And so the project is growing, creating new contours every day.
