Primrose School of Madison appreciates its neighbor, the library

Next-door neighbors often feud, but that’s definitely not the situation for Primrose School of Madison and Madison Public Library.

Students at Primrose School of Madison often visit their neighbor, Madison Public Library.

The school and library “are longstanding community partners,” library branch manager Sarah Sledge said. “The two organizations located on Plaza Boulevard share the common goal of reaching out to children and providing the building blocks for early education.”

The Primrose children take weekly visits to the library for storytime, puppet shows and playtime in the Madison Children’s Garden – A Living Library. Their favorite books include “New Socks” by Bob Shea, “Bear in Underwear” by Todd Doodler” and “Pete the Cat” by Eric Litwin.

The Primrose students often check out the books they’ve heard during storytime.

The library staff looks forward to these visits and often refer to the students as ‘our kids.'” The children’s “enjoyment is apparent in their excitement to see ‘Ms.’ Maggie (Allen) and ‘Ms.’ Mandy (Pinyan). The children see the youth services librarians as local celebrities!” Sledge said.

New owners of Primrose in Madison, Troy Ponders and daughter Myra McCrary proved their support of the library by donating $1,333 from their annual Spring Fling fundraiser.

“This generous gift will benefit all the children in Madison as it is used to enhance the recently opened children’s garden,” Sledge said. The garden is open to the public and admission is free.

Ponders said Primrose’s Spring Fling raises money for local and national activities. “The library is a great facility for the community. We felt that we needed to contribute.”

Approximately 150 children attend Primrose School of Madison. About 25 children attend the Explorer program for after-school care and supervised help with homework. “Primrose is a learning school and not just babysitting,” Ponders said.

Primrose School of Madison is open from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. For information, call 256-772-2029 or visit primroseschools.com and select the Madison location.

Madison Public Library’s address is 130 Plaza Blvd. For more information, call 256-461-0046 or send email to ssledge@hmcpl.org.