Library Lady’s K-12 Edition is a mostly weekly newsletter for K-12 school librarians. Today’s topic is — National Hobby Month.
Well-run libraries are filled with people because what a good library offers cannot be easily found elsewhere: an indoor public space in which you do not have to buy anything in order to stay.- Zadie Smith
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Tips from Library Lady
Celebrate National Hobby Month in the Library
January is National Hobby Month, a wonderful time to remind students (and staff!) that learning doesn’t stop when the school bell rings. Hobbies fuel curiosity, build confidence, and often spark future careers. The library is a natural place to help students explore their interests—whether they love coding, crafting, cooking, collecting, or creating.
Here are a few ways to celebrate National Hobby Month in your school library:
💡 1. Host a “Show Your Hobby” Display
Invite students and staff to share something related to their favorite hobby—photos, sketches, tools, or short write-ups. Pair the display with books that match those interests: sports stories, art guides, biographies, or maker titles. It’s a great way to show that reading connects to real life!
📖 2. Spotlight Books by Passionate Characters
Create a book display or bulletin board featuring characters who follow their interests—builders, artists, scientists, athletes, musicians, and dreamers. Add a quick caption like “What’s your hobby?” to encourage students to find a story that matches their own interests.
🧶 3. Offer a “Try It” Maker Challenge
Set up short, low-cost activity stations tied to different hobbies—paper airplane folding, origami, sketching, coding games, simple knitting, or puzzle-solving. Encourage students to try one and check out a related book to learn more.
🎤 4. Invite Hobby Show-and-Tell Speakers
Ask staff, older students, or even local community members to share their hobbies in short lunchtime sessions. A quick demo from a beekeeper, woodworker, baker, or photographer can open a world of possibilities for curious learners.
🧩 5. Connect Hobbies to Future Goals
Encourage students to explore how hobbies can grow into skills, leadership opportunities, or even careers. A short career or “interest inventory” activity can help students see how what they love connects to what they might become.
📚 Resource of the Week
Book List: Celebrate National Hobby Month — A ready-to-share, age-leveled list of picture books, middle-grade novels, and YA reads that celebrate creativity and personal passions. Includes activity ideas for every title.
Hobbies remind students that learning is joyful, creative, and lifelong. By highlighting hobbies in the library this month, you’re helping every reader discover new interests—and perhaps even a new passion they’ll carry for years to come.
Here’s a list of Hobby Books
Here are some Maker Space ideas
Find 100 Day of School books here.
| Need to do some fundraising for your library? Here are some posts on my blog which describe my fundraising camps. |
Author Birthdays
| Date | Author | Notable Works |
| Jan 2 | Isaac Asimov | I, Robot, Foundation |
| Jan 12 | Jack London | Call of the Wild, White Fang |
| Jan 17 | Anne Brontë | Agnes Grey, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall |
| Jan 18 | A.A. Milne | Winnie-the-Pooh |
| Jan 19 | Edgar Allan Poe | The Tell-Tale Heart, The Raven |
| Jan 25 | Virginia Woolf | Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse |
| Jan 27 | Lewis Carroll | Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland |
Recent Adult Book Reviews
Spotlight – The Search for the Shadow Cat – fantasy
Recent YA Book Reviews
YA Spotlight – Sons of Day and Night – young adult fantasy
YA Review – Battle of Lion Rock – young adult dystopian
Recent MS Book Reviews
MS Spotlight – Book of Four Journeys – middle school fantasy
Recent Kid Book Reviews
Kid Review – Gus Gets Badgered – picture book
Kid Review – Mommy is Here! – picture book
Kid Review – Abigail and the Waterfall – picture book
Kid Review – When I Feel Lonely – picture book
Items in my Shop
Cute animals with books – stickers, shirts and more in my Redbubble Shop
What I’m Checking Out
1. DIY.org – The Learning Community for Kids
A kid-safe online community where children can explore hundreds of skills—from animation to cooking to woodworking—through guided projects. Perfect for connecting hobbies with digital creativity.
2. Instructables
A treasure trove of user-created tutorials on crafts, technology, cooking, and more. Great for older students exploring STEM or maker hobbies.
3. Smithsonian Learning Lab
Offers free collections and lessons from the Smithsonian’s museums. Search topics like art, inventions, or hobbies to find projects that connect with classroom or library themes.
4. National Day Calendar – January
A fun way to discover quirky observances (like Puzzle Day or Hot Tea Day) that can inspire hobby-themed mini displays or activities.
5. Activity Village
Filled with craft ideas, printables, and themed projects for younger students. Great for simple, ready-to-go activities tied to different hobbies or monthly themes.
6. HowStuffWorks
Accessible articles and videos explaining how everyday things work—perfect for curious students who love science, building, or tinkering hobbies.
7. Common Sense Education – Maker Resources
Curated resources and toolkits to help educators (and librarians!) start or grow a makerspace. Focuses on creativity, exploration, and hands-on learning.
Some things that might interest you
📚 Tools for School Librarians 📚
As librarians, we’re always looking for creative ways to engage students and enhance programming. These tools are easy to use. Explore them today and see how they might fit into your toolkit. These were created by a friend of mine and have great potential for helping you in your library programing.
Create How to Draw books for your students using the prompts found in this package.
Create characters for your decor using theses GPTs – Coupon code is gpt10 to save $10 off until January 12
Authors and librarians, would you like to have a post on this blog?
I’d like to add a couple of features to my blog in the coming months and I’d like your help. I am looking for school librarians interested in being interviewed on the blog. I am also looking for librarians and children’s or young adult authors to do guest posts on the blog. Click on the links below to fill out a survey.
Is there a way I can help you? Drop a note in the comments or shoot me an email, I’d love to help.
See you next week.
Jane (Library Lady)
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