You can register your child as soon as they have been born. We often see families register their baby for the Imagination Library before they have even left the hospital, so there is no such thing as registering too early.

‍

Depending on when you register your child, it may take up to eight to twelve weeks for the first book to arrive. After that, the books will come every month. For example, if you registered your child on January 6th and were approved in January, you would receive your first book in March.

Since enrollment requires consent from an authorized adult, no one other than the legal guardian may enroll children. That doesn't mean you can't advocate for the program. You can always provide signup forms or a link to the website to make the process as easy as possible for other parents or guardians.

One key component of the program is that each individual child sees their own name on the books in the mail. That way, every child develops a unique love of reading and will have their own personal library by the time they graduate the program. Therefore, we recommend registering every eligible child in the household individually.

As the local community partner for the Imagination Library, Signal Centers' job is to fundraise to ensure any child, regardless of economic background, has access to high quality, age-appropriate books. While this is an understandable concern, you can rest assured that there are adequate resources for any family, who wants to register their child, to participate in the program.

When planning a move, please contact the Director for the Imagination Library in Hamilton County, Lesa Witt, to update your address in our system.

‍

All books within the program are age appropriate, and selected by early childhood experts. Every child that enrolls receives the same first book, "The Little Engine that Could" and then will begin receiving age-appropriate books the following month.

Tennessee is one of just five states in the United States that offers a complete bilingual collection of books. You can stipulate your language preference when you register your child for the Imagination Library.

‍