Bad Mothers

The people that cause the most trouble in storytime are often not the little squirming children but the mothers. Some treat storytime not as a concert hall but as an open air performance where they can chat and socialize all they want.

The mothers don't seem to realize that there is a librarian/performer who spent time preparing the material they are presenting and is working extra hard to get the children's attention and doesn't need further distractions.

I heard a story of one mother who brought her cell phone into the storytime, left it on and when it rang she picked it up and began talking loudly in it. Other mothers disrupt storytime by letting their kids roam free, scream loudly and pull the cord out from the CD player.

I am blessed with good mothers (for the most part) in my storytimes but I hear tales of terror from other librarians. The trend seems to be that the more upper-class neighborhood the library resides in, the worse the mothers are. Maybe because these mothers are blessed with more amenities in life they are less appreciative for free public services.