NORTHFIELD — For the 35 or so children who spent Saturday afternoon at Northfield Elementary, the day wasn’t anything like school.
The Dickinson Memorial Library hosted an old school video game competition where those enrolled in the library’s summer program could come and play video games against each other.
Matt Atwood, the programming librarian, said that it’s a way to shift perspective on video games.
“Video games don’t have to be something you do by yourself,” he said.
Atwood said the library can function as the “third space” — the first and second being home and school for children. He is careful to call it the summer library program, not the reading program. They do activities besides reading and the library has more than books.
“One of our goals is to be a community space for people,” he said.
Those families that attended said the event was an example of the great work Atwood does for the children. Cheryl George and Breinn Robert, who both brought their children to the event, said it’s nice that there’s activities for the kids to do inside when it’s too hot outside, and that Atwood understands that kids don’t always want to read.
“He meets the kids where they are,” Robert said.
About 35 children attended the event at the Northfield Elementary School’s gymnasium. It was hosted by the Dickinson Memorial Library. The event was free and ran from 1 to 3 p.m. The games were various older consoles like Nintendo and Sega Genesis, and newer ones like Xbox and Wii brought in by R-Cade Entertainment.
Laura DiLuzio, a Bernardston resident who brought her daughter, niece and nephew to the event, said that while her daughter isn’t too interested in video games, they like to attend as many library events. The only drawback?
“I wish there were more girls here and I’m appreciative of the parents who brought their daughters,” she said.
For DiLuzio, it was a great opportunity to bring her family together and keep them entertained.
“They are providing an opportunity to socialize instead of playing at home,” she said.