Tales of Africa with sneaky spiders, conversing leopards and foreign people swirl in their minds as their eyes are locked on the illustrations of each book. It's story time at the Museum of Peoples and Cultures.

The tales come to life every Thursday at 10:30 a.m. when children and their parents listen to stories that are themed each week on different countries.

The museum started story time last fall when it wanted to implement children's programming as part of the museum.

"We pull in elements from the things on exhibit," said Kari Nelson, curator of education at the museum. "The stories are fun, and many of the stories are about children from different countries, which is interesting for the children listening. We thought this was a good idea because story times are always so popular at libraries."

Nelson said similarities between all countries can be found through reading these books, making it an educational experience.

Mark Porter is a BYU student and volunteer reader for story time each week. He learned about this volunteer opportunity from a flier on a door of the McKay building.

"When you enter BYU's campus, the sign reads 'Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve' and I believe that while you are here, if you only focus on yourself and your studies the entire time, you won't serve when you leave BYU," Porter said. "I like the looks on the children's faces and that reading can still captivate people. With all of the electronics and other distractions, stories still captivate. I love it."

As he read the stories he would ask questions about the book, and even the younger children with limited vocabularies would answer. They followed along with the stories and were enthralled with the illustrations.

Jenny Brooks from Provo brings her two children, Isabella and Matthias, to story time every week.

"We like the museum and stories," Brooks said. "My children enjoy telling stories with the petroglyphs afterward and playing with the music as they push the buttons. There is a craft after the stories sometimes, which is fun for them as well."

Karen Stavast from Provo, the museum director's wife, brought her preschool group to the museum on a field trip. The children walked in and sat in a row, immediately drawn into the tales of Africa.

"They like the stories and it's just really fun," Stavast said.

The museum is located at 700 N. 100 East, Provo.

Copyright Brigham Young University 7 Mar 2008