If you plan a visit to the library today, check out the games as well as the books.

It’s National Gaming Day at public libraries all over the country. The even, devised by the American Libraries Association, is intended to recognize that games can be more than entertainment; they foster critical thinking and help sharpen one’s reading skills.

Participating libraries will sponsor live competitions online with other institutions and have board games going as well, all the better to show that the traditional repositories for books can house other learning experiences, too.

“Popular video games … are immediately engaging and make (kids) work hard to succeed and ‘level up,’” the ALA explains on its website. “While playing these games, kids are constantly developing new strategies, predicting possible outcomes, managing multiple resources, reading and deciphering maps, tracking complex statistics, and adapting to increasingly difficult levels within the game.”

And they might learn a thing or two about history. The game “Assassin’s Creed II,” set in Italy during the Renaissance has players meet up with a young Leonardo da Vinci who provides tools and gadgets to help them reach their quest.

Game scriptwriter Corey May said his staff worked with a historian to ensure Da Vinci’s representation was as accurate as possible.

Some libraries in St. Louis County and Metro East that are not listed on the National Gaming Day website also have events today, so call your local library first to be sure. No events are scheduled in the city of St. Louis.