Join today! We are all working towards the same goal:
We want to read 3000 books this Summer!
June 1st - August 31st
We want to read 3000 books this Summer!
June 1st - August 31st
How it works:
- Sign up at the library or CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP ONLINE.
- READ! and keep track of how many books you finish - tracking cards are available at the library.
- What counts as a finished book? Short books, long books, audiobooks, books read to you (this one is for you caregivers!), and most importantly, if you read the same book more than once, it counts every single time! (this one is also for you caregivers whose children are asking to read the same book you just read!)
- Forgot your count? No worries, estimates are ok... Do. Not. Stress. Out. This is meant to be fun.
- Bring your Reading Tracking Card back to the library every time you visit the library so we can add your count to the overall progress.
- CHILDREN UNDER 12 will receive One Library Buck for every tracking card they bring back (regardless of how many books are on it!). Library Bucks can be used to “buy” fun stuff from our Summer Reading Store like books and arts and crafts supplies.
- I'm not a child. Can I also join the Summer Reading Club?
- Please do! People of all ages are welcome to join the club. We especially encourage families to join together so kids can see that the older kids and adults in their life read for pleasure too!
- Why is it a good idea for my child/children to read during the summer?
- To prevent the Summer Slide! What is the Summer Slide? It is a decline in reading ability over the summer months when school isn't in session. Reading skills that are learned need to be practiced to ensure ongoing proficiency. Kind of like when you play an instrument - if you were to stop practicing for a couple of months, your skills would decline. So, for children to keep up with their reading skills, experts recommend they read at least 20 minutes a day while on school break.
- I'm only visiting for a week or two. Can I still participate?
- Absolutely! Everyone is welcome in the club and everyone can help us reach our goal. Just think, if you have little children, you're already probably reading a few books a day and you might read one or two also, which might not seem like a lot, but it will make a difference in the end.
- My baby/toddler doesn't read yet. Can they participate?
- Of course! Every time you read a book to your child, they get to hear new words, make connections between the text and the illustrations, emotionally connect with their caregivers, and thus, form positive associations with reading - an important component of building Early Literacy Skills!
- Why don't you give out prizes like other libraries?
- Research suggests that incentivizing something a person previously did on their own, without incentives, can actually cause the desired behavior to decrease. The mere offering of a reward for a behavior may lead the subject to infer that the desired behavior must be unpleasant if they need to be bribed to do it. So, by giving out prizes for reading, not only are we NOT really creating a bunch of new lifelong readers, we could be hurting kids that are already readers! The purpose of our Summer Reading Club is to encourage kids to develop a long-term habit of reading, so we have other ways for kids to "earn prizes" that are not really tied to how many books they are reading.
- How do I get my child/children to read "real books" instead of graphic novels?
- Children won't gain as much from summer reading if they aren't enjoying it, so let them read what they want. Graphic novels are just one way to tell a story. But they can be as demanding, creative, intelligent, compelling, and full of story as any book, especially if they are fostering a love of reading in your child/children!