By Joyce Coronel
As temperatures continue to climb and the final day of the school year rapidly approaches, the daunting question looms: What to do with the kids all summer? Turns out your local library has a helpful solution to such summertime dilemmas. Both the Tempe Public Library and Chandler’s Sunset Library offer summer reading programs that make reading fun — and rewarding. Children log their reading achievements by pages read or minutes spent reading in order to earn prizes. Phyllis Saunders of the Sunset branch library said it’s crucial for children to read because that’s the best way for them to learn. “The idea for the reading program is to make it fun and exciting for kids to read all summer long” so that they enjoy themselves and want to return to the library, Saunders said. The fun at the Sunset branch kicks off in June with the theme “Every Hero Has a Story,” featuring a five-week super-hero summer camp. Participants will make super-hero costumes, learn about their super powers and several other activities that illustrate the let’s-be-a-hero theme. “Every hero has a story and that doesn’t just mean Batman and Superman,” Saunders said. “It’s all the heroes in our community: the police department, the fire department, our teachers and our nurses.” The summer reading program kicks off June 1 at the Tempe Public Library with a party that will feature face painting and a photo booth for snapping pictures with props on loan from the library. “Arizona Rick, the Magical Balloon-Making Cowboy,” will tell stories, play games and perform magic tricks. “He’s really good,” said Sherry Warren, manager of the library. Kids read 20 pages to earn one point and earn a coupon for Chipotle Mexican Grill once they’ve accumulated 250 points. At 500 points, they receive a free book. And, just as at Chandler’s Sunset Library, if they’re too young to read on their own, parents can read to them. Warren said the idea is to encourage adults to do some reading of their own, too, so there’s a reading program just for them. “Reading together as family—that’s huge,” Warren emphasized. “The adults do the same thing. They access the site, put in how many minutes they’ve read to get a free book, and they get coupons. It’s just a fun thing for every age group,” Warren said. So what’s the best way to get kids to cut down on screen time and encourage them to read more? Both Saunders and Warren offered words of advice. ““I would say that the best way to get your kids to read is to give them something they’re going to love to read,” Saunders said. “If we make reading a chore, no one wants to do that. Go to your local library and say to your librarian, ‘Give me ideas, what will be fun for my child to read?’ We can book the book in your child’s hands that they’re going to love. And that’s the key. No one wants to read something boring.” Warren offered a similar take. “I think that during the summer children should read whatever they want to and that parents should give them some leeway. “So they take one hard book and five easier books — that way, they keep the wonder of reading alive,” Warren said. Children who read over the long days and nights of summer have an easier time of it when the new school year begins. “We found that if they read over the summer they are more able to go right into the next grade without having to back swim to try to catch up again,” Warren said. Saunders added that children who observe their parents practicing what they preach are more likely to engage in reading. “We want to see the whole family reading together because that’s how you’re showing your kids that reading is fun,” Saunders said.
For more information . . . Tempe Public Library,
Tempe.gov/library, 480-350-5500; Sunset Library,
chandlerlibrary.org, 480-782-2800
