The lazy, hazy days of summer are here, and it’s a perfect time to relax in the shade with a good book – at the beach, at the park on a blanket, in the back yard, on a dock or wherever. Wilton Library is getting everyone involved in reading this summer with its three reading programs for children, teens and now adults. Registration for all the programs is accessed on the library’s website at www.wiltonlibrary.org through their respective Wandoo Reader registration pages.
The Children’s Library summer reading program kicked off on June 11 with “Imagine Your Story—Summer Library Adventure 2020” for kids in pre-K through sixth grade. Registration is ongoing through Aug. 28. This year is a special focus on reading and providing ideas for fun, educational activities for the whole family. Children will log their reading by keeping track of the minutes engaged with books, eBooks, eAudiobooks, magazines and other online reading. The reading portion of the program will use the Read and Bead reward system similar to last year. Each 20 minutes will equal one bead for a necklace. Surprise prizes will be distributed through the library’s drive-thru window on Godfrey Place after July 1.
Andrea Szabo, Children’s Library manager, said, “We are excited to offer this innovative program for our community! In addition to the reading portion of the program, we will have challenges for children to complete. New challenges will be available every Monday and Thursday, and the kids have all summer to complete them for special beads, brag tags and other small prizes.”
In addition to the reading portion, the Children’s Library staff is planning virtual interactive programs that include animals, crafts, and fun entertainment. Two such programs in June are “Animal Embassy Presents Dwarfs, Giants and Dragons” on Monday, June 22, from 3 to 4 p.m. and “Virtual Cartooning Class with Rick Stromoski” on Tuesday, June 30, from 3 to 4 p.m. Details on these and other children’s programs being offered in July and August can be found on the library’s website at www.wiltonlibrary.org, and click on Children, then Summer Reading in the drop down menu. All of the virtual programs require advance registration so that Zoom links can be emailed prior to each program. Pre-recorded and live story times for the little ones are also part of the summer’s virtual programming. Any questions may be directed to Andrea at aszabo@wiltonlibrary.org.
The teen summer reading program, “A Universe of Stories” begins Monday, June 29 for kids entering grades six through twelve in the fall of 2020 and runs through Aug. 16.
Susan Lauricella, Teen Services and Maker Space manager, said of the teens and tweens program, “It’s really simple. All you need are a good book, and a watch, clock or phone to keep track of the time you spend reading.”
In addition to the reading challenge, numerous virtual programs are planned for teens and tweens to have craft, STEM, college essay writing activities all summer long. Registration for the “A Universe of Stories” program and teen virtual events can be found on the library’s website at www.wiltonlibrary.org, click on Teen and then scroll to Teen Summer Reading on the drop down menu. The program is supported by the John and Pat Curran Teen Fund. Teen summer reading questions may be emailed to Susan at slauricella@wiltonlibrary.org.
Children and teens are not the only ones having fun this summer. This year, “Beach Party Bingo with Books,” is being offered for adults from June 29 through Aug. 16. The premise is to have fun with the “bingo style” card on the library’s website.
Carolyn Benjamin, Technical Services Manager, said of the new program, “We’re encouraging our adults to go outside their comfort zones and pick some suggestions from the bingo card. It’s just a fun way to find entertaining books that might get them outside their usual familiar groove.”
The reader gets one ticket for each book read and entered in their reading log. Posting of reviews on the reading program page also gets readers more tickets. At the end of the summer, two $25 Wilton Chamber gift certificates, courtesy of Fairfield County Bank, will be mailed to two lucky drawing winners. Registration for “Beach Party Bingo with Books” is on the library’s website at www.wiltonlibrary.org, click on Books and scroll to Beach Party Bingo Summer Reading on the drop-down menu. Questions on the adult summer reading program may be sent to Carolyn at cbenjamin@wiltonlibrary.org.
For information and to register for any of the summer reading programs and the virtual programs, please visit www.wiltonlibrary.org.