Yolo County, CA

05/19/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/19/2022 12:08

Yolo County Library’s Summer Reading Program Starts June 1

Press Release (PDF)

For Immediate Release

John Fout
Public Information Officer
[email protected]

(Woodland, CA) - Join Yolo County Library's annual Summer Reading Program from June 1 to August 15. Children, teens, and adults can participate by logging reading, earning prizes, and enjoying summer camp-style programs and activities, complementing this year's theme, Read Beyond the Beaten Path.

All participants who register for the program at: https://yolocountylibrary.org/summer will receive a free book and welcome bag; everyone who completes their summer reading challenge by earning 1,000 points will receive a free book and prize, plus an entry into a final drawing for additional prizes.

This year's theme, Read Beyond the Beaten Path, evokes summer camp vibes, and the summer reading challenge activities relate to typical camp events, like arts and crafts, campfire, "flat on bunk" (quiet time), science and nature, and sports and recreation. In-person indoor and outdoor activities will be offered at many Yolo County Library branches, and all branches will provide take-and-make kits for all ages. Content changes monthly, and kits will be available while supplies last.

Participants aged 0-5 will also receive an activity booklet designed to engage young learners in fun pre-literacy activities, and thanks to a grant from the Davis Sunrise Rotary Club, ages 6-12 will get a Summer Badge Book filled with reading prompts, enhancement activities, and stickers to log their reading. The program has even more rewards; every week, participants will be entered into a drawing for a $10.00 gift card, courtesy of Nugget Markets, Raley's, and Target.

Everyone who joins the Summer Reading Program is encouraged to participate digitally through the Beanstack platform on the web or via the app. They can track the books they have read, log reading hours and books, earn badges and prizes, and discover great books. Parents or caregivers can sign up and quickly log their own and their children's reading under one primary account. Instructions are available on the Library's website.

While Yolo County Library has been fine-free since April 2021, participants who still have old overdue fines on their account can select to have up to $10 in fines removed from their account in place of their finisher prize. Books and prizes can be picked up in person at any Yolo County Library branch. Prizes are available until September 30 or while supplies last.

Research indicates that summer reading programs help children and teens retain and enhance their reading skills over the summer, provide a haven for community readers, and develop reading enthusiasm. Additionally, adult participation encourages caregivers to play a strong role in their child's literacy development by reading aloud with their child and modeling good reading behavior. Kids read more and enjoy reading more when they can choose what they read.

As beloved poet and author Maya Angelou noted, "Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him." Yolo County Library joins libraries across the nation to encourage adults, youth, and families to read over the summer. The Summer Reading Program is a project of the California Library Association and part of California's statewide summer reading outcomes.

The Summer Reading Program is free and sponsored by the Yolo County Library Foundation and the various Friends of the Library groups. For more information or to sign up, visit your local Yolo County Library branch or online https://yolocountylibrary.org/summer. Connect with Yolo County Library on Facebook at www.facebook.com/yolocountylibrary.org and Instagram at @yolocountylibrary.

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