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Arts & Entertainment

Library's Summer Reading Program Makes Waves

Young readers completed more than 7,000 books during Huntington Public Library's summer reading program.

Kids spent the summer following frog footprints up the steps of the Huntington Public Library into the children's reading room, hopping to a net-draped corner sanctuary to report what books they'd read and offer some details to earn a prize.

Or not. Some reported virtually, from summer camp, vacation trips or just about anytime they were near a computer and they could log on to record the books they had read.

One mom even reported online from the library while her children played and looked for new books. After watching The Magic Jim Show, with magician Jim Vagias, on Wednesday at the end-of-the-year reading program party for the school-age kids, Joanne Ahern said she loves the online reporting element. "It's much quicker," she said. "Mackenzie and I would read a book in the library and then I'd get online and report it for her while we were still in the library."

Mackenzie, who is entering kindergarten at Washington Primary, and her mom read at least 10 books. Brother James, who is entering fourth grade at Washington, read 21 books. His favorite? "Max Malone Makes a Million," by Charlotte Herman, a story about an 8-year-old entrepreneur's money-making schemes. And even though mom liked reporting online, James said he liked coming to the library to report and then pick out his prizes.

This summer, 822 children registered for the reading program, according to Kristine Casper, youth and parent services coordinator, and they read (and reported on) 7,497 books. Here's the breakdown: 62 teens read 237 books; 560 students in grades 1 to 6 read 4,717 books; and 200 preschoolers read 2,543 books.

The library runs a summer reading program each year, Casper said, and participation keeps growing. "We try to make it a place they can come and enjoy, where they feel comfortable," she said. The online reporting component, now in its fourth year, lets kids record the title and offer some details about the book and has helped those who in the past said they couldn't participate because they were away at camp all summer or on long vacations. "This way they can do it the old-fashioned way or kids can do it from camp," Casper said. "It's flexible and offers them an alternative. And then when they're home they can come in and redeem their prizes."

To keep teens engaged, Casper said the library did things a bit differently this year. Instead of offering a series of small prizes, it used the same funds to instead offer bigger-ticket items -- a Sony eReader, an iPod touch, Nintendo DS, and a Wii. When teens completed a book, they wrote a review and then put their name into a raffle to win a prize. "Because they are big prizes, you really had to read something, and you had to do something for it," she said.

Leslie Kilgour and her son, Oskar, 8 and daughter Carrie, 7, signed up for the program on the last day of school to help ease the transition into summer. "It's fun for them," Kilgour said. "It's tough in the summer to sit down and read and this really helps."

Reading and discussing the books helps her when it's time to enter the information online, she said. "We turn off the TV and talk about it. And once they start reading, they like it." Oskar's favorite was "Diary of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules," from the series by Jeff Kinney. "And," Oskar said, "my favorite prize was the T-shirt and the mini- flashlight."

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