2012 Summer Reading Program: Dream Big — Own the Night — READ!
For kids ages 3-16. May 30 – July 25, 2012.
For details and links to forms, see the May 2, 2012, post on the HOME page.
2011 Summer Reading Program: Explore the World! READ!
For kids ages 3-16. June 1 – August 3, 2011.
Things for all to read and do EVERY DAY the library is open from June 1 through August 3. Library summer hours are Tues. 3-8 p.m., Wed. & Thurs. 1-8 p.m., Sat. 9- noon.
Family or individual library card needed to borrow library materials. Participants are eligible for temporary cards (no fee for non-village residents). Registration form, reading contract, and other information available at the library and online at 2011 Summer Reading Packet. Please return completed forms to the Valparaiso Public Library by June 1.
Our thanks to the Valparaiso Lions Club for funding this year’s program, to the Village of Valparaiso for hosting the Wednesday outdoor events in the park, to Harry’s Restaurant for hosting the Wednesday indoor events in their dining room, and to the many adult and teen volunteers!
Participants will receive completed crafts to take home, certificates for coming to the library and special events, weekly prizes for turning in their reading reports, and certificates and prizes at the end of the program for completing summer reading contracts. Teens also may earn school credit for volunteering.
EXTRA-special events every Wednesday, 1-3 p.m:
Teens and Parents, please volunteer to help with the special Wednesday events. We need you to lead and supervise the games (in the park in good weather, inside if it rains) and help with the crafts. Participants and volunteers, please wear appropriate clothing for outdoor activities; you may get wet or dirty.
Special Wednesday Programs include:
• June 1 – China. Chinese games and crafts – origami, finger puppet, paper crafts. Led by Jeanne Andelt, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• June 8 – Kenya. Kenyan games and Kenyan crafts. Cowry shell jewelry, Kenyan animal masks. Led by Floyd Maresh, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision. • June 15 – Australia. Australian games and crafts. Sand paper cave drawings, hand print, platypus puppet, koala fold, kangaroo, didgeridoo. Led by Cindy Ecoff, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision. (If possible, bring a long cardboard tube, as from wrapping paper.)
• June 22 – Native America. Native American games and crafts. Sand painting, dream catcher, war shield. Led by Esther Ryan, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• June 29 – Germany. German games and crafts. Crafty critters, wolf puppet, folk hat. Led by Kim Turnwall, with German music by Dottie Sladky and with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• July 6 – Mexico. Mexican games and crafts. Paper flowers, Huichol gods’ eyes. Led by Cindy Ecoff, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• July 13 – Poland/Czechoslovakia. Polish and Czech games and crafts. Czech cornhusk witch or animal or doll, Polish paper cuts. Led by Czech Chapter Queen, with Czech music by Dottie Sladky and with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• July 20 – Indonesia/Madagascar. Indonesian/Madagascaran games and crafts. Batik wall hanging, kite. Led by Esther Ryan, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• July 27 – Hawaii. Hawaiian games and crafts. Shell crafts, Lei, paper snake and coconut tree. Led by Danielle Holley, with librarians’ and volunteers’ supervision.
• August 3 – Our Home Town. Party/Cookout/water play with sprinklers, hoses, water balloons, bubble making. Participants receive certificates and final prizes. Led by Library Staff, with volunteers’ supervision.
Library staff may gather photos, videos, and other recordings from public programs, events, and library spaces, and these images may appear on the library’s website or in its print materials. To ensure privacy, images will not be identified with names or personal identifying information without written approval from the photographed subject and/or the subject’s parent or legal guardian.
The 2010 Summer Reading Program, MAKE A SPLASH! READ!, was a HUGE Success!
80 kids signed up, 70 participated often, and 56 fully completed their summer reading contracts. The program ran from June 2 through August 7 and offered 2-hour special events every Wednesday from 1 to 3, as well as quieter activities during all other library hours. Thanks to participation and active help from our Teen Volunteers, daycare staff members, and parents, the program was a great success.
Here’s what happened on Wednesdays:
• June 2, Splash Up the Library with Color. Everyone made chalk drawings on the outside of the building and on the sidewalk to illustrate this summer’s “Make a Splash! Read!” theme. Led by Alex Schon, with librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ supervision.
• June 9, Make a Splash with Water Crafts. Crafts included tie-dye t-shirts; finger paint; water color paint; face painting; and SLIME. Led by Alex Schon and Frances Holley and Amanda Jorneke, with librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ supervision, in the park across the street from the library.
• June 16, Water, Wind, and Sky – Nebraska Weather. Experiments, information, crafts. Led by Nebraska Climatologist Al Dutcher, with librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ supervision. Hosted in the dining room at Harry’s (THANK YOU, Andelt family!), next door to the library.
• June 23, Make a Musical Splash. Musical activities and crafts. Kids made shakers, drums, and bottle instruments. Led by musician Jim King, with librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ supervision. Hosted in the dining room at Harry’s (THANK YOU, Andelt family!), next door to the library.
• June 30, Learn to Fish. Advance sign-up and permission were required. Parent volunteers provided transportation to and from Wildwood Lake. Led by Game & Parks’ Andrea Faas, with librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ supervision.
• July 7, Fire and Water. Everyone learned how our Volunteer Fire Department works, explored the fire house, fire trucks, and equipment, and had fun with water play. Led by Fire Chief Dallas Fletcher, with librarians’ and teen volunteers’ supervision.
• July 14, How Do Our Water Works Work? Village expert Greg Bouc led a tour of the local water facilities to answer questions like, What’s down there in the sewer? Where does our water come from? Kids also got to play in water from the hydrants and ride in the Village’s ‘Lil Chugger.
• July 21, Water, Earth, and Us – Nebraska Water. We learnedabout the water cycle, ecology, and water testing. Kids played games and made a water cycle bracelet. Led by Youth Educator, Lower Platte South NRD, with librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ supervision. Hosted in the dining room at Harry’s (THANK YOU, Andelt family!), next door to the library.
• July 28, Jump in with Reptiles AND Make a Splash in the Creek. Raymond Elementary School Teacher Jaye Crouse brought a reptile zoo to the library to teach everyone about reptiles. Then she led an ecology tour to answer the question, ” What’s in our local creek?” Librarians’, parents’, and teen volunteers’ helped supervise.
• Aug. 4, Make a Splash in the Park. We celebrated with a party/Cookout/water play with sprinklers, hoses, wading pools, water slides, water balloons, and water games. Led by Harriet Gould and Maria Cadwallader, with parents’ and teen volunteers’ supervision.
Click on the link to see the 2010 infomation/registration packet: summer reading 2010 packet