Youth encouraged to participate at St. Paul Municipal Library’s summer reading program

The summer reading program, which will run until Aug. 18, returned to the St. Paul Municipal Library on July 6.

ST. PAUL – The summer reading program, which will run until Aug. 18, returned to the St. Paul Municipal Library on July 6. Youth ages 5 to 12 are encouraged to log their reading and win prizes at the library and across the Northern Lights Library System, said Koren Wieting, who travelled from Drayton Valley to serve as this year’s summer reading programmer.

Prizes include books and age-specific baskets of toys, she added. Registration is required at the library website, stpaullibrary.ab.ca, under the programs tab. There is no cost.

"St. Paul didn't have the summer reading program last year, which is why we're so excited to be able to provide it again this year," Wieting said. As part of the program, children's sessions run Monday, Tuesday and Thursday in two age groups: mornings from 10:30 to noon for ages 5 to 7, and afternoons from 2 to 3:30 p.m. for ages 8 to 12. A further block of registered and drop-in programming for ages 7 to 12 runs Wednesdays from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Each 90-minute session is themed around crafts, games and activities in the library's program room, with each offering a new theme.

Parents can simply drop their children off while these sessions are ongoing, Wieting said. Sessions move outdoors when the weather permits. The reading log aspect of the summer reading program itself is open to everyone.

Anyone who records their reading hours with the library can be entered to win a prize. So, "Whether you're in preschool reading to your child or you're 90 years old looking for a good audiobook, all of that counts," she said. The program is “just making reading fun and not a chore," added Wieting.

Programming Beyond the summer reading program, the library also has set a slate of drop-in events that require no registration, such as family story times every Friday. Wieting also reached out to various community groups like the Lakeland Primary Care Network (PCN) and the Alberta Science Network to host events. The Alberta Science Network, for example, held an event on July 14 open to youth ages 5-12.

"Tell your friends. Bring your friends' kids if you can," Wieting said. "The library is fun, so you should come."