Mainly clear. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 49F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Mainly clear. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 49F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph.

As summer approaches, local libraries are preparing for their summer reading programs.

Pictured is one of the goodie bags the LeRoy Community Library is handing out to kids.

Pictured are the reading logs being used for the Cadillac Wexford Public Library’s summer reading program this year.

As summer approaches, local libraries are preparing for their summer reading programs.

Pictured is one of the goodie bags the LeRoy Community Library is handing out to kids.

Pictured are the reading logs being used for the Cadillac Wexford Public Library’s summer reading program this year.

CADILLAC — Schools may be letting out, but that doesn’t mean the kids need to stop reading.

Here’s a look at what local libraries are doing with this year’s summer reading program theme, Ocean of Possibilities.

At the Cadillac Wexford Public Library, Program Coordinator Emily Thompson said they are working with libraries in Mesick, Manton, Buckley and Tustin to bring the summer reading program to kids across the county.

For their program, starting on Saturday, June 11, Thompson said they will have reading boards for kids of different ages. Each board will have a series of different activities, including reading. For every five activities completed, Thompson said the kids will receive one free book, with the chance to win up to four. Upon completing the board, she said the kids will be entered into the grand prize.

For teens in grades fifth through 10th, Thompson said they can complete four boards to be entered into the grand prize drawing and two extra credit boards for the chance at more prizes. For adults, she said they will turn in a ticket for every book they read or listen to. Each ticket will enter the participant into a bi-weekly prize drawing for local businesses. The program will conclude on Saturday, August 13.

More information can be found on the library’s website.

This year, Thompson said they are starting a new program called adult genre bags. Every month this summer (June, July and August), Thompson said adults can fill out a form to receive a personalized bag full of books and other goodies. Thompson said this is based on a similar yearly program done for teens.

For kids of all ages, Thompson said they will have events in Cadillac on June 11, June 25, July 2, July 9, August 6 and August 13. Mesick library will have events on June 11, July 9 and August 13, and Manton’s events will take place on June 11, July 16 and August 13. All these events will consist of different activities and themes associated with the ocean.

For teens, Thompson said they have events revolving around the science fiction and fantasy theme throughout the summer. One of the new things coming this year is a movie in the park night, where Thompson said they will be showing Harry Potter. For adults, she said they will have an art night on June 17 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the library.

With the program, Thompson said it provides people with an escape and encourages them to continue reading during the summer.

“It’s a fun time to kind of celebrate our love of reading,” Thompson said.

Down at the LeRoy Community Library, Director Laura Jacobson-Pentces said they’ve started something new in association with their program.

Thanks to grants from the Mid-Michigan Library League and the Library of Michigan, Jacobson-Pentces said they’ve been handing out goodie bags with two library books, one book they can keep, a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) activity, and other small trinkets.

“I think right now we’re at 165 (bags handed out),” Jacobson-Pentces said. “We’ll end up at 175. I think we may end up at 190 for all I know.”

Due to the library’s small staff and limited hours, Jacobson-Pentces said the bags are meant to help them reach families who can’t always make it to the library.

“We’re trying to reach families and kids that have a hard time coming to the library when the library is open,” Jacobson-Pentces said.

After students at Pine River Schools and their parents filled out some forms, Jacobson-Pentces said they created the bags individually for each student. Based on what genres the students said they were interested in, she said they choose books that would match the student’s interests.

Having seen some students struggle to progress in their reading due to the pandemic, Jacobson-Pentces said they picked books that would match the kids reading levels. She also said they picked one book to challenge the kids.

“What we’re hoping is that we see a lot of these kids again in July, and the end of June, coming to get their second bag because they liked the first one and continue reading this summer,” Jacobson-Pentces said.

With these bags in hand, the kids will have plenty of reading material for the start of LeRoy’s summer reading program on Monday, June 20. With their program, Jacobson-Pentces said the kids will give themselves reading goals. These could be reading a certain number of books or reading for a certain amount of time.

After the program on Saturday, July 30, Jacobson-Pentces said the kids will turn in their log books to receive their rewards. Registration for the program can be done online or in person.

As far as events, Jacobson-Pentces said they will have four STEAM Saturday events. All these events will take place from 10 to 11 a.m. at the LeRoy Community Pavilion.

Jacobson-Pentces said the first event will be on June 25. On this day, she said the kids will make slime, oobleck and moon sand.

“That’s going to be our messy science day,” Jacobson-Pentces said.

On July 16, Jacobson-Pentces said they will make and launch bottle rockets. With these rockets, she said they will alter their shape to see how it affects the trajectory of the rocket. Jacobson-Pentces also said they will make airplanes using pool noodles.

On July 23, she said they’ll have a tie-dye activity, with the library providing all the supplies.

The program will wrap up on July 30, with a surprise activity for the kids.

With her background in STEAM, Jacobson-Pentces said the library wants to give the kids a chance to do hands-on activities and experiment with things.

“I think that those are all really cool things for kids to have the opportunity to do,” Jacobson-Pentces said.

As they prepare for the start of their program, Jacobson-Pentces said she is really looking forward to seeing the kids visit the library and participate in the hands-on activities.

“I just like to see kids coming in and out of the library all summer because that’s what we’re here for,” she said. “And it’s good to see us busy and having little ones in the library and excited about books.”

At the Missaukee Ardis District Library, Director Laura Marion said their program will start on July 7 with a kickoff event. Every Thursday in July, she said they will have an event starting at 10:30 a.m.

With their first event on July 7, Marion said they’ll have Gary Knapp, an ocean explorer from Cadillac, come in to talk to the kids.

“He’s going to do a quick presentation about exploring the oceans and animals,” Marion said. “And then we’ll have some activities after that.”

Marion said Knapp will bring in his scuba diving gear for the kids to see. Afterward, she said they’ll have fish printing and a shell touching galley.

Marion said they also might have a storyteller and other activities for the younger kids.

On July 14, Marion said Jerri Mathews, a storyteller, will come in with stories with the kids. Afterward, she said they’ll have some water-themed activities.

“This is all about water,” Marion said. “We have watercolor art. We have some water beads with animals and a duck matching program. We’ll have some art like making ocean waves.”

In addition to those activities, Marion said they are partnering with the Missaukee County Farm Bureau, Conservation District, and 4-H Program. She said these organizations will have some activities for the older kids, including water bracelets and an enviroscape activity.

On July 21, Marion said they are having a beach day at the library. Once again, she said they’ll have a storyteller and activities from the Conservation District and 4-H Program.

“They’re going to go fishing,” Marion said. “They’re going to teach kids how to cast and how to use a fishing pole and all that kind of stuff.”

Along with those activities, Marion said they’ll have tilt art and sand with shells.

Wrapping up on July 28, Marion said their final event will be all about pirates.

“For that one, I think we have some different pirate games and activities that we’re going to pull up from the basement and get a couple of new ones,” Marion said. “It’ll be fun.”

Marion said they’ll also have waffle cones to celebrate their time together.

Over at the McBain Community Library, Director Diane Eisenga said they are starting their program on Tuesday, June 14, at 10:30 a.m at the library. On this day, Eisenga said they will have Japanese fish printing through the Missaukee County Conservation District.

Along with the program, Eisenga said they will hand out reading logs for the library’s reading contest. From June 14 to July 26, she said the kids’ ages preschool to sixth grade will need to keep track of their reading time.

“The top reader in each grade will receive a gift certificate from Horizon Books,” Eisenga said. “Our goal is to encourage reading throughout the summer and to keep families coming to the library.”

In addition to the contest, Eisenga said the kids who come out to the events throughout the summer will have the chance at additional prizes. Those kids who come out for the most events will have the first opportunity to draw for prizes.

“We have the kids sign in on the days they attend programs and their name goes in a drawing for prizes at our Reading Program Finale,” Eisenga said.

“The ones that attended the most, they get first chance at prizes, and then we kind of go down from there.”

On the following Tuesday, June 21, Eisenga said they’ll have live animals and a program discussing how to protect them.

Eisenga said the library will have more water-themed events and activities, including a rainbow fish craft on June 23, water-themed stations on June 28, and a water journey activity on July 12.

On Tuesday, July 19, she said the library will host magician Joel Tracy, who will perform magic related to this year’s program theme. The following day on Wednesday, July 20, puppeteer Alex Thomas will come in to entertain the kids.

On Tuesday, July 26, McBain will wrap its program with ice cream brought in by the Missaukee County Farm Bureau. She also said they’ll be awarding the winners of the reading contest and having the prize drawing.

Marion Public Library’s program will start on Wednesday, July 6. Director Sarah Genereaux-Maddox said they will hold a kickoff event at 4 p.m. at the library.

At the event, Genereaux-Maddox said they will hand out reading logs for the kids the fill out as they read.

She said there will also be a presentation by Dynamic Schools Assemblies about protecting the ecosystem with live animals.

On Monday, June 20, Genereaux-Maddox said they will have a bubble-themed storytime at 4 p.m. for kids ages one to six years old.

Genereaux-Maddox said more events are in the works and will be posted on the library’s website and social media pages.

For their finale on Monday, August 1, at 3 p.m., Genereaux-Maddox said they will have different activities for the kids. At the finale, she said they will hand out rewards to the top readers.

With the program and events, Genereaux-Maddox said it’s a great way to get the community together.

“It’s a lot about community and coming together,” Genereaux-Maddox said. “Especially in rural areas, it’s hard to kind of get together so it provides the opportunity for people to get together and share their thoughts.”

At Reed City Area District Library, Assistant Library Director Jennifer Thorson said their program was funded through a grant by the Osceola County Community Foundation. She said their program will start on Saturday, June 18, with a kickoff event from noon to 2 p.m. At 1 p.m., she said Drummunity, a music group, will lead a drum circle for the kids.

At the event, she said the kids will receive bags with a program schedule, instructions, and a bookmark. While the program begins on the 18th, Thorson said people may sign up at any time. With each bookmark, Thorson said there are three sections. To earn a prize, Thorson said participants need to read three books per section, for a total of three potential prizes. More information can be found on the library’s website.

Throughout the summer, Thorson said the library will have different events for the program, including a magic show on July 11, a historical portrayal of Titanic survivor Violet Jessop by Leslie Goddard on July 22, and a discussion on shipwrecks by local author Ross Richardson on July 26.

Various craft programs and Friday movie showings will also be held at the library throughout the summer. On the week of July 4, Thorson said they will set up an escape room at the library. Registration will be required for the craft and escape room activities.

Thorson said their program will wrap up on Friday, August 5, with one final event at 8 p.m. She said kids will have the chance to play different outdoor games and watch a movie. Grand prizes will also be handed out at the finale.

With their program, Thorson said they hope to fill the gap between the end of the school year and the start of the next one.

“Kids lose so much during the summer when they’re not in schools,” Thorson said.

“And so, for those families whose kids need that gap filled, this gives them a way to fill it and keep reading throughout the summer,”

At the Evart Public Library, Director Lilas Vanscoyoc said their program has begun. Anytime between now and the end of the month, Vanscoyoc said kids can come in and grab a log to record their reading times.

“We have you reading 20 minutes a day,” Vanscoyoc said. “And we have gifts that we are giving out every week.”

Upon signing up, Vanscoyoc said kids will also receive a goodie bag filled with a coloring page and some small trinkets.

On Wednesdays between 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., Vanscoyoc said they’ll have a story time, where someone reads to the kids. She said kids can count this toward their reading log.

On Tuesday, June 28, Vanscoyoc said the library is hosting its main event at the Riverside Park Pavilion, starting at 10:30 a.m. At the event, she said they will have Todd Avery as Toddy the Turtle read stories to the kids.

In addition to the storytelling, Vascoyoc said they’ll also have an interactive program for the kids.

With their summer reading program under way, Vascoyoc said they hope it gets the kids more interested in reading.

“It gives your younger kids an introduction to books with your fantasy lands and your information,” Vascoyoc said.

“So, if you read to your kids when they’re young, they tend to be a reader as they grow older.”

At Luther Area Public Library, Program Coordinator Theresa Laughlin said they are incorporating art, movies and other activities into their program this year.

“We’re trying to explore other activities for the children that do struggle or don’t like to read, so they do not feel left out,” Laughlin said.

With their program set to start on Wednesday, July 6, Laughlin said online and in person sign-ups are currently available. On the official start date, she said the library will hold a kickoff at 2 p.m.

At the kickoff, Laughlin said they will hand out folders, which will include different activities and reading challenges. Each week, she said the kids will turn in their folders detailing their progress for the week.

To even out the playing field, Laughlin said the kids will be awarded points for reading, doing arts and crafts, watching a movie at the library and other activities. Once they turn in one folder, she said they’ll receive another one, with new activities and challenges.

“Each week is focused on a different theme,” Laughlin said. “So we have a pirate theme, ocean theme, mermaid theme.”

By accumulating points, Laughlin said the kids will also be working together toward a group goal of 10,000 points.

Along with the program kickoff, Laughlin said Aaron Myers from the Michigan State University Extension will come in to talk to the kids about their scavenger hunt activity.

On Monday, July 25, at 2 p.m., Laughlin said they are having magician Joel Tacey come in for a magic show. On Friday, July 29, she said they will go out to Mill Pond Park to clean up the park.

Every Wednesday at 2 p.m., Laughlin said they will show a movie, which will count towards the summer reading program. Also, she said kids can come into the library for their Read and Eat activity. Arts and crafts will be available anytime and count toward the program.

Laughlin said more events are in the works.

The program will wrap up on Saturday, August 13, with the library’s big community event. At the event, Laughlin said they will have a DJ, photographer and other activities. A grand prize drawing will also be held.

With this final event, Laughlin said they want to honor the kids for participating in the program and accumulating points.

“I feel it’s important because, in life, even the simplest things sometimes need to be recognized,” Laughlin said.

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