WESTFIELD – The Westfield Athenaeum is starting its summer reading program, titled Tails and Tales, June 21.
The Children’s Library kicks off the summer June 22 with Paint our Sidewalk. Using chalk paint, each family will get their own sidewalk square to paint. Start your summer vacation getting creative at 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. This event is for children and their families.
The Athenaeum librarians June 22 will discuss “What is Summer Reading?” at 7:30 p.m. on Facebook Live to kick-off the adult program.
“The theme is Tails and Tales, so we are dividing it up into Air, Land and Sea,” said Public Service Librarian Becky Blackburn. “June is Air, July is Land and August is Sea. The events are loosely thematic within those months.”
On June 24, there will be an online animal trivia event at 6:30 p.m. for families to test their knowledge of the animal kingdom. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place winners.
The “Air” theme continues June 30 with an online presentation by Peter Christoph titled “Birds of the New England Swamp” at 6:30 p.m. The library is incorporating the theme throughout each month and is offering a macrame feather take-home craft for adults.
The summer reading program includes a number of prizes for participants who read at least 1,000 minutes starting June 21. The program ends Aug. 13 with an ice cream social.
“The Friends of the Westfield Athenaeum have been very generous in providing funding for the prizes this year,” said Blackburn. “Adult participants can win gift cards to local businesses and one person will win a Kindle reader.”
Some of the prizes for children include: Summer Fun basket (water gun, frisbee, chalk), Adventure backpack (backpack, binoculars, magnifying glass, book), Toddler Book set, Diary of a Wimpy Kid books 1-8, Melissa & Doug Take-Along Town Play Mat. For teens: amazon and visa gift cards, My hero Academia backpack (stickers, buttons, drawstring backpack), 3 month subscription to MunchPak (delivers to their door international snacks) Grand prize for both (only one winner): Nintendo Switch Bundle: Nintendo Swtich LITE, a game, and a case.
To enter, participants must read and log at least 1,000 minutes.
Sign-ups and tracking is online. Readers can go to westauth.org to sign up through Beanstack.
“Families can do it together to make it easier for tracking,” Blackburn suggested.
Events are hosted each month to encourage children, teens and adults to keep reading. In July, the “Land” events include a Cat People Party online July 8 at 6:30 p.m. that includes a speaker from a local cat rescue, cat trivia and a craft. Dog people will also celebrate their canine friends July 22 at 6:30 p.m., also online.
In August, the “Sea” theme includes a Facebook Live discussion Aug. 3 at 7:30 p.m. on favorite “Beach Reads,” as well as a take-home beach craft.
The program ends with the Aug. 13 ice cream social at the Athenaeum where the raffle will take place and winners of the summer short story and photography contests will be announced.
