by Rachel Clark, Litchfield Children’s Librarian

The school days are done, the sun is out, and it is time for the Summer Reading Program here at the library! The library offers tons of great presentations, activities, and challenges for any kid who wants to participate. This year’s theme of the Summer Reading Program is Read, Renew, Repeat! Maybe you have the same question that I had when I initially read this theme: what does that mean? If your mind went to the age-old saying “reduce, reuse, recycle,” you are not alone. This year’s theme is very much a reflection of that familiar phrase – just with a literary spin!

Who can participate? Any kid who wants a chance to earn some cool prizes! Any young reader (Pre-K through 18) can register, grab some reading challenges, and earn some Library Loot. Last summer, we started using a money system to help introduce kids to financial literacy. This year, we are bringing it back. Kids complete reading challenges, earn dollars of Library Loot, and then they can choose to spend their money on different kinds of prizes. A little independence at the library goes a long way!

Kid Craft Club is a new program we are doing every Tuesday from 4:00-5:00pm. Kids can bring their creativity to make something awesome. To further promote the idea of our theme, kids are encouraged to use upcycled materials, such as paper towel rolls, toilet paper rolls, paper scraps, and more.

We will continue host our monthly LEGO nights on the second Tuesday of each month from 6:30-7:30pm. Children and parents can come to the library’s meeting room to put together whatever imaginative creations you can invent.

We have awesome speakers and presentations coming in for our 10:00am Friday storytimes this summer too. Get out your planners to mark down all the fun opportunities at the library.

On June 14^th, CLIMB Theatre is coming to perform the play “Country Mouse & City Mouse: Adventures in the Suburbs.” The story starts with the mice cousins taking a new adventure to the suburbs. But while Country Mouse wants to explore, City Mouse wants to relax. The CLIMB group manages to incorporate the Read, Renew, Repeat theme into their production alongside demonstrating empathy skills for the young audience.

The library is very excited to welcome authors David LaRochelle and Mike Wohnoutka on June 21^st. While we can all appreciate the wonderful story that is Moo!, these two have come out with a much more recent book titled Go and Get With Rex that you can check out here at the library. They also have a new story coming out in September that they might talk about, so don’t miss this visit.

For a little local fame, join us on June 28^th for our Watercade Royalty. After reading some stories together and talking about their jobs as the royalty of the community, our crowned guests will join the kids in some creative crafts.

Join us this summer in our endeavors to read, renew, and repeat! We have so much more planned for the month of July, so stay tuned!