It’s that time of year again. The sun is high, the days are long, and Cumberland County Library has just rolled out its new Summer Reading Program. Kids and adults across the county have until Aug. 15 to participate in this year’s summer reading theme: All Together Now.

“We use the Collaborative Summer Library Program’s theme each year,” explained Faith Phillips, Director of Cumberland County Public Library. “They are a nonprofit, charitable organization that supports literacy, education, and science through summer reading events in public libraries across the United States.”

This year’s program participants can visit any Cumberland County Library branch to pick up a reading log or download READsquared! for paperless tracking. This year’s program, which began June 1, boasts some great prizes and expanded reading categories. Participants across all ages are reading to win cool tech, free books, toys, and gift cards for businesses around Fayetteville. Also, due to a grant from the state library, this year’s summer reading program will offer some fun enrichment activities and events.

The summer reading program serves three different age categories: children (birth-5th grade), teens (6th-12th) and adults (19+). This year, children and teens have three prize tiers: 5 hours, 10 hours and 20 hours.

To complete this reading challenge, adults must read four books before the Aug. 15 deadline. However, all age groups can choose to read more for a chance to enter into prize drawings.
Post-COVID, participation in the library’s extracurricular offerings, including the summer reading program, has been rising — a trend Phillips hopes continues.

“Participation was back up close to pre-COVID numbers [last year],” Phillips said. “We hope to continue getting the word out about Summer Reading and our programs to more people in the community.”
To fit in with this summer’s theme, the library has several fun activities planned for readers of all ages scheduled for the month of June. Digging in the Dirt, Mission 2 Space, and Bathtub Pirates are just a few of the programs planned. Check the library’s website and calendar for dates, times and full descriptions of each activity.

The summer’s hottest books, like “Spare” by Prince Harry, “My Hero Academia” by Kohei Horikoshi, and “Never Never” by Colleen Hoover, are in top circulation at the library and can also be downloaded to an e-reader or heard as an audio book via Overdrive and the Libby App. For those who prefer their books more digital than analog, this is especially good news since any and all methods of reading count toward trackable hours.

Whether as a solo activity or completed with the whole family, the Summer Reading Program is an excellent opportunity to foster a love of reading from an early age.

The benefits of reading are endless, but they’re especially useful during the summer months when most children are away from school. On average, students can lose up to 34% of the previous year’s learning gains over summer break. Summer reading helps the mind stay active by sparking the imagination, creating discourse and activating critical thinking skills.

To learn more about programs and events, visit the library website at www.cumberlandcountync.gov/departments/library-group/library.