Events
Read On! End of Summer Reading
Our Summer Reading Program is coming to a close this week. I did better on my Adult Summer Reading Bingo sheet this year than I did last year. I just missed a complete blackout, but I’m proud of the Bingos I earned. I will sheepishly admit that I didn’t attend enough Adult Summer Reading events to cross off both of those squares.
Overall, I had a great time working my way through the Bingo sheet and my kids enjoyed putting stickers on their sheets for every 30 minutes they read or listened to a book. One of the nice outcomes from the whole family participating in our Summer Reading Program was that my kids and I encouraged each other to accomplish the goals the program gave us.
You still have time to get your entries into our grand prize drawings and kids and teens still have time to claim their free books. Everything is due by 5:00 PM on Thursday, August 1st, right before our much anticipated Library Festival.
If you can make it to the library on Thursday, you won’t regret it. Our Library Festival will be an excellent event for the whole family from 6 – 8 PM. We’ll have food trucks, games, activities, prizes, and more! We’re even partnering with other City departments so everyone can explore our various emergency vehicles and the big trucks and equipment that keep our city running.
We’re also officially launching our new logo at the Library Festival, so be sure to look for the temporary tattoos and stickers featuring the new design. We’re beyond excited to finally start using this logo!
Don’t miss our Summer Reading Events this week!
Monday: Advanced DNA – Finding Your Origins II at 6:30 PM (for adults)
Tuesday: Beads! At 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM (for ages 5-11)
Wednesday: Storytime Class at 10:30 AM (for ages 0-4)
Thursday: Library Festival! 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM (for all ages!)
Read On! Mayes County Libraries
One of the squares on the Adult Summer Reading Bingo sheet this year is “visit another Mayes County library.” I write about the Pryor Library because it is what I know best, but I am always impressed by what the other libraries in Mayes County offer our communities.
Pryor’s library is, by far, the largest library in the county. We have a bigger population base, a bigger budget, and a bigger building than the rest, but that doesn’t mean we have a bigger mission or a bigger drive to serve our patrons. The Chouteau, Langley, Locust Grove, and Salina Public Libraries work just a diligently to provide resources to our communities and our entire county (sometimes more than our county) as the Pryor Library does.
They offer storytime classes, STEM workshops, guest speakers, book collections, online resources, and amazing staff. If you live in Pryor, it’s worth the drive to one of our neighboring towns to visit. If you live in a community lucky enough to have a public library, go check it out. You’ll be as impressed as I am.
Chouteau Public Library
307 W. Main St.
Chouteau, OK
918-476-4445
Open Mon-Fri 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Langley Public Library
325 W. Osage
Langley, OK
918-782-4461
Open Mon 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM; Tues – Fri 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Locust Grove Public Library
715 Harold Andrews Blvd.
Locust Grove, OK
918-479-6585
Open Tue. Noon to 7:00 PM; Wed – Fri 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Salina Public Library
420 E. Ferry St.
Salina, OK
918-434-8001
Open Tues Noon to 7:00 PM; Wed Noon to 5:00 PM; Thurs & Fri 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Don’t miss our Summer Reading events this week!
Monday: Intro to DNA: Finding your Origins Part 1 at 6:30 PM (for adults)
Tuesday: Fun with STEAM at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM (for ages 5-11)
Wednesday: Storytime at 10:30 AM (for ages 0-4)
Thursday: Destroy the Tech! At 6:30 PM (for ages 12-18)
Read On! Read In Any Format
Many years ago, back when I was a Teen Services Librarian, I told my teens signing up for Summer Reading that I didn’t care what they read during the summer. I only cared that they read something. My standard line was something like, “you can read traditional books, ebooks, audiobooks, comic books, magazines, newspapers, wordy websites, cereal boxes, or billboards. Just read.”
My views are the same now that I’m a Library Director and a parent. As you and your family work through our Summer Reading time records and/or activity sheets, feel free to read in any format you want. We truly don’t care.
This summer, my kids have to read for 30 minutes before they can watch TV or play on anything with a screen. When they grumbled about reading being boring, I told them something similar to the line I used with my teens. My son’s eyes immediately lit up. “Really, Mom? We can listen to audiobooks? Isn’t that cheating?” Nope. Not even close.
While they’re busy playing with Legos and listening to “The Magic Treehouse” books or studying the pictures in the “My Little Pony” or “Batman” comics, they’re sharpening their reading skills and getting all the benefits of reading a traditional chapter book. Plus, they’re learning that reading is fun!
In fact, allowing my kids to choose what they read and in what format has prompted my son to say four words that I was afraid he would never utter. This weekend, we were getting ready to watch a movie when he asked, “can I read instead?”
Don’t miss this week’s Summer Reading Events:
Monday at 6:30 PM: Intro to Computers for ages 18+
Tuesday at 10 AM and 2 PM: Mad Science’s Destination Moon for ages 5 – 11
Wednesday at 10:30 AM: Storytime for ages 0 – 4
Wednesday at Noon: Free lunch for kids and teens
Thursday at 6:30 PM: Silent Library Games for ages 12 – 18
Read On! Summer Reading Program
It’s Summer Reading season and we have something for everyone! Our Summer Reading Program offers two distinct experiences for participants – reading and events.
The reading portion of Summer Reading consists of game boards or time-trackers for participants of all ages (even babies and adults) to encourage reading all summer long. We are passionate about this portion because for school-age children, reading all summer prevents the “summer slide.” Summer slide is the phenomenon where kids forget much of what they learned the previous year, forcing teachers to begin each school year with a massive review.
Studies show that kids and teens who read all summer forget less than their peers who don’t. Spending 20 minutes a day or more of reading (or listening) is enough to prevent kids and teens from forgetting as much. This ensures our kids will be more successful in school and establish good habits as they get older.
We aren’t above bribing people to read, so expect prizes and drawing entry opportunities!
The events portion of Summer Reading is chock-full of fun classes, activities, and events for all ages. Adults have classes and events every Monday at 6:30 PM starting June 10th. Children ages 5 – 11 have events every Tuesday at 10:00 AM and repeated again at 2:00 PM beginning June 4th. Babies and toddlers ages 0 – 4 have Storytime classes every Wednesday at 10:30 AM beginning June 5th. And Teens ages 12-18 have events every Thursday at 6:30 PM beginning June 6th.
Our slogan this year is “A Universe of Stories,” so our events and classes are (loosely) space-themed. Check out our website at pryorlibrary.org/summer-reading-program for the full schedule and instructions on how to participate.
Registration for the reading portion of Summer Reading starts Tuesday, May 28th.