To
officially
begin
the
Summer
Reading
Program,
kickoff
parties
are
being
held at
each of
the 14
New
Orleans
Public
Library
locations.
All
of the
kickoff
parties
will
occur on
Saturday,
June
1st,
with the
exception
of the
Martin
Luther
King and
Central
City
branches,
whose
parties
will be
held
Friday,
May
31st.
Kickoff
party
times
vary by
location,
so
please
check
the
Library
website
for
details.
At each
of the
kickoff
parties
there
will be
cupcakes,
crafts,
and
storytimes
that
relate
to the
2013
Summer
Reading
Program
theme
"Dig
Into
Reading".
Everyone
who
signs up
for the
Summer
Reading
Program
at the
kickoff
events
will
receive
prizes.
The New
Orleans
Public
Library
will be
providing
over 330
free and
fun
programs
and
activities
for
children
and
teens
this
summer
through
the 2013
Summer
Reading
Program
being
held
June1
through
July 31.
This
much
loved
annual
program
is a
celebration
of
reading
and is
designed
to
encourage
the
development
of
lifelong
literacy
skills
for New
Orleans
youth by
providing
them
with
exciting
programs
and
rewards
for
reaching
reading
goals.
The
Martin
Luther
King
Branch
is
having
an extra
special
kickoff
party
for
teenagers
by
hosting
the
"Bust-A-Rhyme"
Rap
Contest.
The
contest
will be
held on
Friday,
May 31
at 1pm,
and it
is being
judged
by local
rappers
Shorty
and the
89 Boyz,
as well
as
Ayanna
Molina
from the
MelaNated
Writers
Collective.
Teens
can
still
sign up
to
compete
in the
rap
contest,
visit
the
Library
website
for more
details.
For
those
unable
to
attend a
kickoff
party,
Summer
Reading
Program
signup
is
available
on the
Library
website
or at
any
Library
location.
About
the 2013
Summer
Reading
Program:
The
Summer
Reading
Program
is a
combination
of
programs,
activities,
and
reading.
All
children
and
teens
are
encouraged
to
attend
any of
the free
activities,
and
reading
logs are
provided
to
everyone
who
registers
for the
program.
Participants
that
reach
goals of
reading
eight
books or
800
pages
are
given
prizes.
Those
participants
that
record
reading
20 books
or 2,000
pages
are
given
additional
prizes
and
receive
a
special
bookworm
certificate.
"Our
Summer
Reading
Program
is a lot
of fun
but
there is
a very
real and
serious
reason
that we
provide
this
opportunity
to our
youth.
Research
shows
that
children
who do
not read
at least
four
grade-level
books
over the
summer
break
will
lose two
months'
worth of
reading
skills,
which
has been
called
the
educational
"summer
slump".
By
providing
activities
and
incentives
to read,
we feel
that we
can help
keep our
youth
from
losing
valuable
skills
over the
summer,"
said
Charles
Brown,
City
Librarian
and
Executive
Director
of the
New
Orleans
Public
Library.
"Over
5,000
children
and
teenagers
attended
our
Summer
Reading
Program
events
last
year,
with a
total of
over
113,00
pages
read and
over
2,000
kids and
teens
reading
at least
eight
books or
800
pages.
It is so
exciting
to know
that the
Library
is
affecting
the
lives of
so many
of our
children
in our
communities
and we
are
looking
forward
to an
even
more
successful
program
this
year."
To offer
a wide
variety
of
programs
for
children
and
teens,
the
library
system
has
partnered
with
organizations
like the
Louisiana
Philharmonic
Orchestra,
Longue
Vue
Gardens,
The
World
War II
Museum,
The
Audubon
Nature
Institute,
and many
others.
"The
Summer
Reading
Program
theme,
"Dig
Into
Reading",
let's us
have a
lot of
fun with
the
programs
that
we've
developed.
We are
going to
have
programs
on
dinosaurs,
animals
that
live
underground,
caves,
archaeology,
and a
lot
more, as
well as
bringing
back
some
favorite
performers
and
programs
from
previous
Summer
Reading
Program
years
that the
children
love so
much,
like
magician
Irwin
Royes
and the
Bug
Mobile,"
said
Laura
Bevins,
Co-Chairperson
of the
Library's
Summer
Reading
Program
Committee.
"The
Summer
Reading
Program
isn't
just for
children;
we have
over 100
events
and
program
just for
teens,
like an
underground
film
festival,
bike
workshops,
and
silkscreen
t-shirt
printing
classes."
The full
Summer
Reading
Program
schedule
is
available
at each
of the
14 New
Orleans
Public
Library
locations,
as well
as on
the
Library
website.
The
Summer
Reading
Program
could
not
happen
without
the
support
of the
Friends
of the
New
Orleans
Public
Library,
the New
Orleans
Public
Library
Foundation
and many
local
businesses
including;
Adventure
Quest
Laser
Tag,
Airline
Skate
Center,
Brown's
Dairy,
Raising
Cane's,
Kentwood
Springs,
La
Divina,
Rouses,
Wendy's,
Whole
Foods,
New
Orleans
Zephyrs,
AMC 10,
Maple
Street
Books,
New
Orleans
Ice
Cream
Co., New
Orleans
Pharmacy
Museum,
Octavia
Books,
Fit
NOLA,
and
Earthsavers.
For more
information
on the
Summer
Reading
Program,
Library
services,
and
upcoming
events,
visit
www.neworleanspubliclibrary.org.
