Summer Reading Fun

The Great River Regional Library and 32 of its branches are opening their summer reading program with this year's new theme: "Be Creative." Starting June 8, and running through August 1, anybody under the age of 18 can participate in the program by signing up at a Mansfield/Richland County Library branch.

Each branch is broken up into three age groups:

Be Creative Read to Me – This group is for children under the age of 3 and focuses on beginning literacy skills.

Be Creative @ Your Library – Children between the ages of 3 and 12 can take part in this group, which assigns a minimum goal of 9 hours (broken into 20 minute reading sessions) spent reading.

Express Yourself @ Your Library – This group is for teens between 13 and 18. Although there is no minimum goal, the top readers in this group are entered into a drawing to win a grand prize.

Each of the programs promote reading through prizes, fun activities and parties hosted at the library. Children can read books, as well as magazines and newspapers, or they can listen to audiobooks as a way to gain reading time.