An EPIC Summer at the Library
by Brianne Anderson
An EPIC Summer at the Library
Summer is here! Right now, you can feel the excitement in the air as kids say goodbye to another school year. Honestly, summer is hands-down the BEST time to be a youth librarian. Here’s my top ten reasons why.
10. Kids are excited to be here! They get to spend more time playing in our space freely and exploring ways to creatively interact with the toys and make new friends with other kids.
9. Reader’s Advisory: During summer kids get to self-select their reading, which means we get to book-talk and suggest new and exciting things. We spend the entire year reading just so we can suggest the perfect book to the right kid.
8. Cool programs! During the summer we see more school-age kids here during the day which means we get to design some fun programs for them. Want to complete in a puzzle contest or have a fun water day outside? We got you covered.
7. Teen Space: Kids who have just finished 5th grade are FINALLY old enough to hang out in our Teen Space. It’s so great to see the newly-organized room filled with kids ready to craft, play video games, and more.
6. Group meet-ups: I love that during the summer, this is a nice cool place where kids can meet up with each other to hang out. Our study rooms are perfect for small-group D&D campaigns!
5. APL-Y: Ames Public Library-Youth is a volunteer program specifically designed for middle and high schoolers to help serve summer meals, help with programs, and all kinds of special projects around the library. They are incredible kids, help us out all summer, and gain real-world work experience. Win-win!
4. Terrific Tuesdays: Thanks to funding from the Ames Public Library Friends Foundation, we are able to bring professional magicians, scientists, storytellers, and more to educate and delight kids with live entertainment throughout the summer.
3. Summer Meals: Did you know the library serves FREE lunches to anyone ages 18 and younger during the summer? There is an incredible amount of hungry kids here in Ames and it’s an honor to get to help provide meals when they can’t get them in school.
2. The Summer Reading Program! It’s so awesome to see kids challenge themselves over the summer to complete their reading goals. I love that we can help motivate kids to read as a summer activity, and they love all the prizes.
1. YOU! We get to see so many families during the summer and it’s wonderful to catch up and see how kids have grown over the year. Stop and chat while you are here—it will make our day!