Benbrook Public Library Summer Reading 2023

What is My First Summer Reading?:

My First Summer Reading (MFSR) is a program in which each participating child who reads 10 books and completes 6 tasks over the course of the summer receives a prize.

Early literacy plays a key role in enabling the kind of early learning experiences that are linked with academic achievement, reduced grade retention, high graduation rates and enhanced productivity in adult life. In addition to this program, we encourage early literacy through year-round programming: Storytimes, Move and Shake, Baby Sign, Bilingual Storytime, and more.

Who May Participate:

The My First Summer Reading program was designed with children from birth to age 5 in mind.

Children who are 5 or 6 may participate in either MFSR or Summer Reading Club. They may not, however, participate in both.

Sign Up: 

To sign up for My First Summer Reading, visit the summer reading desk at the library. Let the volunteer who is stationed at the desk know the age of the child who will participate, and you will receive an MFSR brochure to track your completed books and activities. 

The Ins & Outs of Participation:

Unfold your brochure to reveal your summer reading activity log.

On one side of the activity log, you will find 12 shapes. Each shape contains a corresponding activity (e.g., go for a walk outside). The participant should complete at least 6 activities and color in the corresponding shapes.

On the other side of the activity log, you will find a space to list the titles of 10 books that the participant has read during the summer. Of course, books that are read aloud to the participant count!

I'm Finished! Now What?

Once the participant has completed 6 activities and read 10 books, they may return their brochure to a volunteer at the summer reading station.

Remember to add the participant's name, age, and phone number in the designated spaces on the activity log. 

Once the completed brochure has been returned, the participant has officially completed the MFSR program! The participant will receive a backpack and a book (while supplies last). Their completed brochure will also be used as their entry in the grand prize drawing.

Although the MFSR program may only be completed once, participants may opt to continue reading (and tracking their reading) by asking for bonus slips at the summer reading desk.

Bonus Slips:

We encourage participants to read as much as possible throughout the summer (and always!).

After the participant returns their completed brochure, they may continue the MFSR program by asking for a bonus slip.

Bonus slips have 10 slots to list additional books read during the summer. Each completed bonus slip is an additional entry in the grand prize drawing.

There is no limit to the amount of completed bonus slips that may be returned.   

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Happy reading! 

What is Summer Reading Club?:

Summer Reading Club (SRC) is a program in which each participating child who reads 20 books over the course of the summer receives a prize.

Our summer reading program helps children avoid the "summer slide", or the tendency for students to lose some of the achievement gains made during the previous school year, and helps children discover the joy of stories. It also fosters social-emotional development and elevates the importance of lifelong learning. 

Who May Participate:

Summer Reading Club was designed with children age 6-11 in mind. Although the program was designed for independent readers, children ages of 4-6 may participate in either My First Summer Reading or Summer Reading Club. They may not, however, participate in both.

Sign Up: 

To sign up, visit the summer reading station at the library. Tell the volunteer the age of the participant to receive a registration form. Once the registration form has been filled in with the participant's name, age, and contact information, return it to the volunteer and they will give you a brochure and a bookmark. 

The Ins & Outs of Participation:

On the bookmark, participants will find 4 circles. Each circle contains a number corresponding to the number of books the participant has read. The first bookmark contains numbers 1-5, the second book mark contains numbers 6-10, and so on. When participants have finished a book, they will initial a number.

For example, when the participant has read one book, they will initial the circle containing the number one. When a participant has read their fifth book, they will initial the circle containing the number five.

Once the participant has read five books, they will return their initialed bookmark to a volunteer at the summer reading station. The volunteer will then give the participant their next bookmark. Participants may receive and return bookmarks at their own pace, but they must return their most recently completed bookmark to receive the next one. Participants may only have one bookmark at a time.  

Participants will have an opportunity to complete and return up to 4 bookmarks (meaning they will have read at least 20 books) over the course of the summer.

Prizes:

Participants will receive a prize for each completed bookmark they return. 

Prizes received upon the return of each bookmark: 

• First Bookmark (5 books completed): a pencil or a bracelet
• Second Bookmark (10 books completed): a flyer or a coupon
• Third Bookmark (15 books completed): a LEGO squishy or a flyer
• Fourth Bookmark (20 books completed): a backpack and a book

To Team or Not to Team?

Each participant will be given the option to join a team; the team challenge is not a requirement for participation in Summer Reading Club. 

Participants who would like to join a team will be given a giant die to roll. The die has images representing each team (examples?), an option for the participant to select their own team, and an option for the volunteer stationed at the summer reading station to select the participant's team. 

After the participant rolls the die and their team is chosen, they will be given a task card. Once the participant completes the task and returns the task card, a stone will be placed in their team's collective jar.

Participants may pick up a new task card each week. All task cards may be returned through July 28, but each task card is only available to be picked up from the library during a set period. Once the date to pickup a task card has past, that task card will no longer be available at the summer reading station.

The team who has the most stones in their jar at the end of the summer will win an extra prize! 

I'm Finished! Now What?

Once the participant has returned their fourth bookmark and received the corresponding prize, they have officially completed the SRC program!

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The SRC program may only be completed once.

What is Check Your Shelf?:

Check Your Shelf (CYS) is a program in which each participating teen who completes at least 5 tasks (a combination of reading books and doing library-related activities) over the course of the summer has the opportunity to win prizes.

Our teen summer reading program helps teens avoid the "summer slide", or the tendency for students to lose some of the achievement gains made during the previous school year, and helps them discover the joy of stories. It also fosters social-emotional development and elevates the importance of lifelong learning. 

Who May Participate:

CYS was designed with teens ages 12-17 in mind. 

Teens who are 16 or 17 may participate in either Check Your Shelf or the adult summer reading program, Readzee. They may not, however, participate in both.

Sign Up:

Teens may sign up for CYS in person (by visiting the summer reading station at the library) or online. 

Whether teens sign up online using their own device or in person using the tablet at the summer reading station, they'll need to fill out the CYS Google form with their name, age, and contact information. 

The Ins & Outs of Participation: 

Check Your Shelf is a game of chance. Participants will play the CYS video which features a rapid succession of tasks and prizes. They'll touch the screen to pause the video; the task that is shown on the screen when they've paused the video will be the task assigned to them. 

If a participant lands on a book cover, their task is to read a book. They may read any book of their choosing and do not have to read the book shown on screen, the book shown on screen is merely a suggestion curated by the youth services librarians. 

If a participant lands on a task (e.g. attend a teen program or make a recipe from a cookbook), they must complete that task. 

Once a participant has landed on task (whether the task is to read a book or do something else), their turn has ended. Participants may play to receive a task once per day. 

Participants may land on a prize. If this happens, they will receive that prize and play again for a task. Participants may only receive one prize per day. If a participant lands on a prize twice in a row, they will not receive a second prize but they may continue to play until they receive a task. 

If a participant lands on a prize while playing online, they may take a screenshot to present to a summer reading volunteer to collect their prize. 

When participants complete a task, they will fill out a task card listing their name and the task they've completed. Participants will then return the completed task card to a volunteer at the summer reading station. Once a participant has returned 5 completed task cards, the volunteer will give them a prize coupon. 

The summer reading volunteers will keep the returned task cards and log completed tasks in the Check Your Shelf binder so that they can keep track of when a participant has completed enough tasks to earn a prize coupon. For this reason, it is important to remember to fill in and return the task cards for each completed task.

Participants can find blank task cards at the summer reading station. They may take several at one time, especially if they plan on participating online.

Participants will write their first and last name on the prize coupon and place it into one of the prize boxes of their choice. When summer reading ends, a prize coupon will be drawn from each box. 

I've Finished 5 Tasks! Now What?

We encourage participants to continue reading and completing tasks throughout the summer. Once participants have completed 5 tasks and received their initial prize coupon, they may continue playing.

At this point, participants will receive a prize coupon to place in the prize box of their choice for every 3 completed task cards.

The more prize coupons a participant earns, the better their odds of winning one of the grand prizes!

Prizes:

• Visa Gift Card ($75)
• Bee Kind Gift Basket ($75)
• 3D Pen Kit ($50)
• Movie Theater Gift Card ($35)
• Oversized Bee Pillow ($20)

CYS Video Link

Download the PDF instructions by clicking here.

What is Summer Readzee?

Summer Readzee is a reading game for players ages 18 and older.

Roll the dice to get your reading task! You’ll be reading a book that corresponds with the genre represented on the most dice.

Every book you read earns you an entry into a drawing for big prizes. You’ll also have opportunities to pick up gift cards to local businesses as you play.

Play as much or as little as you like over the course of the summer and enjoy adding some gaming fun to your reading!

Game begins: Saturday, June 3, 10 am

Game ends: Saturday, August 12, 5 pm

Prize drawing & notification of winners: Monday, August 14, 4 pm

Teens who are 16 or 17 may participate in either Check Your Shelf or  Readzee. They may not, however, participate in both.

Basic Instructions

· Sign up by filling out a record sheet at the Summer Reading station.

· Each time you play, you will automatically get to roll the dice one time. Each dice will have symbols that correspond with a certain genre or a special feature, like a free read or gift card.

· You will roll five dice at once. You will be tasked with reading a book that corresponds with the genre represented on the most dice. If you wish to complete the task, retrieve the corresponding paper task card from the staff member at the Summer Reading station. If you do not wish to complete the task, you don’t have to, but your turn will be over for the day.

· Complete the reading task provided on the task card. (Note: you must read a different book for each task. Any books used to satisfy game requirements must be read entirely after the official start date of the game. Unless otherwise noted, each book read must be at least 200 pages.)

· Return your completed task card(s) to the Summer Reading station.

· Each completed reading task earns you one point, and each point is good for one entry in a prize drawing. Once your task card, which is also your point, has been hole-punched by the Summer Reading station staff member, place it in the prize box of your choice.

· Play as often as once per day throughout the summer!

Rolls & Tasks:

· There are six sides to each of the five dice. Most of them contain reading tasks, and some are special sides that trigger awards or bonuses for the player.

· If two genres have the same number of symbols showing, you may choose either of the two genres for your task.

· If no genre has more than one symbol showing, you may choose any of the genres showing to use for your task.

· In the event that no genre symbols show on any of the five dice, you will roll again until a roll results in at least one genre showing.

· When matching genre symbols are rolled, it serves to multiply the number of points the player receives for completing their task:
1 symbol (no matches) — 1 point
2 matching symbols—2 points
3 matching symbols—3 points
4 matching symbols—4 points and a gift card
5 matching symbols—Readzee! 10 points for your task, a big ($25) gift card, play a bonus game (see below for details)
Note: Multipliers do not apply to non-task cards.

· One face on each of the five dice features a special symbol as described below:
— Gift Card/Coupon: you will receive a gift card or coupon. Even if multiple gift card symbols are rolled, you will only receive one gift card.
— Super Multiplier – you will receive 5 total points for your reading task for the day. The super multiplier overrides any other multiplier that may be in play. 
— Bonus Game – you will get to play the mini dice rolling bonus game (see below for details).
—Roll Again – you will get an additional roll of the dice and will receive two reading tasks for the day, along with all other perks that may result from the second roll. 

Free Reads:

· A Free Read symbol appears on each of the five dice. You must roll at least two Free Read symbols to be allowed to select free read as your task. Unlike with other genre symbols, you may select Free Read as your task even if another genre has more genre symbols showing. As with genre symbols, rolling multiple Free Read symbols results in multipliers.

Bonus Game:

· When you roll a Bonus Game symbol or roll a Readzee, you will get to play the bonus game. To play, you will roll five miniature dice. You will earn bonus points equivalent to the sum of all showing dice faces. 

· You also get to play the Bonus Game after every fifth reading task you complete.

Readzee:

· Rolling five matching symbols of any kind results in a Readzee, which triggers a bonanza of good things! You will earn a Free Read with a x10 multiplier, a big ($25) gift card, and the opportunity to play the Bonus Game.

Gift Cards:

​​​​​· After reading three books, you’ll earn a small gift card or coupon to a local business.

· Each week, we’ll randomly select five participants who have completed a book that week to receive a gift card or coupon.

· You’ll be notified via email when you earn/win a gift card.

Points & Prizes:

· The object of the game is to accumulate as many points as possible. Points are attained by completing reading tasks and earning bonus points from playing the Bonus Game.

· Each point equates to one entry in a prize box of your choice. You may place all of your points in one prize box, or you may split them among multiple prize boxes as desired.

· At the end of the game period, a prize drawing will be held. If your name is drawn from a prize box, you win that prize. You may not win more than one of the prizes.

The prizes are:

· Kindle Fire tablet

· Amazon gift card ($50)

· Benbrook Nail Salon gift card ($50)

· Paisano’s gift card ($50)

· Ace Hardware gift card ($50)

· 3 Parrots Taco Shop gift card ($50)

· Caliber Car Wash gift card ($50)

· Payne’s Florist gift card ($50)

*Prizes are subject to change