By Jeremy D. Wells
Carter County Times
If your child needs more reading time over the summer months between school, or they just can’t get enough of books, the Carter County Public Library has a slate of summer reading programs planned for the coming season.
They will have a story hour, paired with a lunch, through June and July. Stories will start at Noon, on Wednesdays in Olive Hill and Thursdays in Grayson, with free lunch at 1 p.m. There is no registration requirement for story hour and lunch.
If you want to participate in the summer reading program, however, you will have to register. That program takes place on Thursday evening, at 6 p.m. with programs alternating between the Grayson and Olive Hill branches.
“There will be different programming at each location, so folks can come to both and still get something new,” library director Matt Parsons said.
Parsons said they have reading logs available at both library locations, or they can send a reading log by mail or email when parents register by telephone.
The summer reading program kicks off this Thursday and wraps up July 21. If your child needs to improve their reading over the summer, Parsons said, parents shouldn’t hesitate to register them, even if the program has already started.
“They can register any time – even if we have already started, but they will be short on their reading log,” Parsons said, so if your child has to document their participation for the school district, he recommends registering as soon as possible.
Parsons also said they wouldn’t be able to put these programs on without the help and support of their community partners. In particular, he said, he would like to acknowledge the support and help of the county agriculture extension agency and the Girl Scouts in making the program a reality.
“Torie Vencill from Girl Scouts Wilderness Road Council called and asked if they could do some outreach in our area, so I invited them to teach an installment of our Farm All SRP (Summer Read Program) schedule,” Parsons said. “They will also be set up at the finale.”
Because their program is about agriculture, they really wanted to have the extension agency involved too. Building that relationship, Parsons said, not only allowed them to provide content for the kids, it also allowed them to share knowledge their parents might find useful.
“Max (Hammond) and I extended an invitation to the extension agency and they have responded with help on multiple weeks of agriculture curriculum for the kids,” Parsons said. “I have invited a series of speakers to have community conversations with the adults present as well.”
It’s a model that allows the various groups to all accomplish their mission goals, he explained, while pooling their limited resources to better benefit the community.
Those interested in registering for the Summer Reading Program, or in more information on that program, storytime, or any other library program, can contact the Olive Hill branch at (606)286-8070, the Grayson branch at (606)475-1528, or by visiting either branch in person from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
Contact the writer at editor@cartercountytimes.com