Summer programs included new Teen Room – Franklin News Post

The 2017 Summer Learning Program has just ended and we are thrilled to announce we had a record-breaking year with more than 1,000 children county-wide signing up to participate.

I believe the overwhelming response this year was due to the changes made to our usual summer program. First of all, we changed the name from Summer Reading to Summer Learning because, in addition to reading, we wanted to encourage families to explore their community. To support this goal, we changed the reward system so that when children finished their 10-book challenge, they received a custom-designed t-shirt. During July, when the children wore their t-shirts to participating businesses, they received special reading rewards, such as free ice cream, pizza, etc.

If you noticed lots of green T-shirts around town, now you know why. Parents and children have told us they had a great time visiting the generous businesses who partnered with us to offer reading rewards. They include Benny Adelinas, the Blue Ridge Institute and Museum, Dairy Queen of Rocky Mount and Ferrum, Daylight Donuts, Homestead Creamery, McDonalds of Rocky Mount, Rocky Mount Bowling Center, TNT Auto Body Repair and Service Centers, Westlake Cinema, The Whole Bean Coffeehouse and The Zone Family Fun Center. Parents and children alike appreciated the support given by these local businesses and they greatly enjoyed the rewards of the program.

Dairy Queen, The Zone Family Fun Center, and TNT Auto Body Repair and Service also hosted Bookmobile visits. In addition to the rewards offered by each business, the bookmobile offered activities and crafts for children and the opportunity to check in and out books.

And if exploring the community and reading rewards were not enough, we had special programming at both the Main and Westlake libraries throughout the summer. The Friends of the Franklin County Library provided the funding for great events such as Craft Day, Larsens Amazing Lizards, Red Herring Puppets, and Jonathan Austins Juggling and Magic Show. Our Main Library annual Carnival Day was made even better this year with the contribution of balloons by Jimmy Russell State Farm and the donation of personal pan pizza coupons by Pizza Hut. Mugsy, the mascot of the Salem Red Sox, even came to join the festivities.

It has been wonderful to see the community support childrens literacy this summer. So many businesses were excited to partner with us and we thank them for such a successful year.

Here at the Main Library we have also been enjoying our newly created Teen Room where we offer special programming for patrons aged 13-17. In June and July, teens participated in our journaling workshop as well as FAN Club. This summers FAN Club themes included Board Games, Comic Books, Middle Earth and Doctor Who. At each of these meetings we enjoyed snacks, themed activities, and encouraged teens to play as their favorite characters. We hope to take advantage of the momentum of such a great summer by continuing to hold FAN Club meetings during the school year--the first of which will be held Saturday, Sept. 9, from 2-3 p.m. Teens are invited to come join the fun and be a part of planning future FAN Club themes.

Many other popular programs such as art classes and Lego Club will also be returning this fall. Be sure to pick up our monthly event calendar or check our website at library.franklincountyva.gov to find out whats happening.

Thank you library staff, Friends groups, local businesses and patrons for making this one of the best Summer Learning Programs ever!

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Summer programs included new Teen Room - Franklin News Post