Library’s Summer Ready Program begins June 5

The Canyon Lake Library is located inside the City Hall building in the Canyon Lake Towne Center. Programs are free to the public and do not require library membership.

For the library, Fiesta Days in Canyon Lake means summer reading is just around the corner. Prepare the bookmarks, the Summer Reading Program begins Monday, June 5.

A spokesperson for the library said surveys from 2016 showed a desire to have more reading days. The program started on the first day of Summer June 21 in 2016.

The 2017 program, Reading by Design, is a science, technology, engineering, art, math (S.T.E.A.M.) related theme. Keeping with the theme, registration and recording reading will be available on-line starting June 5 with first prize awards available on June 19.

Library users who do not have internet may register at the library’s public computers. Individuals who are not friendly with computers may come into the library to register with a handwritten form.

Readers will receive extra rewards this year since they will be awarded online badges as well as prizes for various levels of reading. The prizes must be collected at the library.  All prizes will be related to books and not time.

The extra reading drawing will also be handled a little differently this year. There will be one electronic ticket entry entered for each reading reward badge from the very beginning.

The system has a random selection function which will be used for prizes. The online system keeps a list of books entered by the children if they wish to show what they read over the summer.

The software being used by the library was created by the California State Library under the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), the only federal program exclusively for libraries. It is administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). State libraries use the funds to support statewide initiatives. LSTA consolidates federal library programs while expanding services for learning and access to information resources in all types of libraries for individuals of all ages.

The LSTA funding was not included in the original 2017 proposed budget to Congress. It’s survival depends on national lawmakers responding to community support.