MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE ALBANY, Ga. -- Even though it’s summer time and the children are out of school, they can keep their minds stimulated through the base library’s summer reading program.
The theme for 2011 is “A Midsummer Knight’s Read,” and is open to all children between the ages of 4 and 18 years old. Children may participate in the program until July 29, which is sponsored by the Department of Defense.
“Base library has been participating in a summer reading program for over 27 years,” Amos Tookes, library director, Marine Corps Community Services, Marine Corps Logistics Base, Albany, said.
He said the summer reading program enhances the children’s reading abilities and helps them to retain the same reading level when returning to school.
“It is also educational for them because through reading you learn about the world and yourself,” Tookes said.
Incentive prizes will be awarded to the children participating in the summer reading program based on the number of books read in the different reading categories. The four different reading categories are ages 4-6 years, 7-9 years, 10-12 years and 13-18 years. All age categories, except the teens, receive an incentive prize for every five books read. Tookes said those in the teen category only have to read two books to receive an incentive award because they normally read longer books.
Readers’ goals are to read more than 40 books for ages 4-12 years old and 10 books for ages 13-18 years old. Each child is allowed to check-out 10 books per trip to the library with three weeks to read and return the books.
Some of the incentive prizes will be a midsummer’s knight canvas tote, T-shirts, hot/cold lunch bags, glow water balls, puzzles, pencils, polo shirts and more.
A group of children, ages 5-12, from the Child Development Center’s summer camp are among those competing for the prizes. They listened to Tammy Jones, lead teacher, CDC, read to them at the library, June 16.
Jones said the children are brought to the library twice a week during the summer camp to help them stay up on their reading skills because a lot of them wouldn’t read otherwise.
If they read a book and use their imagination they can go anywhere they want, she added.
Jones noted the teachers try to have the children read five books a week under the library’s summer reading program and encourage parents to bring them to the library and check out books.
Octavian Parks, 10, has been participating in the program for four years and enjoys reading to help him learn. His favorite books are a series called “Mostly Ghostly.”
Lauren Brown, 8, has been participating in the program for two years because she enjoys reading and gets to see new things. Her favorite book is “My Best Friend.”
Kennedy Wisniewski, 8, likes to read lots of books because she can learn from the different stories. She said she has no favorite books because she just loves to read different kinds every day.
An awards program will be held in August for the children participating in program. First-place, second-place and third-place trophies will be awarded to the top readers in each age category.
This marks the second year DoD is participating and sponsoring the summer reading program. DoD’s MCCS Library Program is offering two vacation packages for a family of four, sponsored by Delta Vacations, to more than 250 of the world’s most appealing leisure locations as the grand prize for participating in the 2011 Summer Reading Program.
The two packages will be awarded to one summer reading program participant from an east coast and a west coast installation. The participant must be a child or teen of an active-duty service member or retiree.
Registration is continuous and youth can sign up any time until July 29 for the summer reading program at Building 7122, next to the new barracks and across the street from Crouch Memorial Field.
Operating hours are Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. It is open to all active-duty military, retirees, civilian-Marines, contractors and their families. For more information, call the library staff at (229) 639-5242.