The Orange County Public Libraries (OCPL) and its sponsors, hoping to keep students learning during the break, host free summer reading programs and activities each year in order to keep students learning.

The programs provide incentives to read over the summer, including reading logs for children and teenagers, with prizes offered for participation and completion.

For children under the age of 4 the libraries offer activity logs, awarding prizes for completing early development activities with parents.

Most branches also offer incentives such as gift card drawings (with the number of entries based on the number of books read) to adults in order to encourage them to read over the summer as well.

In addition to reading programs, OCPL also offers free daytime activities for children throughout the summer. Each of the 33 branches holds its own programs according to its schedule; some activities that have been held include face painting, balloon animals, story time and craft making. Everything is free, sponsored by the libraries and their donors.

I have volunteered at the Irvine University Park Library, helping to run the summer programs, and I have been fortunate to witness their positive effects.

As a volunteer, I have seen children’s faces light up at the prospect of earning prizes by doing as simple a thing as reading, and I have seen their excitement to read grow with the positive reinforcement offered by the libraries.

OCPL’s programs even help foster a sense of community in the libraries’ patrons, bringing friends together for fun with crafts and providing a place for children to meet others who share similar hobbies.

This year, as always, OCPL’s summer activities (through Aug. 2) accommodate all interests and age groups.

I highly recommend adding a visit to the local library to your summer plans.

Akanksha Sah is a journalism intern at the Register. She will be a junior this fall at University High School in Irvine.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/akanksha-673992-voice-irvine.html