City of Avondale issued the following announcement on Aug. 21.
Take a year-round reading challenge ---enroll in READ! 365. The program is free and open to all ages. Participants earn points to receive digital badges, prizes and books by reading, attending events, or completing challenges.
In addition to completing a reading list, learning opportunities may include visits to locations in your community such as parks, city events, special lectures or programs.
READ! 365 program registration and launch date this year is September 1, 2018. Anyone can sign up online at http://avondalelibrary.readsquared.com or visit either of the two Avondale libraries where friendly staff can assist with sign ups. There are two branches, Sam Garcia Western Avenue Library (495 E. Western Avenue) and Avondale Civic Center Library (11350 W. Civic Center Drive).
This program was initiated from the feedback of summer reading program participants who indicated through surveys that they didn't want to stop the reading challenge at the end of summer. The goal of the program is to give readers a way to keep track of their reading, and to encourage them with challenges, book lists, the possibility to earn points and rewards.
The program is separated by age groups, 4 and under; 5-11; 12-17 and adults. An additional program element is the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program.
Over the course of the first year of this program, 159 program participants signed up and a total of almost 97,000 minutes were read. Avondale Public Library hopes to double those numbers this year.
Two very exceptional readers stood out last year and were recognized during the summer at a recent council meeting in Avondale. Emily Moody, 13, surpassed the highest adult program participant by 4,000 minutes. Emily read 15,700 minutes over a period of nine months. That's more than triple the amount of minutes needed to complete the program.
One of Avondale's youngest readers, Hadley Harper (photographed with Avondale City Council), is five years old and will be starting kindergarten this school year. She accomplished the task of reading 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten. Hadley reads at a third grade level and read most of the books by herself!
For more information about the Avondale Library, visit www.avondalelibrary.org.
Original source can be found here.
Source: City of Avondale