707 children & teens took part in the reading incentive programs, and 284 - a record number! - collected the final set of prizes, including a free book of their choice, by reaching the goal of reading 20 books and/or hours.
The "Fabulous Family Fare" series included storytelling family Sadarri & Company; animal visitors from the Henry Vilas Zoo; Mad Science of Iowa+; and a tongue-in-cheek performance of condensed Greek myths by the Traveling Lantern Theatre. These popular shows were attended by large, appreciative audiences each week.
Preschoolers attended six weeks of international-themed fun during Preschool Story Times, followed by a Youth Volunteer Puppet Players' performance of "Animal Folktales from Around the World" at the end of July. School-age kids enjoyed stories, games & crafts from Africa, North & South America, and the Far East.
Read2Dogs returned to Tuesday afternoons, after a Meet-&-Greet on June 21. Children could read loud to a friendly Doberman, Blackjack; a gentle Blue Great Dane, Logan; a snow-white husky-lab mix, Annie, and an exceptional Sheltie named Austin. They and their respective trainers, Dave, Kay, Cate and Steve, are so generous with their time, and everyone truly enjoys their visits!
Craft workshops for teens in grades 6-12 were offered every other Wed. afternoon, including Mehndi body painting from India, Papel Picado from Mexico, and international pizza-making! Two separate Game Days occurred for teens, each followed by a FAMILY Game Day for all ages! Teens were also invited to visit the 2011 TeenRead book blog and discuss some of the intriguing fiction titles featured there this past summer (follow this link to the discussion: teenread.scls.info/ ).
We held our Summer Library Program Finale on July 28, attended by 100+ people. Those who came enjoyed fishing for prizes, making wizard hats (a nod to the final Harry Potter movie) & Indian stick games, entering the Harry Potter coloring contest, and signing two oversized 90th birthday cards which were then mailed to the original plush Pooh Bear at the New York Public Library. Follow this link to see one of them: www.facebook.com/permalink.php (our card is the 1st one in their photo gallery). Featured at midpoint of the 2-hour finale was the musical duo Yurtfolk (they really do live in one!) who took the audience around the world in song, story & dance. Door prizes rounded out the event, and nobody went home empty-handed.
Our library greatly relied on and benefitted from the work of eleven enthusiastic middle & high school Youth Volunteers. We really appreciate their assistance with program registration, stamping reading records & giving out prizes, and helping younger children with crafts at programs throughout the summer. Not to mention helping the Youth Services librarian set up & run the Wii and DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) gaming systems during our four Game Days! Many thanks are in order - the Summer Library Program would be a much smaller operation without their contribution.
As always, our heartfelt thanks go to the following businesses & organizations for their generous support:
-
Friends of McFarland Library
-
Culver’s Frozen Custard Restaurant
-
Pizza Hut of Southern Wisconsin
-
Dane County Fair
-
Jim Hartman of State Farm Insurance
-
Spartan Bowl
-
McFarland Pick 'n Save
-
McFarland House Cafe
-
Madison Mallard’s Baseball
-
Schuster’s Playtime Farm, Inc.
-
Daniel M. Sorif Planetarium - Milwaukee Public Museum
-
Wisconsin Historical Society
-
-
South Central Library System