Central Bedfordshire libraries invite children to join this year’s Summer Reading Challenge
Monday, 11 July 2022
We're calling for children to discover a reading adventure at their local library, during the 2022 Summer Reading Challenge.
This year the theme is gadgeteers, with a science and engineering-themed challenge, supported by the Science Museum.
The challenge is launching in all libraries across Central Bedfordshire on 22 July and will run until 10 September.
To take part, all children need to do is sign up at their nearest library at any time during the challenge. Children must be a member of their library service (join the library).
To participate, children of all ages just need to read any six library books of their choice over the summer – books may be borrowed from a local library or children can use e-books, magazines and audiobooks available to download for free using their library cards and the Libby and Borrowbox apps.
Participants will receive rewards along the way: stickers, a bookmark and a pencil for reading two books, stickers and a goody bag for reading four books, and the ultimate reward will be: a certificate, stickers and a medal for those children who complete their 6 books by 10 September.
Children aged 4 to 16 who complete the challenge will be entered into a lucky dip at their library for the chance to win a Kindle Fire tablet. There is also an opportunity to enter a prize draw for treasure hunt participants, with the chance to win a £10 book token.
There will be fun activities along the way, such as craft activities available from your local library or online, science workshops run by Sublime Science, with mixed demonstration and hands-on science, and even science storytime. There will also be a number of other exciting events and activities planned for families during the summer holidays, which will be advertised on the Virtual Library or follow the libraries on Facebook.
Councillor Ian Dalgarno, our Executive Member for Community Services explains:
We are thrilled to be running the Summer Reading Challenge in our libraries again this summer!
The Summer Reading Challenge is one of the many ways we aim to keep children excited and inspired to keep reading, especially over the school holidays, when children's reading may be lower. This can also have a knock-on effect for schools, which can lead to playing catch-up during the new school term.
With this year’s theme being ‘Gadgeteers’, we are sure that those children that get involved in the challenge will find it provides them with a good opportunity to enjoy reading over the summer, in a fun way, that also boosts their reading abilities.
To learn more about the Summer Reading Challenge, please visit Summer Reading Challenge or pop into your local library.