"Readin' la vida loca"

  • Published
  • By Airman Taylor Phifer
  • 509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. --  Nearly 50 eager children sit in a circle with their legs crossed, staring up at the pictures and listening to the story being read to them. After story time is over, the children scream and jump with excitement because it’s time for crafts. Shiny stickers, colorful markers, velvet ribbons and plenty of glitter keep the children entertained and allow their creative juices to flow.

Storytime, arts and crafts, scavenger hunts and quizzes are some of the activities children of all ages can get involved with at Whiteman Air Force Base Library’s annual summer reading program.

The theme for the program is Reading by Design, where readers of all ages can set their own goal for the summer.

“This program helps keep children reading during the summer,” said Dennis Wilson, the 509th Force Support Squadron Force Development flight library director. “While on summer vacation, children can lose about two months’ worth of work they learned from the school year. Reading programs allow children to be more prepared for the next school year.”

Once a child signs up for the program, they create a goal and then log the minutes of reading they complete throughout the summer. Those who achieve their goal can bring their recorded reading log to the library from July 20 through August 5. After achieving their goal, the child receives a certificate of completion, coupons to McDonald’s and Pizza Hut and are able to choose one free Scholastic paperback book to keep. Food coupons and books are available only while supplies last.

Along with the individual summer reading program, the library also holds hour-long events each week for separate age groups. Based on the age group, the events have different activities. For the younger age group, children 3 to 7 years old, a story is read to them followed by craft time. The older age group, 8 to 12 years old, consists of more competitive activities like quizzes, scavenger hunts and other various games.

“We encourage families to come to the library because there’s something for every age,” said Wilson. “It’s really important to keep kids engaged and on the right track in the summer and these programs help with that.”