Three, two, one—blast off! KCLS’ Summer Reading launches June 1

The King County Library System (KCLS) is ready to rocket into Summer Reading! This year’s theme, “A Universe of Stories,” celebrates space exploration and coincides with NASA’s 60 years of achievement and its observance of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing. More than 1,400 programs and events—from portable planetariums and readings in the park, to rocket-making workshops and live music—are scheduled throughout King County, from June 1 to August 31.

“KCLS’ Summer Reading Program helps children stay sharp and engaged over the long summer break,” said KCLS Executive Director Lisa Rosenblum. “These fun and creative educational opportunities are designed to prevent the “summer slide,” and help children keep up on core subjects like reading and math while school is out.”

The Summer Reading Program includes a variety of literary events, STEAM learning opportunities, science workshops and hands-on academic activities. Browse the KCLS events calendar to find an event that interests you. Free summer meals for all youth are also available at select KCLS libraries to help nurture children’s minds and bodies.

KCLS’ Summer Reading continues to be increasingly popular with participants of all ages. Last year, the number of children registered for Summer Reading increased by 12 percent over 2017, with 49,805 participating children, who logged 21.6 million reading minutes. Looking at teen readership, 9,823 teens signed up, and read 4.4 million minutes. And in 2018, KCLS offered paper reading logs for adult readers for the first time, and over 18,000 adults registered for Summer Reading, and logged 6.2 million minutes. In total, more than 32 million minutes were read!

KCLS encourages patrons to track their progress throughout the summer by registering for the program, logging their reading minutes, and submitting their reading log to win prizes. KCLS librarians can recommend good summer reads across genres through book lists, and all formats of reading—physical or digital—count as earned reading time. For additional Summer Reading information, registration and contest details, visit your local KCLS library, or see the schedule online at kcls.org/summer, starting on June 1.