{"id":218642,"date":"2026-06-14T00:26:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-14T00:26:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/218642\/"},"modified":"2026-06-14T00:26:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-14T00:26:08","slug":"city-libraries-kick-off-summer-reading-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/218642\/","title":{"rendered":"City libraries kick\u00a0off summer reading program\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Families were taken on a prehistoric adventure during the Old Town Newhall Library\u2019s Summer Reading Kick-Off on Saturday, an event aimed to encourage\u00a0children\u00a0to keep reading during summer\u00a0break andbecome a part of the library fold and family.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Library staff were\u00a0eager to\u00a0welcome\u00a0visitors\u00a0to the multipurpose room of the Newhall Library, ready to provide\u00a0a\u00a0morning of\u00a0arts and crafts\u00a0and activities, all surrounding the theme of dinosaurs.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The summer reading program is an initiative\u00a0intended\u00a0to\u00a0draw\u00a0people of\u00a0all ages to\u00a0engage,\u00a0and\u00a0embrace reading\u00a0and combat the\u00a0\u201csummer slump\u201d many may get into once school is out, said\u00a0Tina Gill, Old Town Newhall Library children\u2019s librarian. \u201cWe want them to\u00a0read\u00a0but want it to be fun.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

To embrace literacy, the\u00a0city library\u00a0branches hold activities surrounding certain themes each year, including arts and crafts, games, and other activities that engage children\u00a0to learn in a nontraditional way.\u00a0This year\u2019s theme is \u201cUnearth a Story,\u201d\u00a0and will run\u00a0through\u00a0July 24.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t notice they\u2019re learning because they\u2019re having fun,\u201d\u00a0Gill said,\u00a0and added that all ages are welcome to\u00a0participate.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAdults can do it,\u00a0too. We want them to feel included because\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0important for them to read,\u00a0too.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

At all\u00a0Santa Clarita\u00a0library branches, participants can read at their own pace, whether\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0a book a day, or a few pages. Readers\u00a0can\u00a0log their progress on\u00a0SantaClaritaReads.com\u00a0to win prizes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Children participate in arts and crafts during the Old Town Newhall Library\u2019s Summer Reading Program Kick-Off on Saturday June 13, 2026. Katherine Quezada\/The Signal<\/p>\n

Local resident and mother of three Elizabeth Jauregui began to visit the Newhall branch\u00a0seven\u00a0years ago when she\u00a0first\u00a0moved to the area.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

As she took a pause from helping her\u00a0youngest,\u00a0Amelie,\u00a0figure out how to use a\u00a0remote control\u00a0during the dinosaur race,\u00a0she noted that the Newhall\u00a0library is\u00a0one of\u00a0their favorite places to visit during the summer, to avoid the heat and\u00a0get away from the house and their electronics.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI make it a point to come out to just get them to have an activity of the day, and it provides structure. As a\u00a0parent\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0really important.\u00a0Otherwise\u00a0we can be home all day\u00a0and\u00a0feel\u00a0like we did nothing,\u201d she said. \u201cIt becomes\u00a0a great way\u00a0to provide enrichment for them, get them out of the house, and it\u2019s free.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jauregui\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0grow up encouraged to read for fun and \u201cit was foreign to me,\u201d she said.\u00a0As a mother of a\u00a010-, 7-, and 3-year-old, what brings joy to her is seeing them embrace reading and doing it on their own.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI know they\u2019re much better readers for it because they have access to this,\u201d she said,\u00a0referring to the Newhall library, and boasted about how welcoming\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0always felt and its inclusivity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

For many library staff, community impact is at the\u00a0heart\u00a0of the summer reading program.\u00a0Last year, approximately 4,000 people signed up to\u00a0participate, according to senior librarian Ellie Kalman.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s\u00a0kickoff was aimed at bringing more attention to the program, as in previous years the\u00a0city\u2019s\u00a0libraries have held celebrations in the end, she\u00a0said,\u00a0but many\u00a0aren\u2019t\u00a0aware and\u00a0miss out on\u00a0all the fun.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Kaylene Williams (left) and Maddox Church, 4, play Jenga during the Old Town Newhall Library\u2019s Summer Reading Program Kick-Off on Saturday June 13, 2026. Katherine Quezada\/The Signal<\/p>\n

For Kelman and Jennifer Barnekow, another senior librarian who was on camera duty during the\u00a0kickoff event,\u00a0seeing children embrace reading was something they described as rewarding.\u00a0<\/p>\n

They both\u00a0stated\u00a0that there have been\u00a0instances throughout the year, but more notably during the summer, that they\u00a0get\u00a0adults returning to the library to tell them they used to be library kids when\u00a0younger.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Library\u00a0staff always\u00a0welcome them back and say \u201cwe are here for you. Let us help you find your next read,\u201d Kelman said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Before Jauregui continued with\u00a0her\u00a0mom\u00a0duties\u00a0as her kids pulled her to another activity,\u00a0she added: \u201cThis library is a gem.\u00a0There\u2019s air conditioning, there are books, there\u2019s computer time,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0just\u00a0a great opportunity\u00a0for any parent to encourage a little bit of off-screen time, outside,\u00a0and an activity with structure. It gives us a staple in our day.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Children participate in arts and crafts during the Old Town Newhall Library\u2019s Summer Reading Program Kick-Off on Saturday June 13, 2026. Katherine Quezada\/The Signal\"\"\"\"Books about dinosaurs are featured during the Old Town Newhall Library\u2019s Summer Reading Program Kick-Off on Saturday June 13, 2026. Katherine Quezada\/The Signal<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Families were taken on a prehistoric adventure during the Old Town Newhall Library\u2019s Summer Reading Kick-Off on Saturday,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":218643,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[128,130,129],"class_list":["post-218642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=218642"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218642\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/218643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=218642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=218642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=218642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}