By JAN McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Sticklers who prefer silence in their libraries were out of luck Saturday. The kickoff of the summer reading program at the Wood County District Public Library went big and bold to get kids excited about books while on summer break.
The event was a real page-turner.
The library atrium was taken over by a huge bounce house, and outside a chalk artist was creating magical characters that appeared to emerge from brick walls and cracks in sidewalks.
Maria Simon, youth services coordinator at the library, smiled as she looked around at the bouncing bodies in the atrium, the budding artists in the children’s area, and the inquisitive eyes taking in the characters being created outside.
“This is to get kids excited about coming into the library and checking out books to read for the summer,” Simon said. “It’s about getting kids excited about maybe seeing things from another view.”
Six-year-old Grace Barnes was trying out her artistic talents as she waited to sign up for the summer reading program, with her mom, Joy. Grace has gone through chemotherapy and got a little behind on some skills. So the library program will give her a fun way to catch up, her mom said.
“We’re trying to pick up a few things she missed.” Plus stories will take Grace on adventures, Joy Barnes said. “She can go new places in her books.”
Brothers Alex and Ethan Lifland were also expressing their inner artists as they colored. Parents Heather and Andrew Lifland, said their boys take part in the summer reading program every year.
“They both love to read,” plus there are prizes awarded along the way. “It’s something fun to do in the summertime,” their mom said.
Alex, 9, said he prefers stories with lots of adventure, with his favorites being “Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” “Dog Man” and “Captain Underpants.” Ethan, 6, is also fond of fiction, especially stories about animals, like “Bad Kitty.”
With the summer theme of “Color Our World,” areas throughout the library have been transformed into artworks to attract inquisitive young eyes. The rainbow of “I Spy” images cover the wall leading into the children’s area. An “artist studio” gives young imaginations a place to experiment. And a large mirror on the wall reminds kids that “you are a work of art.”
As families signed up for the summer reading program inside the library, street art was under construction outside.
At the back entrance, Simon spotted a chalk mouse appearing to peak out from a brick. She was thrilled that children may be searching for the tiny creature throughout the summer.
“We do love our scavenger hunts at the library,” she said.
At the front entrance, chalk artist David Zinn, from Ann Arbor, Michigan, was busy creating another being.
“He thinks out loud,” Simon said, so the children crouched by him as he worked could learn about his artistry.
“This is the chalk box that I have to take everywhere I go,” Zinn confided in the children. “I never know when I will need it.”
Zinn was putting the final touches on a green slug (dubbed a zombie slug by one child) that appeared to be climbing out of the sidewalk. A smile and nostrils made the slug complete.
Over the next two months at the library, there will be creative challenges, engaging author visits, tours with community organizations, family playtimes, concerts, and opportunities to paint, craft, stitch and collage throughout the summer.
Some of the activities will allow kids to be messy, such as baby and toddler finger painting, a watercolor workshop, and rock painting. Kids can learn to make coffee filter butterflies and paint bubbles.
Teens will also have a chance to express their artistic sides with crafting programs on making yarn wall hangings, tie-dye bandanas, bead animals, and sunburst painting.
There will be plenty of the more traditional storytimes, weekly family play times at Wooster Green, and tours to the Toledo Museum of Art and the Mazza Museum in Findlay.
“There’s something for everybody,” Simon said, assuring there will also be ample “quiet and contemplative activities.”
