The ringing of the jingle bells Monday signaled the beginning of story time. Toddlers excitedly waddled into the room, their parents following.

The Warwick Public Library’s “Find Your Voice” summer reading program begins on June 24, kicking off two-months worth of programs to keep learners of all ages engaged in reading.

Pam Miech, the Coordinator of Youth Services, said that all of the scheduled events and offerings are planned with the intention to prevent the “summer slide.” 

“If children stop reading for the two to three months that they’re not in school, they lose 6 months,” Miech said. “They go back to January, and especially with a lot of learning loss in the past two years for kids, it’s really important to have families engaged and reading.”

The “Find Your Voice” initiative incentivizes students to log reading hours over the summer in exchange for a range of prizes. Miech expects 1,500 students to sign up and about 700 students to complete the program.

Patricia Cousineau, the Director of Elementary Education, said Warwick schools will partner with the library, “using their summer learning challenge program as our summer learning challenge program.” In addition to the prize incentives offered by the library, Cousineau said if a student completes the summer reading challenge, the school librarians will reward and celebrate them in the fall.

“It’s nice to have community partners, and the library is always so good to us,” Cousineau added. “We’re going to be able to support one another with that process.”

The library also hosts events to encourage kids and families to gather, read and learn in the Children’s Library space in the upstairs in the Central Library location. In addition to stacks of books, the area has a boat play structure, a play castle, various reading nooks and long tables. 

“Everybody already knows that the library is about books, but we offer so much more,” Miech said. “We offer a place to play inside.” 

Starting with toddlers & moving up

For young children this summer, the library will offer Toddler Time on Monday mornings at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., Baby Time on Tuesday mornings at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., Preschoolers on Wednesday mornings at 10 a.m. and Imagination Exploration on Thursday afternoons at 3:30 p.m. in addition to special events including Spanish storytime, guitar time with Mr. Guitar Man and storytime with the Gamm Theatre. Miech said that these events are very well attended, with 75 to 100 people.  

“Every table will be filled,” Miech said. “Every seat will be occupied with various needs: if they’re just here to play, get books, looking for summer homework, we’ll have crafts on the tables and they’re looking for a cool space.”

Kristen Fernandez said that her family comes to the library at least once a week, depending on what programs they offer. Her five-year-old, Ellie, is “obsessed with the library.” This year is Ellie’s second year participating in the reading challenge in addition to special events, and it is her 18-month-old brother’s first time going to storytime. 

“We’re here a lot,” Fernandez added. “We love it. The Warwick Library is the best library to come to. It has the best upstairs.”

Family fun events

For ages 5 and up, the library will offer Family Fun events throughout the summer including Sensory Playtime Upstairs on July 8 and RI Bucket Drummers on July 10. Miech said that most of these events are provided by the library, with some outsourcing to community members who have things they want to share. For example, the library will partner with the Rhode Island Community Food Bank for Jr. Chef Skills to teach basic cooking skills. 

“Learning is the key too, besides reading,” Miech said. “You need more than a book sometimes. skills, vocabulary: it’s all gleaned from learning.”

 More than books for teens

 The library is also providing programs specifically geared towards older students. Every Friday is the Kids Fun Friday Club which offers a series of hands-on activities for middle grade students including making your own rocket wind spinner, cooking, making a mandoharp and decorating your own kaleidoscope. 

Jennifer Beiermann, the teen librarian, is excited about the programs available to teens this summer. Last year, 180 teens completed the summer reading challenge. This year, she went from school to school to try to increase participation levels within this demographic. 

She wanted to remind teens that the library “is still a place for them.” 

To reach teens, the library will also host special events including a babysitting class on July 10 and glow-in-the-dark mini golf on July 20. Beiermann, who has been a teen librarian for more than 20 years, said that it is important to create a safe and supportive environment for teens. 

“I will always stand up for them,” Beiermann said. “I want to show them that there’s an adult who’s here for them, who sees them and who values them.”

At the library branches

There will also be summer activities and special events held at the three branch locations. Apponaug Branch will host weekly Lego club on Tuesdays at 3 p.m. storytime on Thursdays at 10 a.m., Books to Art on Thursdays at 3:30 p.m. and The Music of Greg Lato on Thursday, July 18 at the Warwick Center for the Arts. The Conimicut Branch will offer building with Magnotiles on Mondays at 2 p.m. and storytime on Tuesdays at 10:30 in addition to a special event on June 27 about bees, an event on July 11 that combines crafting and birdwatching and a The Magic of Russ DeSimone on July 20. The Norwood Branch holds storytime Tuesdays at 3:30 p.m. and Thursdays at 11 a.m. and Magnotile and Lego building on Fridays at 3:30 p.m. They will have a reptile adventure special event on July 14 and a karate demo on August 10. 

“We work with our branches to also make sure that they have something a little larger to show,” Miech said. “We want people to visit our small branches and see something there.”

The library also offers programming for adults. For example, there are morning book clubs on Monday July 10 and Tuesday July 11 from 10 to 11:30 and a few cooking demonstrations throughout the summer.

Miech hopes that the community continues to make the most of the library.

“We have a lot of fun planned,” Miech said. “We’ve been working very hard. The kids are super excited. We just need you to come in. If you can’t come in for special events, the library is always here for you.”