The Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative is hosting a series of programs this summer to encourage reading.
Programming manager Jason Rogers said the goal of these programs is to combat the summer slide, a loss of learning that students face during the summer.
“It is intended to keep families and the community reading throughout the summer, when reading and learning tends to slow down a bit,” Rogers said.
But he said the initiative goes beyond just students with programs encouraging readers of all ages to pick up a book to win prizes.
The Art of Reading summer program challenges children to read for a total of 24 hours, logging their time through a virtual tracker called Beanstack. Adults are challenged to read four books.
Rogers said adults should set a role model for their kids by reading throughout their life.
“It’s so important for us to keep our minds engaged so that we are constantly learning,” he said. “We’re constantly making a better community and a better society.”
In trying to prevent the summer slide, Rogers said students need to focus on consuming any kind of text, even if that means reading a fictional book, graphic novel or the side of a cereal box.
He also said reading gives people the opportunity to focus on themselves and recharge.
“When do you take time for you? When do you emotionally, mentally, psychologically, physically recharge? Reading is a great way to do that,” Rogers said.
The Art of Reading challenge will run from now through Thursday, July 31, with prizes being drawn on Friday, August 1. Those prizes range from tote bags filled with incentives to free books to enamel pins.
The library is also hosting Reading with the Rays and Score through Stories — two initiatives that also award prizes for logging reading hours.
Rogers said one hour of reading logged will count toward all three programs, making avid readers eligible for several prizes at the end of the challenge.
To sign up for the challenge, to download the Beanstack Tracker or to read more about the Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative’s reading challenges, visit https://hcplc.org/summer.
