Friends of Montclair Library

Today’s the day: Sign-ups for the OPL Summer Reading Program start today! Stop into the branch today from 10:00am-5:30pm to get your materials. (Why not come today at 10:15 for family story time? Stories, songs and rhymes for all ages, followed by playtime. But I digress.) You can sign up any time this summer that the library’s open until August 11th, or on the OPL website. The Summer Passport Program for teens also kicks off today.

Did you know that even if your child is too young to read, he or she can still participate in the summer reading program? A parent, older sibling, grandparent or other caregiver can read to pre-readers and count the hours. A few days ago we posted some ways to encourage your child’s love of reading. Here are some tips for raising a lifelong reader by reading aloud from reading maven Pam Allyn:

1. Grow an appreciation of the sound and rhythm of language.
2. Model what readers do.
3. Teach higher level thinking skills.
4. Affirm a child’s own reading capacities and readiness skills.
5. Experience together the joy that reading brings.

See the full article on the PBS website for details and specific examples for each item.