SRP Week 8 Reflection

The end of summer reading has finally arrived. This was a slower week. I only visited 3 of my 4 branches and the day camps all stopped coming last week. I presented 9 programs with an attendance of 123.




All events this week were a bit hectic as I was presenting the programs AND handing out certificates and drawing for prizes. I'm seriously considering not doing a story time or event during the last week and just handing the certificates and prizes next week.

The kids really enjoyed the craft that went along with the Fractured Fairy Tales School Age Event. This is the second time I've used the Three Little Pigs as a theme.

Teen Game Night went well. The teens decided to play Name 5 and then Spoons. One of the teens introduced us to the game of Spoons months ago. Everyone likes it. I think it can even be a bit addictive.

I think all the children enjoyed the reading portion of the program. We had 147 children (birth-age 12) sign up. We had 14 teens sign up. However, only 45.5% of the children completed their logs. 35.7% of the teens completed their logs. Next year, I'm hoping the school visits & registration times during May will see an increase in both sign ups and completion.

In 8 weeks, I presented 115 programs with an attendance of 1,985. I was more prepared this year (my 2nd) than I was last year. Pinterest played quite a role in helping me plan summer reading. It was especially helpful for finding crafts and activities. Here's a link to my Summer Reading Program 2012 board.

For next year, I want to plan earlier and be ready to go. As soon as I receive the manual, I'm going to start planning. I'm also going to dedicate the whole of May to outreach visits to the schools. I'm hoping to increase our community involvement. I'm also going to schedule afternoon/evening and Saturday time for SRP registration. Parents will receive event schedules and a FAQ sheet about the reading portion of the program. They'll receive their logs on the 1st day of the program.

I think I've already said that I plan to separate the day camps from the community programs. At one branch, I also plan to add a second story time session. The attendance was great, but I think it would work better with 2 smaller sessions.

If the weather cooperates and school ends when it's projected to, I plan to start my 2013 summer reading program the first week of June and wrap it up by the end of July.

Well, that ends my Summer Reading Reflections for this year. I hope you've enjoyed them.