It’s finally here! Summer. William Carlos Williams once said, “In summer, the song sings itself.” Unfortunately Summer Reading Program does not plan itself.

While the teachers are collapsing in relief at the thought of summer break, library staffers across the country are shifting into high gear. We pull out all the stops and decorate and plan and program our hearts out. It’s our busiest time of the year, and the most fun, and the most exhausting.

I highly recommend that you visit your local library soon and find out what is in the works for this summer; all of the local libraries have great stuff planned. Our Summer Reading Program starts on Monday, June 1. All ages can enter into prize drawings for the books they read and programs they attend. Here’s what we have planned at St. Clairsville Public Library.

Please call the library to register if you want to attend any of the programs; we started taking program registration two weeks ago and some of the programs are already using waitlists.

Babies:

Babies from 6-24 months are invited to join us for two special story times with Miss Linda.

Toddlers:

Children ages 2-5 will get to experience a taste of the ‘big kid’ programs at their very own sessions. Themes include Duplo blocks, Art, Science, Super Heroes, and Fun and Games.

Kids:

We have a lot of exciting programs planned for kids entering Kindergarten through 4th grade. We’re trying something new this year with three-day ‘camps’ planned most weeks. Our themes are Legos, Art, Science, Super Heroes, and Fun and Games. Kids can attend one, two, or all three days of these fun, two-hour sessions that will give them time to learn, explore and have fun – and give mom and dad time to check their Facebook and pick up a book or two without interruption!

In addition to our own hands-on Science camp, the Carnegie Science Center will present a couple of really cool programs on Wednesday, June 24th: “Build it Better,” and “Cool Chemistry.”

Teens:

Anthony will host a Lego Robotics camp using our awesome Lego Mindstorms EV3 robotics kits, with three days to build, program, and put the robots through their paces. Budding writers and illustrators can attend our creative writing workshop. Teens can learn the skills they need to take care of little ones in our babysitting workshop. Teens looking for excitement will enjoy our three day adventure camp. We also have two sessions of Tabletop Gaming planned for teens who would like to join a Pathfinder campaign or try out one of our awesome new board games.

We also have some awesome prizes set aside for teens to win, including a night at the Highlands, camping equipment, and a pair of sidewinders – they’re loops that you put on your feet that work like a cross between inline skates and a skateboard. Marty McFly would be impressed!

Adults:

Get fit at the library with our summer Yoga series; we have four sessions available to attend. Just bring a mat, towel, water, and be prepared to stretch and relax.

Photographers will enjoy our Nature Photography contest; it runs all summer and the grand prize is a membership to Oglebay Institute.

Our picnic last summer was a highlight for many; this year we will have a special guest to make it even better. Chef Matt Welsch of the Vagabond Kitchen in Wheeling will be joining us to talk about the restaurant and share one of his amazing dishes. Bring your favorite food and make copies of the recipe; unless it rains we will use the courtyard in front of the Belmont County Courthouse to enjoy our meal.

Our Friday afternoon book club will be meeting in June and July as usual, but this year we’ve added some Thursday evening sessions as well. The book for June is “Faith” by Jennifer Haigh, and we’ll read “The Hangman’s Daughter” by Oliver Potzsch in July.

Anthony is hosting a couple of unique two-part technology class sessions. In June, attendees can learn about using eBay, the online auction site; July offers a two-part class on cloud storage.

All-Ages/Family:

Premier Bank and Trust is sponsoring The Stevens Puppets; they tour nationally, and will perform their marionette show at the Rec Center on July 14th at 1 pm. You do not want to miss it!

Summer Reading will conclude this year with a pool party at Allen Pool, and everyone in the family is invited. We are planning to have Kirk’s Homemade Ice Cream and maybe some surprises as well.

As you can see we are going to have a busy summer, but we wouldn’t have it any other way. Don’t miss out on the fun; call or stop by today to find out more.

The St. Clairsville Public Library is located at 108 W. Main Street. We are open Monday- Wednesday 10-8, Thursday-Friday 10-6 and Saturday 10-2.

We can be reached at 740-695-2062 or www.stclibrary.org.