Summer Reading Fun Program at Cumming Elementary School

Submitted by Kim Ottesen

Thanks to a grant from the North Georgia Community Foundation, our Outreach crew was able to add some summer reading magic for the kids attending Cumming Elementary Summer School. The summer school was for academically struggling kids who receive free or reduced lunch. Every Thursday morning in June, library staff arrived at the end of the summer school day to deliver quality books, a bag of healthy snacks, and an amazing summer reading program. 

Karina put on a bilingual storytime one week, and the students loved it. About 90% of the kids are from homes where Spanish is their first language. They loved hearing Karina read to them in Spanish. While reading one book, she read “Ay, caramba!” in an exasperated tone, and some of the kids giggled. 

For three of the weeks, the library provided the same awesome performers we have in the branches for summer reading. Arthur Atsma wowed the children with his magic show. Kathy Crane from Georgia Wildlife Resources presented “Snakes Alive!” to an audience who wasn’t sure they wanted to be there. So many of these kids (and teachers) were scared of snakes. Kathy’s informative and entertaining presentation demystified snakes, and everyone seemed more comfortable knowing her top advice is to leave snakes alone. The final presenter was John Mark Bowman from Talewise. The science experiments were just the type kids love - big, explosive, and a little messy. 

Each week the children had a different selection of books to choose from that staff paired with the programs. After the program, students lined up to choose their books, grab a bag of healthy snacks, and choose a couple of pieces of fruit. Nectarines caused a bit of confusion one week because only half the children knew what they were.

The last week we had a special surprise for the children- a science kit! Each child received a science-themed sling backpack with a book (Awesome Science Experiments for Kids by Crystal Chatterton) and supplies to complete four experiments. They were excited! Even the teachers were impressed. One of them took a picture of  Awesome Science Experiments for Kids and said she plans to purchase a copy to use for her lesson plans next year.