We're halfway through Summer Reading!

The first half of our Summer Reading program here at the Watertown Free Public Library has been a great success! 266 readers have signed up and together we’ve logged 783 hours! We’ve already reached our first two reading goals, so we’ve been able to donate a flock of chicks and honeybees to Heifer International!

We’ve also been growing a garden that kids have helped us maintain. We’ve already harvested basil, spearmint, a pepper and, just recently, our very first tomato!

The summer has been full of wonderful programs! Here's a recap of a handful of them.

We started the summer with a Kick-Off program where kids signed up and got to make their own buttons!

Each week, kids have participated in grade-level book discussions in our Lunch Bunch program, always followed by delicious pizza donated by Regina Pizzeria.

Families have loved our weekly music programs, each Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. These programs are perfect for the 5 and under crowd. We’ve enjoyed Ed Morgan, Kids ‘N Harmony, and just look at the kids dancing with Debbie and Friends!

Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m. we have programs for elementary aged children. Illusionist David Garrity dazzled us with Magic and Beyond. Kids learned about a wide variety of animals in our Animal World Experience program (pictured above), and even got to hold some of them. PuppeTree presented a fantastic rendition of the classic picture book Caps for Sale. And Keith Michael Johnson presented the fun and educational Wild about Weather.

Every Thursday, kids in grades 3-5 get a chance for some hands-on participation in Mad Science! So far they’ve learned about Electricity, Mad Messages, and Energy Burst! The Energy Burst program (pictured above) included learning about kinetic energy using catapults.

Fridays, kids in grades K-5 have a chance for some Unplugged fun! We started with a Super Hero Party (pictured above) where kids showed off their super powers playing “Pass the Cryptonite.” They’ve also created Candy Sculptures, and read to therapy dogs in our Dog B.O.N.E.S. program.

To see more photos of our amazing programs, check out our Facebook page! And be sure to check out our online calendar to find out what’s going on for the rest of the summer! There’s still tons of fun on the way!