Summer Reading Program The Friends has provided extensive support for children's programs at the Saint Paul Public Library, particularly the Summer Reading Program, which annually features approximately 150 free performances for children and families throughout the Library system, encouraging kids to keep up their reading skills over the summer through programming and incentives.

Attendance last year was nearly 15,500 at programs held in the Library system’s 13 locations.  This represented a 10% increase in attendance from 2004, buoyed in part by programs being planned so that more families could attend after work or on the weekends. 

Another change to the program last year was that the only incentives (or prizes) given to our readers were books – and it resulted in a 69% increase in the number of 10-book readers.  Nearly half of all 10-book readers went on to read twenty books.  The number of teens meeting their reading goal increased by 5%. The books for their incentives were selected with the help of the Teen Council at the Highland Park Branch Library. 

Of the readers who achieved the 10-book goal, almost 30% were ages seven and eight. In light of the strong correlation between summer reading and student achievement (children in every income group who read six or more books over the summer gain more in reading achievement than children who do not), we are pleased to reconfirm that the Summer Reading Program is supportive of literacy for Saint Paul’s children.

	Saturday LIVE! In addition to specific Summer Reading Program presentations, Central Library hosted 14 Saturday LIVE! programs in 2005 with over 1,000 attendees. Kids and their families join us every Saturday in the Central Library's Youth Services area for this great, FREE series of events.

The Friends regularly supports Saturday LIVE! at Central Library, and has created an endowment to support puppet shows at Central Library, as well.

Storytimes
One of the most extensive children's activities at the Saint Paul Public Library is the Storytime program. The Library offers more than 250 free storytimes each year at every branch in the system. Each storytime is aimed at a particular age range.

The Library also offers a variety of focused storytimes, such as an on-going ASL storytime program for deaf and hard-of-hearing children at the Merriam Park Branch Library. Storytimes are presented in American Sign Language and an  interpreter translates the story for the hearing members of the audience. Lap-Sit storytime, designed for our youngest group of listeners, can include the whole family. They last about 20 minutes and feature stories, songs, flannelboards, puppets, and fingerplays. Reading to babies introduces them to the idea of books, stimulates their senses, and prepares them for reading. Active participation by parents and children in a Lap-Sit program encourages mutual enjoyment of storytime. Bedtime Stories are intended for children who are unable to attend library storytimes during the day, and for those who enjoy captivating stories at bedtime. Youngsters may wear pajamas and bring a stuffed "friend" to experience a variety of stories, flannelboards, songs, and other activities. Bedtime stories last about 30 minutes.

	For schedules and more details on youth programs and services for educators at the Saint Paul Public Library, visit the Library's website at www.sppl.org.