Isle of Man Guide

The Family library is inspiring young people to read their way through the school holidays in a top-secret Summer Reading Challenge

Youngsters on the island will have their school holidays booked up this summer as part of an exciting nationwide library promotion.

The eighth annual Summer Reading ChallengeTM will see four to twelve year-olds make the most of their long break from the classroom by following a top secret ‘Reading Mission’ in the library. Children will be set the challenge of reading six or more books of their own choice during the holidays—and those who complete the mission qualify to become special Reading Agents.

The Family Library will be helping children every step of the way. Each participant will receive a Reading Mission pack in the style of a special agent attaché case, containing full details of their challenge, code-busting puzzles, tips on reading and help with charting their progress through the six books. Library staff will be on hand to encourage children in their reading and suggest interesting books for them to try.

‘Mission Accomplished’ medals and certificates will reward those who finish the challenge, offering a great incentive for children to build a love of books and improve their reading skills. All of these great resources are available from the library for free.

Mary Cousins, Librarian in Charge, says: “We hope as many local children as possible will accept this exciting mission and enjoy a summer of reading. The Family Library will help children explore the wonderful world of books, and parents will find it’s the perfect way to keep their youngsters happy in the long summer break!”

Lynne Taylor, project manager of the Summer Reading Challenge, says: “This is a great way to give children a school holiday to remember. The secret mission theme of this year’s scheme will appeal to children’s interest in detectives and special agents, and help the Summer Reading Challenge to go from strength to strength.”

The Summer Reading ChallengeTM is run by the Reading Agency and involves libraries across the UK. Since its launch in 1999, it has become the UK’s biggest promotion of children’s reading. Around 600,000 children took part in last year’s event, with 48,000 joining their local library specially to do so. Participants borrowed an amazing 16 million books from library shelves across the nation in 2005. The scheme has also been rolled out in 26 other countries with the help of British Council offices around the world.

The challenge inspires children to read for fun, broaden their horizons and talk about books with their friends. They enjoy the freedom to choose whatever they want to read from the wealth of books that libraries have to offer, and the challenge element of the scheme gives them an incentive to read and a sense of achievement on finishing. It is not a competition but a personal challenge to all children.

Families are being asked to encourage children to sign up for the challenge and support them as much as possible. A leaflet is available to explain ways they can help, and Reading Mission fridge magnets will also be available to remind parents to take their children to the library.

The Family Library is in Nobles Hall on Westmorland Road, Douglas. Opening times are:

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