Children Grow Brainier Over the Summer

Dunedin (Friday 10 December 2010) - Children across Dunedin will be getting some serious brain food this summer with the launch of the Dunedin Public Libraries’ Summer Reading Programme, starting Monday 13 December.

This year’s theme is ‘Grow Your Mind’, which is exactly what the programme has been reputed to do according to teachers and parents of school children who have taken part in previous years. It seems that children who keep reading over the summer holidays maintain or even improve their reading level for the new school year.

This year, the programme has been inspired by the Dunedin Botanic Garden and gardens close to our local libraries. Members of the programme will discover a mission to get active all over Dunedin, from saying ‘hello’ to talking birds to hugging sculptures and climbing webs.

To join the challenge, children set their own target number of books to read during the summer and register at any of the Dunedin Public Libraries. They receive a fun-filled booklet to record their progress and a map of the Dunedin Botanic Garden to help them start their mission. The booklet also contains reading suggestions and stimulating activities and puzzles that support them as they progress.

The beauty of this programme is that it is completely free, can be taken anywhere, fit around any family plans and will keep children quietly entertained for hours.

As children reach their reading goal, they can extend their target, and any child who reaches or exceeds their goal at the end of the holidays will receive a gift pack courtesy of Dunedin Public Libraries, the University Book Shop and Moana Pool.

The Grow Your Mind Summer Reading Programme opens on Monday 13 December and runs till Saturday 5 February.

ENDS

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