When I was a children’s librarian I always spoke with great pride about the role of the public library in slowing the loss of kids’ educational levels over the summer.  Nice to know that nothing has changed, libraries are still vital, kids still need us.  Wonderfully, the partnership of libraries and families is what leads to stronger communities as a whole.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services has some figures to make your case even stronger.  Did you know that the average student who doesn’t read or engage in learning activities over the summer can lose as much as 2.5 months of learning over the course of the summer?!  And how many of our children pass the summer parked in front of a TV in the cool air conditioning or playing video games?  Let’s get them outside, reading, playing imaginative games, engaging their brains and being active learners!  And libraries can help!