[Publib] Summer Reading Program

[Cris Adams]

Greetings from a very hot part of New Mexico!

For the past several years, my children's staff have been frustrated and
disappointed in the attendance of their Summer Reading Program.  They plan
for so long, publicize it, and put together excellent, enjoyable weekly
programs for 6 weeks for the kids based on different age levels.  There are
stories, puppet shows, and crafts that the children who attend enjoy.  But
sometimes the attendance is so low (yesterday for the 3rd and 4th grade
program there were only three).

What we're seeing is a tremendous competition for the attention of area
children among the city departments and local churches, and the library's
programs are suffering as a result.  Vacation Bible School is a very
important summer program here, and that's great.  I don't really think our
main competition is from that---it's from the all-day Summer Recess program
that our Parks and Recreation Dept. conducts.  

The kids can participate in crafts, swimming, sports, and lots of other
events starting at 7 a.m. and going until 5 p.m.  So, naturally, some
parents see this as an excellent way of keeping their kids active during the
summer, while others use it as a babysitter.  Consequently, the one-hour
programs we have on Tues. and Wed. mornings and afternoons aren't so
well-attended.  The special guest programs we have on Thursday afternoons
(professional magician, Zoo-to-You, Science Spectrum, etc.) draw a better
audience.

Have some of the others of you seen this same trend?  And if so, how have
you overcome?  We start our program in early June and continue to mid-July
but stay away from August completely due to the county fair and
back-to-school stuff.  Any ideas?

Thanks in advance,
Cris Adams, Director
Hobbs Public Library
509 N. Shipp
Hobbs, NM   88240