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‘All Together Now’
SIKESTON — The Sikeston Public Library’s 2023 Summer Reading Program has been ongoing for over a month, and this summer they have focused on spreading kindness across the community.
The program is an eight-week program, and this year’s topic for the Summer Reading Program is “All Together Now,” which began in early June and will conclude on July 29 at the Sikeston Public Library.
Lisa Munger, children’s librarian at Sikeston Public Library, said three speakers came out on the first three Mondays of June this year.
In June, Circus Kaput with Steve the Magician performed magic, Animal Tales: Edzoocation brought real animals and discussed how animals cooperate together, and Jay and Leslie’s Laughing Matters presented “United We Laugh” with magic and stunts.
Munger discussed this year’s summer reading program theme, and what it means and signifies.
“All Together Now represents making the community a better place,” Munger said. “Learning about being good helpers.
“With the little ones, we have learned about being good community helpers, and we have had a lot of teamwork activities with the older kids.”
Munger added that the hands-on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) room returned this summer in July and has been all hands-on activities.
Also this summer, the Library held au food collection for Sikeston PAWS in June and are holding a food drive for the Bulldog Pantry in July.
Munger said the summer reading program serves many underprivileged communities and that they work with Lincoln University, Early Head Start, DAEOC’s program, for infants and toddlers from low-income families and the YMCA.
“The summer reading program is beneficial because it allows kids to know what the library is, and what it has, and that reading isn’t just a chore that you have to do in school,” Munger said. “It gets children interested in reading and doing things here earlier.”
According to Munger, during the Summer Reading Program, they offer books to Lincoln University and the YMCA to ensure kids can keep up with their reading skills before returning to school in the the fall.
On Monday, the Summer Reading Program focused on encouraging others, and Munger read books on encouragement.
“We have to be able to encourage other people, tell them they are doing a good job, and give each other compliments,” Munger said.
“Hair to Share” was one of the novels Munger read to the children.
“Hair to Share is about a little girl who donates her hair to her friend because her friend has no hair, and it’s just a really good book,” Munger said.
Munger then went on to discuss the project the kids did on Monday.
“The project is focused on words of encouragement, they have to write encouraging words to someone else, and then give it to them,” Munger said.
Munger said children do not have to be from Sikeston to attend and they are welcome to participate in the summer reading program even if they do not have a library card, and she encouraged youngsters to come out for the remainder of this year’s reading program.