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Sylvan Lake youth set to grow through Summer Reading Program

This year’s program will focus on the natural world through books, crafts, activities and gardening
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File Photo.

The Sylvan Lake Municipal Library is gearing up for another summer of the TD Summer Reading Program.

This year participants of the community-favourite program will learn about the natural world.

Summer Reading Program Coordinator Alecia Daniels says participants will learn through activities, crafts and reading about the natural world.

In particular, those signed up with the program will be tending to a garden, which will produce food for the library’s Little Free Pantry.

“I’m really excited for the community garden,” said Daniels. “I’m really hoping the kids take to it and will learn a bit about plants and the growing process.”

The garden will hopefully produce vegetables for the Little Free Pantry, ones that are easier to grow.

Daniels says she is hoping to grow vegetables like beans and peas with the kids, but “definitely no tomatoes.”

“I am looking at easier veggies to grow, so the kids will enjoy the process,” she said.

The program is divided up into age groups, with specific activities tailored to each group.

The ages two to six category, will focus more on play time and stories, according to Daniels.

This is also the most popular category for the Summer Reading Program and fills up quickly.

“We generally cap it around 20 kids for each group, and then have a wait list. Though kids don’t come everyday, so sometimes there is space.”

This year Daniels combined two age groups into one, creating the ages seven through 12 category.

She said this group will work more in the garden and have more involved crafts and science experiments.

“I chose to do it this way because I thought the older kids can help the younger ones with the projects,” Daniels said.

A day for teenagers to participate in the program is also planned. Last year, Daniels hopped to have more teenagers involved.

This year she hopes to grow the relationships she created with the group last year.

“At the beginning of the session I asked them what sort of things they wanted to do and try, and built the program around that. I think it went over pretty well,” she said.

Finally, Daniels has added a second French group, as it was the most widely asked for.

“So we will have two French groups, one for ages four to eight and another for those ages nine and up,” Daniels said, adding the French program will meet on Mondays.

The Summer Reading Program will begin on July 2, and run until Aug. 23, with a kick-off party planned for June 22.

To register for the program, or for more information, contact the Sylvan Lake Municipal Library.