FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 27th 2006
Asphodel-Norwood --- The TD Summer Reading Club is back. This time we’re on a Quest For Heroes!  Play games, win prizes! Read your way through the summer and earn an invitation to our super silly and ridiculously fun, 'Captain Underpants' party!

With summer’s lure of beaches, parks, city streets and country lanes, it’s easy for kids to forget about the joys and rewards of reading. And summer reading can be so much fun. We have to remind them that they can become wild about Harry, fold cranes with Sadako or admire the courage of Despereaux. Reading, or listening to someone else read, introduces us to a world of wonderful characters and people.

“Quest for Heroes” is the theme of this year’s TD Summer Reading Club at the Norwood & Westwood Public Libraries.  Summer Reading Club is a self-directed reading program and each child who joins will receive a poster and activity booklet to keep track of the books they read. They’ll also get weekly stickers, and there will be fun activities, Hero visits, arts & crafts and a chance to win weekly prizes at both branches. This free Asphodel-Norwood Public Library program takes place from July thru August. 

Children of all ages are invited to become NorwoodTownship's “Extreme Readers” by reading in the library, reading at home, reading at the beach or anywhere they can throughout the summer. According to the findings of a recent literature review prepared for Library and Archives Canada, children can experience significant learning loss over the summer months, particularly in their reading levels. Over time, the amount of learning lost can equal up to one month on a grade-level equivalent scale - a significant learning gap at a crucial educational stage. The research also found that programs such as the TD Summer Reading Club were valuable tools in maintaining and improving children's reading performance over the summer months.

“There will be a "Quest for Heroes" activity every week at both of our Branches.  The fun starts in Norwood, Tuesday July 11th from 2:30-3:30 p.m. and in Westwood, Thursday July 13th from 6:30-7:30 p.m."  says librarian Laura Acs. For information about weekly summer library activities for children, please visit your local library branch, or call 705-639-2228. “With so much to offer, it's not surprising that the Club is so popular!  Kids get to discover new books and read throughout the whole summer,” adds Acs. “The best part is that all our Quest for Heroes activities are free. Kids participating in our Summer Reading Club will also have the chance to write book reviews for the local newspapers."

“Our hope is to inspire children to have a lifelong love of reading and an appreciation for libraries,” comments Acs, "Summer reading clubs provide the perfect setting in which to spark the imagination of young people and give them an outlet to develop a life-long passion for reading in a setting that is fun, friendly and safe."

Participation in the Asphodel-Norwood Summer Reading Program is free and open to all children (those who are five and younger must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver). For more information about registration, program details and events, visit your local Library Branch or call 639-2228.  Come and enjoy a summer of fun at your local library!
Contact:

• Laura Acs, Librarian or Glen MacVichie, Program Coordinator, 639-2228

The TD Summer Reading Club is sponsored by TD Bank Financial Group in co-operation with the Toronto Public Library and Library and Archives Canada. A team of children's librarians from the public libraries of Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal developed the theme and the materials for the program. The participating regions are: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
                                                                                                ###

Laura Acs
Asphodel-Norwood Public Library
2363 County Road 45, PO Box 100
Norwood, ON K0L 2V0
(705) 639-2228

http://www.asphodelnorwood.com/library_page.htm