One Million Readers

CLA’s One Million Readers summer challenge helps engage even more community members with your summer programs!

 

Public library summer reading programs:

  • foster communities of readers and library users
  • help prevent summer learning loss in children and teens,
  • are entry points for community members to learn about the library’s resources, and
  • help adults model good reading habits for youth.

The more people who take part in library summer reading, learning and exploration programs, the greater impact your programs will have.

Why one million summer reading sign-ups?

How libraries can get involved

How other organizations and agencies can get involved

Resources to help libraries increase summer reading sign-ups

Why one million summer reading sign-ups?

Summer reading, learning and exploration programs help prevent summer learning loss. They offer dynamic learning opportunities for all ages, build community, and encourage and enable children, teens, and adults to read and explore all summer long. The more people who take part in summer programs, the greater impact we will have.

How libraries can get involved

Commit to increasing your summer reading participation and set a goal: Set a community target for your summer reading program and engage everyone in reaching it.

Social Media: Use the #onemillionreaders hashtag to promote the challenge, and let everyone know about your programs, local challenges, and sign-up numbers.

Use CLA’s summer reading resources: Browse the calchallenge.org website for ideas on creating effective partnerships, community outreach, and developing innovative programs that will increase summer reading participation.

Connect with your State Parks: Contact your local state park and ask park staff to hand out library materials and encourage park visitors to take part in summer reading. In return, bring back some state park materials to hand out at the library.

How partnering agencies can get involved

Please help us encourage more Californians to visit their local library and take part in a public library summer reading program this year. We welcome partnerships with local, statewide, and national agencies. Become a #onemillionreaders partner and inspire your community to read all summer long.

Resources to help libraries increase summer reading sign-ups

Ideas from the Summer @ Your Library Advisory Council

Outreach, outreach, outreach!

  • Take more staff out into the community, at festivals, the State Fair, and the County Fair: with more staff you can talk to more people.
  • Print more flyers to take to schools, daycares, other community agencies, and give to students.
  • Use giveaways and incentives at community events before the summer to create a buzzzzz! E.g. pencils, cow bells, and temporary tattoos.
  • Use social media: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram — use whatever your customers are using.
  • Let people know they CAN take part! Often people don’t know about the adult summer reading program.
  • Take part in community events like local parades or craft shows and wear your summer reading t-shirts!

In-Reach!

  • Summer is our opportunity to reach out to families in the community who aren’t enrolled in summer programs and bring them IN to the library.

Embrace the Spirit of the Challenge!

  • Set a community target and engage everyone in reaching it.
  • Get schools and other community groups on board to challenge kids to visit the library and take part in summer reading. Education World has some great examples of challenges that teachers and principals might issue to encourage their kids to read.
  • Challenge local schools to compete for the highest number of summer reading sign-ups.
  • Start a staff reading program so that everyone in the library is (summer) reading.
  • Use the #onemillionreaders hashtag to let us know what your challenge is!

Partnerships

Community partnerships will help you spread the word about the challenge and about how great your summer reading program is. CLA has resources to help you develop great community partnerships.

Engage your local summer learning programs with summer reading. Use CLA’s resources to help you work effectively with community-based summer learning programs.

Connect with broader literacy initiatives, e.g. the Campaign for Grade Level Reading, to help raise awareness about your program.

Outreach

Identify and reach out to people and groups that don’t typically take part in the summer reading program. CLA has resources to help you conduct community needs assessments and reach out to underserved groups. And if members of your community can’t come to the library for summer reading, take summer reading out to them!

Innovative programming

Lunch at the Library: Think beyond your traditional summer programming to engage new users. CLA’s Lunch at the Library program is just one example of a non-traditional summer reading program that is engaging new families with the library.

Local Media and Local Stakeholders

Gather stories, data, and images to tell your story to local media, and engage your local media contacts to help you raise awareness.

Invite local (regional, statewide, national) stakeholders to key library events, such as your summer reading kick off and community events with summer reading partners.

2017 One Million Readers summer challenge participating libraries:

Alhambra Civic Center Library, Anaheim Public Library, Azusa City Library, Beaumont Library District, Buena Park Library District, Calabasas Public Library, California State Library, Camarena Memorial Library, Contra Costa County Library, Covina Public Library, Daly City Public Library, Dixon Public Library, El Centro Public Library, Escondido Public Library, Glendale Library, Arts & Culture, Humboldt County Library, Inglewood Public Library – Crenshaw-Imperial Branch Library, Lompoc Public Library System, Los Angeles Public Library, Merced County Library – Los Banos Library, Mono County Free Library System, Monrovia Public Library, Monterey County Free Libraries, Monterey Park Bruggemeyer Library, Moreno Valley Public Library, Mountain View Public Library, Napa County Library, OC Public Libraries, Oceanside Public Library, Ontario City Library, Oxnard Public Library, Pasadena Public Library, Paso Robles City Library, Placentia Library District, Rancho Cucamonga Library, Riverside County Library System – Wildomar Library, Riverside Public Library, Saint Mary’s College of California Library, San Bruno Public Library, San Francisco Public Library, Santa Barbara Public Library, Santa Clara City Library, Santa Maria Public Library, Sonoma County Library, South San Francisco Public Library, St. Helena Public Library, Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation Tribal Library, Willows Public Library, Woodland Public Library, Yolo County Library

Thank you to our 2016 participating libraries:

A.K. Smiley Public Library, Alameda County Library, Alameda Free Library, Alhambra Civic Center Library, Amador County Library, Anaheim Public Library, Arcadia Public Library, Bear Valley Middle School Library, Buena Park Library District, Burbank Public Library, Butte County Library, Calabasas Public Library, Camarillo Public Library, California State Library, Chula Vista Public Library, City of Commerce Public Library, Coalinga Huron Library District, Contra Costa County Library,  County of Los Angeles Public Library, Covina Public Library, CSU Sacramento University Library, Del Norte County Library District, Desert Hot Springs Public Library, El Dorado County Library, Escondido Public Library, Folsom Public Library, Fullerton Public Library, Glendale Library, Arts & Culture, Glendora Public Library, Grace Mellman Community Library – Riverside County Library System, Harrison Memorial Library, Hayward Public Library, Humboldt County Library, Huntington Beach Public Library, Idyllwild Library – Riverside County Library System, Inglewood Public Library, Inyo County Free Library, Irvine Unified School District – Stonegate Elementary, Kern County Library, Lemoore Public Library – Kings County Library, Lodi Public Library, Lompoc Public Library, Long Beach Public Library, Los Angeles Public Library, Los Gatos Library, Mariposa County Library, Mendocino County Library, Mission Viejo Library, Mono County Free Library System, Monrovia Public Library, Monterey County Free Libraries, Monterey Park Bruggemeyer Library, Monterey Public Library, Moorpark City Library, Moreno Valley Public Library, Mountain View Public Library, Mt. Shasta Library, Murrieta Public Library, Nevada County Library, OC Public Libraries, Oceanside Public Library, Ontario City Library, Orange Public Library, Oxnard Public Library, Palm Springs Public Library, Palmdale City Library, Pasadena Public Library, Paso Robles City Library, Placentia Library District, Placer County Library, Plumas County Library, Rancho Cucamonga Public Library, Rancho Mirage Public Library, Redwood City Public Library, Riverside County Library System, Riverside Public Library, Roseville Public Library, Sacramento Public Library, San Anselmo Public Library, San Diego County Library, San Jose Public Library – Alum Rock, San Jose Public Library – Bascom Community Library, San Luis Obispo County Library, San Rafael Public Library, Santa Barbara Public Library, Santa Clara City Library, Santa Clara County Library District, Santa Clarita Public Library, Santa Cruz Public Libraries, Santa Maria Public Library, Shasta Public Libraries, Solano County Library, Sonoma County Library, South San Francisco Public Library, Sunnyvale Public Library, Sutter County Library – Yuba City, Tehama County Library,  Thousand Oaks Public Library, Torrance Public Library, Tulare County Library, Ventura County Library, Villa Park Library – OC Public Libraries, Wildomar Library – Riverside County Library System, Yolo County Library, Yorba Linda Public Library,