Set sail for an Ocean of Possibilities - Summer Reading 2023 is here!
Oh buoy, are we excited about this year’s summer reading program! Read and log your progress to earn fun badges and milestone prizes. Little minnows can earn a free book, and finishers PreK through Adult get a t-shirt. We’re not trying to pier-pressure you into joining, but we think you’ll have a whale of a good time!
Registration opens on June 1st for all ages and the challenge runs through July 31. Enroll anytime during the challenge to dive into the fun!
HOW DO I PARTICIPATE?
Log your progress via the Beanstack tracker app:
If you prefer to track your reading on paper, print a log below or pick one up at the library:
Keep track of your books or hours of reading. Then come to either library location or call at 847-458-6060 (ext 135 for Youth or ext 143 for Teen and Adult) to log your books with us. We will alert you to any prizes you've earned! Want to know more about the goals and prizes? Read on below.
Collect points for completing activities, reading 3 books or reading for 1 hour. All youth readers earn milestone prizes at 8 points and 16 points like coupons and a squishy water ball. With each point, AAPLD cardholders also earn a ticket to enter our prize basket drawings. Collect 24 points to complete the challenge and earn a free book and Kona Ice coupon. Kids Preschool to Grade 8 also receive a Summer Reading t-shirt!
Read for 24 hours to complete your challenge and earn a Summer Reading t-shirt, paperback book, and an invitation to the teens only end of Summer Reading pool party on August 5! There are prizes & coupons to be earned along the way, too. Each hour read earns AAPLD cardholders an entry in the grand prize drawings. Earn additional grand prize entries by attending teen programs, volunteering, or sharing reviews in Beanstack.
All adult readers earn coupons for their first two books read and a Summer Reading t-shirt when they finish their third book! In addition, every book AAPLD cardholders read this summer earns a drawing ticket (limit 15) for themed prizes.
This year's GRAND prizes!
While all readers can enjoy the milestone prizes mentioned above, Summer Reading also earns AAPLD cardholders tickets for chances to win grand prizes like a Lake Michigan Dinner Cruise (Adults), a $50 Amazon Gift Card (Teen and Youth), Brookfield Zoo passes (Youth and Baby/Toddler) and more! The Summer Reading grand prize winners will be drawn and notified the week of August 7.
Baby/Toddler
Youth
Teens
Adult
Community Goals
Work together to reach our community goals!
Adults - 5,000 books read
Teens - 2,000 hours of reading
Kids - 35,000 books read and 13,500 hours of reading
Explore books AND YOUR COMMUNITY!
Stella the Starfish, Daphne the Dolphin, and Claude the Crab, oh my! Support 10 local businesses and pick up a scavenger hunt sheet when you register for Summer Reading at either Library location. The hunt begins June 1.
Kids can match the sea creature to the local business where they found them. As for the adults, challenge yourself with a crossword puzzle designed to test your wits. Return completed worksheets to the Library by August 5 to earn an entry into a raffle for another great prize.
FAQs
Beanstack is our online reading program software where you can track all your reading progress.
You can reset your password yourself within the Beanstack sign-in page.
Still stuck? Contact the Library via phone at 847-458-6060 or fill out the Contact Us form.
Try your Library card number or email address.
If this doesn't work, contact the Library via phone at 847-458-6060 or fill out the Contact Us form.
While the Library has a wide variety of titles in our collection of over 225,000+ books, ebooks, & audiobooks for you to enjoy, books from anywhere (including your home or other libraries) count towards your goals this summer. Do you like to reread old favorites? Those count! Do you love graphic novels? They count! Does your toddler want to hear the same book five times in a row? Great! That counts as five books towards their goal. Do you read in multiple languages? That all counts! Do you prefer to listen to audiobooks? Audiobooks are reading, too!
For Baby/Toddler and Youth, anything they read or that is read-aloud to them by another counts towards their Reading Challenge.
For Teens, your challenge is based on how many hours of reading you are doing. Reading can take place in many formats. Novels, comics, magazines, newspapers, graphic novels, audiobooks, and ebooks all count towards your Reading Challenge.
For Adults, print books, eBooks, and audiobooks all count towards your Reading Challenge.
Yes. You can set up as many profiles as you like, for readers of any age. If you’re a parent who reads aloud to more than one kid at a time, you can credit that reading time to multiple children’s accounts with a single click—no need to log it in separately for each child.
No. An AAPLD library card is not required and all are welcome to participate whether your card is from another library or you don’t have a card at all.
However, prizes must be picked up in person and will not be sent via mail to participants. Eligibility for grand prizes is limited to AAPLD cardholders. Non-AAPLD participants are qualified for milestone rewards (e.g. T-shirts, coupons, etc.). For further clarification, please call us at 847-458-6060.
Log Online:
- Click on the Sign In button to get to your Beanstack account.
- Click the Log Reading and Activities button in the upper left corner. To log for different readers, change the reader in the drop-down menu on the upper right.
Log using the Beanstack Tracker app:
- Download the Beanstack Tracker app to get started: Google Play iOS
- To log your reading, flip your book over and use your phone to scan the barcode on the back. For Teen and Youth challenge participants, be sure to add the number of minutes or hours that you read where applicable.