SMU partners with Dallas Mayor's Summer Reading Club

From the Dallas Mayor's Office announcement:

Join thousands of Dallas kids, families and adults who make reading their favorite pastime with the 2015 Mayor’s Summer Reading Club. 

Read a book, newspaper or magazine, listen to an audiobook or read it on a tablet, whether at home, on vacation, in the park or on the bus. 

The free eight-week program, June 6 - Aug. 1, encourages reading at least 30 minutes a day. 

The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club is a family affair, open to children and adults of all ages. Sign up at any of the 29 Dallas library locations, the Dallas Public Library’s Bookmobile, online at dallaslibrary.org, or at the kick-off parties held June 6-13 at all branches. (Check with each local branch for dates and times of kick-off parties.)

Young club members can earn weekly incentive prizes – from free books and fun foods to zoo, circus and baseball tickets – simply by reporting that they have read 30 minutes per day in person at any Dallas Public Library or online at dallaslibrary.org. Grand-prize drawings will be held for kids who read at least 30 minutes a day for eight weeks. Adults can also enter for grand prize drawings by logging books they read. 

Yard signs from SMU announcing "A Summer Reader Lives Here" also will be among the prizes, as well as tickets and gift certificates to Chipotle Mexican Grill, Dallas Children’s Theater, Dallas Zoo, LEGOLAND Discovery Center, Nasher Sculpture Center, RaceTrac, Ringling Bros. Circus, SMU’s Meadows Museum, SMU soccer games and the Texas Rangers.

The rules for the Club are simple. Each week, participating young club members will have a chance to earn an incentive prize by reporting what they read. To earn the weekly prize, children ages 0 to 18 must read (or be read to) at least 30 minutes each day. Three of the weekly prizes will include a new book for Reading Club participants up to 18 years of age. All readers may report any reading material, including books, e-books, audiobooks and magazines.

Adult club members must report each book they read and write a short review. Each review counts as an entry in the prize drawings held in week four and week eight of the club.

The Mayor's Summer Reading Club is presented by Walmart and Sam’s Club. Program sponsors include SMU; Alliance Data; Capital One; The Dallas Foundation; Dallas Mavericks; FirstSouthwest, LLC; Goldman Sachs; KPMG; Mary Kay; and Texas Instruments (TI).

At the May 19 announcement, Mayor Rawlings thanked Walmart and Sam’s Club for once again joining the effort as presenting sponsor.

Also speaking at the announcement was Brad E. Cheves, vice president for SMU's Development and External Affairs: "The University believes in the importance of out-of-school time programs and how programs such as the summer reading club keep students on track with reading at their grade level so they are ready when school starts again in the fall.

"We recognize that an early mastery of reading contributes directly to academic success," Cheves continued. "I hope you all know that reading is an essential skill for your future college and career success, especially if you want to come to school at SMU."

Mayor Rawlings thanked KPMG for donating 10,000 books to pre-school and elementary school children this year. Students from St. Anthony School and Dallas ISD’s Cesar Chavez Elementary School were on hand for the announcement, along with SMU’s mascot Peruna, Mavs Man, Mavs ManiAACs, Dallas Mavericks dancers and KPMG’s mascot Kiffle. 

In addition to prizes, weekly activities will be held at the Dallas library branches throughout the summer. 

For the second year, The Dallas Foundation stepped up to fund the STEAM initiative, which represents STEM programs (science, technology, engineering and math) and arts education. The weekly STEAM activities will include the science and art of color, building bridges, marvelous marble runs/rocking roller coasters (potential and kinetic energy and velocity), electromagnetic spectrum and light, and other interactive activities. In addition, the Dallas libraries will offer entertainment and performers including puppet shows, juggling workshops, science shows, yoga classes, musicians and bird shows, plus interactive programs presented by partner organizations such as Dallas Children’s Theater, Dallas Museum of Art and the Perot Museum of Nature and Science.

The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club and all summer programming at Dallas Public Library are big parts of the Dallas City of Learning. Children can track all the learning they do during the summer — at the Library, at camp, at museums and all the other places around Dallas — at dallascityoflearning.org. City of Learning connects students to activities that interest them and helps them find new things to explore.

For more than 40 years, the Dallas Public Library’s summer reading program has encouraged more than 250,000 children to read. The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club is a collaborative effort between the City of Dallas Mayor’s Office, the Dallas Public Library, Dallas ISD and dozens of community sponsors and donors. 

To sign up or learn more, go to dallaslibrary.org/msrc or call 214-670-1671.