Sponsored by East Baton Rouge Parish Library

This summer, the East Baton Rouge Parish Library launches its summer reading program with fun and prizes for readers of all ages.

Children with parents or guardians who enjoy reading usually become readers themselves. It demonstrates to them that you consider reading to be important and that you enjoy it! With age-appropriate rewards and an easy app for tracking, everyone in the family will want to dive in to great books.

Summer reading helps to prevent the summer slide. When a reader regresses or lacks growth in reading skills during the summer months, it can have an extremely negative impact on a child’s academic progress in school. The summer slide can be avoided, and one of the easiest ways is to involve your child in the Library’s Summer Reading Program.

A cool new way to measure progress: Keeping track of reading logs is a thing of the past. This year, families love the Library’s new BEANSTACK app to keep up with everyone’s progress.  

Dive in! The Library has something for everyone this summer

Friday Night Movies on the Plaza

Every Friday night in June, enjoy a FREE movie in the plaza at the Main Library at Goodwood. Bring the family and your lawn chairs and picnic blankets. Visit the events calendar at ebrpl.com to learn more.

Other upcoming family fun:

—Harvey Rabbit and Friends

—Baton Rouge Youth Ballet presents The Great Candyland Adventure

— Johnette Downing presents Fins and Grins

— Daisy the Reading Pig: Pig Out on Reading!

Especially for Teens & Tweens

This summer, the Library has plenty of exciting programs for teens in grades 6-12. They will love the age-appropriate activities including arts and crafts, STEAM projects, escape rooms, gaming and more! For tweens and teens ages 12-18 and/or grades 6-12, the Teen Summer Reading Program was designed specifically for them. Just by signing up, they earn Library Bucks they can use to pay off fines. For every 210 minutes they read, they’ll be entered into a weekly drawing for awesome prizes. Reading 630 minutes gets them a prize pack (while supplies last) and more Library Bucks! Sign up online at https://ebrpl.beanstack.org. The top Teen Reader in the parish will earn a set of Apple AirPods.

STEM Kickoff: June 1, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Meet Louisiana organizations who use science and technology to make a difference. Want to see live beehives? Want to learn how the nuclear power plant that keeps our city running works? Want to stare at the sun with a special telescope? 10/10, yes! This is just a fraction of what’s happening. Seriously, this will be fun.

NOVAC Film Camps:

Once again, NOVAC:BR is partnering with your local library branch to bring FREE filmmaking summer camps to teens ages 13-17! Students will learn the basics of video production, including design, storyboarding, production, effects, and more through the hands-on process of creating a video under the guidance of an experienced local filmmaker. The final projects for each camp will premiere at the Main Library on Wednesday August 3 at 6 p.m. There will be eight camps this year. Teens may only sign up for one Summer Film Camp. Registration begins May 16.

— Main Library: June 6-10, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
— River Center: June 6-10, 2-5 p.m.
— Bluebonnet: June 13-17,  10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
— Central: June 13-17, 2-5 p.m.
— Jones Creek: June 20-24, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
— Scotlandville: June 20-24, 2-5 p.m.
— Greenwell Springs: June 27-July 1, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
— Carver: June 27-July 1, 2-5 p.m.

Career Center’s Cool Careers Series:

Every Wednesday in June, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Main Library, 7711 Goodwood, Blvd. Various experts will discuss some of the most in-demand careers and share their personal experiences in their chosen fields. Register at careercenterbr.com/events

— June 1: Emergency Heroes, Emergency Medical Technicians, Firefighters, Police, National Guard, Red Cross
— June 8: Forensic Science, LSU FACES Lab, State Police, DNA, Criminalistics, Forensic Pathology
— June 15: Crafts and Construction, Carpenter, Mason, Electrician, Plumber, HVAC, Welder, Mechanic
— June 22: Healthcare, Nurse, Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant, Medical Biller/Coder, Pharmacy Technician, Phlebotomist
— June 29: Young Entrepreneurs, Digital Art, Real Estate, Inventors, Artificial Intelligence, Video Games

For more details and a complete schedule of events, visit ebrpl.com.