INDIANAPOLIS — More than 26,140 kids, teens, and adults took part in The Indianapolis Public Library’s 105th Summer Reading Program, which ended on July 31. Readers devoted 21,901,629 minutes to reading while earning prizes generously donated by community sponsors, far surpassing our goal of 18 million minutes read.
Throughout the Summer Reading Program, kids and families dropped off new and gently used books at book donation bins at each Library location. This allowed participants to give back to the community by donating more than 2,100 books to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Indianapolis.
A total of 22,755 kids participated in the 2024 Summer Reading Program. For the fourth consecutive year, kids kept track of the amount of time spent reading instead of the number of books read. This allowed participants of all reading levels to have an equal opportunity to earn prize. Prizes were earned at milestones of reading for 1 hour, 5 hours, 10 hours, 15 hours, and 20 hours. Participants were entered into drawings for grand prizes including Indiana529 Direct Savings Plans. This year, The Indianapolis Public Library introduced an Early Literacy Tracker that allowed families with children ages 0-5 to count any time spent reading, writing, singing, playing, and talking with their child toward their summer reading goal. In addition, more than 8,400 kids attended free summer reading programs such as Paws for a Cause or animal shows with Silly Safaris. The Library donated more than 280 tug toys and blankets to IndyHumane. These gifts were made by patrons at our Paws for a Cause programs this summer.
A total of 3,392 adults took part in Adult Summer Reading, where they completed reading challenges, tracked activities, and earned prizes. In addition, more than 2,000 adults took part in programs such as coffee brewing 101 with the Indianapolis Coffee Guide, gardening classes, and gaming programs.