Fort Erie kids can earn prizes all summer just for reading
June 23, 2026 at 3:39 AM
Fort Erie Public Library wants to get children reading all summer, and it is paying out prizes to prevent what educators call the “summer slide,” the loss of reading ability that sets in when school lets out for the break.
Last year 472 Fort Erie kids signed up for the library’s free TD Summer Reading Club and read about 6,000 books between them. This year the library thinks it can get more than 550 children to read 8,000 books.
“We just want to give prizes and incentives to have the kids read through the summer,” said Serena Mariage, the children’s and teen librarian at Fort Erie Public Library.
Children can register at any branch and pick up a kit with a reading booklet where they write down each book they finish and rate it out of five stars.
Every five books earns a reward, starting with a sticker after reading five books, and a button and a small prize after reading 10. The rewards climb until the child reads 100 books, after which they collect a prize the library makes on its own 3D printer. Then the count resets and the child starts again.
Each book a child returns also enters them in a draw for a grand prize at the end of the month. The prizes split into three age groups: zero to six, six to 13, and 14 and up. This month one of the prizes is a hoverboard.
The library counts every kind of reading the same way. A 14-year-old who picks up a picture book gets the same credit as anyone else.
“We kind of just want to encourage everyone to read at all reading levels,” said Mariage. “We want to meet people where they are.”
This year’s reading club theme is “Dive In,” and the suggested titles are about oceans and water.
The library’s recommended reading list includes titles such as ‘Don’t Trust Fish’ by Neil Sharpson and ‘Everything You Know About Sharks is Wrong’ by Nick Crumpton.
The library will also run themed programs every week for 10 weeks. The first week is pirate week, with treasure-themed slime making and a message-in-a-bottle craft.
Families can sign up for the reading club in person. There is no online registration.
A parent gives a child’s name and age at the front desk, picks up the kit and the child can start reading.
The club is free and runs all summer at every library branch.
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About The Author
Andrew Hawlitzky
Andrew is a Niagara community journalist who has covered everything from local politics to annual festivals and breaking news. He works to make local news a platform where community voices lead the conversation. "If you don't like the news, go out and make some!"
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