Summer Reading 2026
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Who Can Participate?
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Residents of North Haven – You will need to provide child’s or parent’s library card in order to join.
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Children of Town of North Haven employees – You will need to provide your Town I.D. number to join.
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Grandchildren of North Haven residents – You will need to provide your grandparent’s library card to join.
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Non-Resident North Haven public school students – You will need to provide child’s or parent’s library card from your home library in order to join.
How to Participate
Children entering Kindergarten through 5th grade must register in person at the North Haven Library’s Children's Department. Registration begins on June 1st, but reading and logging starts on June 22nd through August 14th.
Children ages 0-4 can participate in Rubber Ducky Club 2026! (More information at bottom of page)
If you have any questions, a staff member in the Children's Department will be happy to help you.
The Rules Are Simple:
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Register for this year's Summer Reading Challenge at the Children's Service Desk. All Summer Reading will be recorded on your paper log.
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Starting on June 22nd, read for 20 minutes a day Monday through Friday, for 30 weekdays. This year, we are taking the weekends off! Reading on Saturday and Sunday is great for your brain, but it will not count towards Summer Reading days. Be sure to log your reading by coloring in a space for each weekday you read.
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Visit the library to play our life-sized, interactive gameboard. You will play one station for each weekday that you have read 20 minutes or more.
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You will earn coins and raffle tickets along the way. You will be able to collect your raffle ticket any time after you've played the mini games. This year, the Prize Shop is open all summer long! You can spend your coins as soon as you earn them. Please pay close attention to what Summer Reading Day it is. You will only be able to redeem your coins if we have reached or passed that day at the library.
Tips for Reading Out Loud with Your Child
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Make reading time part of your child’s routine. Try reading a book in the morning when your child wakes up, after lunchtime, before naptime or before bedtime—see what works best for your child.
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Make reading time exciting. Read using different voices for different characters or pick books with simple songs and rhymes.
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Make reading time interesting. Let your child pick out the books they want you to read out loud to them based on their interests or pictures that they like on the cover of a book.
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Make reading time comforting. Children love hearing the same books over and over again. It’s okay to read the same book multiple times!
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Make reading time interactive. As your child gets older, ask them questions about what’s happening in the pictures on each page or what they think might happen next.
*You must redeem your raffle tickets and coins by the last day, August 14th before 4 P.M. After that date, you will not be able to earn or redeem any raffle tickets or prizes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, but 20 minutes is all we require.
No, you can read for as long as you want, but it only counts for one day.
No! Our goal is to have you read for 30 weekdays over the summer. Saturday and Sunday will not count as Summer Reading days. Each weekday that you read allows you to progress one space forward. Remember, the only way to play the entire game and earn the most amount of coins is to read all 30 weekdays.
Yes. Anyone can read to you!
No, you can read anything! We have a great collection for you to explore, but any reading counts.
We suggest visiting the library once a week for Summer Reading.
Feel free to ask us for a new reading chart. We will be recording and keeping a record of your coins and raffle tickets that are earned and redeemed. The paper is for you to keep track of your reading. We recommend writing your name and phone number on your paper log and keeping it in a safe place so that you do not lose it. However, if it does get lost, we can give you a new one.
The Prize Shop is open all summer long this year! Once you have earned your coins, you can choose to spend them on a small prize or save them up for a larger prize. Just make sure that your reading log matches with the Summer Reading schedule below. We will only award coins on or after the days that match up with our Summer Reading schedule.
Yes! Check out the Rubber Ducky Club 2026 below.
Rubber Ducky Club 2026
Summer Reading Club for Ages 0-4
The Rules are Simple
This program is designed for children ages birth to pre-kindergarten to encourage life-long reading habits.
Earn stickers and rubber duckies as you read, play and learn together! Take a look at our list of recommended early literacy activities below. For every activity you complete, color in one ducky on your Rubber Ducky Log. Each time you reach a lily pad, you can visit the library and collect a sticker. Once all your duckies are colored in, you can turn your sheet in and pick out a rubber ducky to keep.
You can earn as many rubber duckies as you would like between June 22nd and August 14th!
Recommended Early Literacy Activities:
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Read a book together. Point to the pictures and name objects.
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Ask your child questions about a story, e.g., “What happened first?”, “What will happen next?”.
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Borrow a music CD and sing a new song.
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Listen to a digital book via iVox by visiting northhavenlibrary.net and clicking the iVox icon.
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Read a book before bedtime.
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Clap or shake an instrument to a rhythm or song.
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Let your child draw a picture and talk to them about what they drew.
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Say and practice a finger play or nursery rhyme.
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Sing the alphabet song together.
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Attend a library program together.
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Write a letter of the alphabet and show your child how to trace it with their finger.
You are your child’s first teacher!
Studies have shown that children with an environment rich in sounds and letters enter school ready to learn.