They all read for ice cream

LYNN – Little readers were screaming for ice cream at City Hall on Tuesday at a celebration for completing the Lynn Public Library’s summer reading program.Children and parents packed into the foyer of City Hall and buzzed around to different stations. Tom Gould, owner of Treadwell’s Ice Cream in Peabody, scooped ice cream and doled out toppings for excitedly awaiting children.Others proudly picked up certificates with their names on them, had their faces painted and waited in line for balloon animals and balloon animal hats.”The ice cream social is an incentive for kids to keep reading,” said Susan Cronin, the head of the children’s department at the library. “It’s all sponsored by the mayor.”The summer reading program begins the Monday after school ends and runs until mid-August each year, said Cronin.”Everybody is at a different reading level,” she said. “It starts at birth with parents reading to children, and it goes up to the sixth grade. They can read whatever they want as long as they are reading.”Cronin said that Tuesday’s event was the biggest it had been in years.”It’s kind of awesome,” she said. “Especially with all of the technology that kids have access to now. They can read on a tablet or a cellphone.”They can read any book, graphic novels, magazines, whatever they want as long as they are reading,” she said.”Every year we get more and more participating,” said Mary Fountain, the mayor’s aide, who has been organizing the event for six years now. “We might even have to rent a hall next year.”She said, “523 kids completed the program this year. That’s the most that we’ve ever had.”The children at the social were excited about the celebration and thought it was a good way to encourage those who wouldn’t ordinarily read, but many said they enjoyed reading anyway.”I read 80 books this summer, and I just got nine more, so it’s going to be 89 books,” said 7-year-old Alexis Williams. “I like to read anyway.””I did summer reading at the Lynn Public Library every year when I was a kid,” said Lareina Clayton, who was there with her own children. “I was born and raised here.””I read 10 or more books,” said 8-year-old Ava Baez. “I read every night. My favorite thing I read was about dinosaurs, and I did a project on it.”I think it’s fun (to have the ice cream social),” she said. “I think it’s fun that the mayor’s here, and she reads a lot, so kids might want to read a lot too.””I think it helps kids want to read,” said 6-year-old Chloe Colder.”My daughter started with summer reading when she was 3, and my son is 3 now,” said Roseline Mabikas. Her children Lael and Beno-Franck both completed the program.”It’s very important to know how to read,” she said. “My daughter is in first grade and reads chapter books. Reading for her is a hobby now. Sending her to her room isn’t a punishment anymore because she gets to read her books.”To complete the summer reading program, the library asks that children read five to 10 books.There was also a teen summer reading program called “Unmask!” that asked teenagers aged 12 to 18 to fill out a teen book review form for each book they read from July 1 to Aug. 21. Each review counted as a raffle ticket for a chance to win an Amazon Fire tablet.They are also given the chance to win tickets to the Topsfield Fair, said Cronin.An adult summer reading program called “Escape the Ordinary” runs from June 29 to Aug. 28. Adults are asked to read and review books. Each review submitted counted as a chance to win a gift card to a local restaurant, and raffles were pulled each week.”We just want to get people reading, especially while they are on school break,” Cronin said.