Hundreds of Brooklyn kids turn Brooklyn Central Library into board game, playland to kick off 2016 summer reading
Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) kicked off its 2016 Summer Reading program on Thursday, hosting a game-themed party at Central Library to encourage active learning through the summer months.
Hundreds of families joined in the fun at Grand Army Plaza, where kids took turns playing the pieces in a life-size game of chess hosted by Brooklyn Strategist, and at branches throughout Brooklyn, including a world music event at Kings Bay Library, a life-size game of Candy Land at Bedford Library, a performance by Miss Nina and the Jumping Jacks at Highlawn Library and a musical puppet show at Gerritsen Beach Library.
In partnership with the New York City Department of Education, BPL’s annual Summer Reading program aims to prevent “summer slide” by encouraging Brooklyn’s young readers to visit the library and continue reading while school is out of session. It is estimated that summer breaks will cause the average student to lose up to one month of instruction per year, with students from low-income families disproportionately affected.
Brooklyn Boro
View MoreNew York City’s most populous borough, Brooklyn, is home to nearly 2.6 million residents. If Brooklyn were an independent city it would be the fourth largest city in the United States. While Brooklyn has become the epitome of ‘cool and hip’ in recent years, for those that were born here, raised families here and improved communities over the years, Brooklyn has never been ‘uncool’.