Storm Lake Library opens May 11 registration for summer reading program

Parents looking for a no-cost way to keep children reading once school lets out will have a firm date to circle. The Storm Lake Public Library will open registration May 11 for its annual Summer Reading Program at 609 Cayuga Street, with the free program set to run June 1 through Aug. 1.

This year’s theme, “Plant a Seed, Read,” fits a program built around keeping habits alive through the long summer break. Students will receive a reading bingo log, and each completed line will earn a chance to choose a free book from the Scholastic reading list. Completed logs will also be entered into a drawing for grand prizes, giving families a simple incentive system that turns daily reading into a summer routine.

Library Director Elizabeth Huff said energizing students to continue good reading habits is important and helps them start the school year on the right foot. The library plans weekly Tuesday morning events for participants, with activities centered on gardening and farm-to-table food production. Two weeks of the program will also be devoted to America 250 and Iowa America 250 activities, adding a local history component to the reading challenge.

The program rests on a long-running community institution. The Storm Lake Public Library says it has served the city since 1906 and now holds 43,000 materials. Each year, babies, children, teens and adults attend 100 programs supported by the Friends of the Storm Lake Public Library, a group that has backed the library’s mission since 1998. Family memberships in the Friends group start at $15, with single memberships at $10 and student and senior memberships at $5.

The summer theme also connects Storm Lake to a statewide reading effort. iREAD’s 2026 theme is also “Plant a Seed, Read,” and its materials describe the concept as rooted in farm-to-table learning and the idea that a library grows ideas that nourish the mind. That makes the program especially well matched to a community where agriculture and food production are part of daily life.

Storm Lake’s library also has recent evidence of outside support for youth literacy work. In 2025, it was one of only 51 libraries nationwide to receive a Penguin Random House grant, and the only Iowa library to receive a cash grant that year. With registration opening May 11, families now have a clear path to a free summer program that mixes books, activities and prizes into a steady routine before the first school bell rings again.