GARLAND – By Cari Doutre – June 27, 2020
Patrons of the Garland Public Library are now welcome to visit the library after a nearly three-month closure during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.
The library opened to the public June 1, with new summer hours. Summer hours are Tuesdays through Fridays from 1 to 7 p.m.
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There have been updates to the library’s guidelines for those patrons. Here’s what to expect:
• For the safety of our visitors and staff, staff will be wearing masks and are suggested for library visitors. • All children 10 and under MUST be accompanied by an adult. • Please practice social distancing and keep 6 feet between others. • Reserves and material checkout available at the front desk. • Browsing for materials will be limited to 30 Minutes. • Curbside Pickup service is still available. • Library will be cleaned and sanitized regularly. • Computers will be sanitized between users and high touch areas will be sanitized frequently. • Computer use limited to 30 minutes and for essential use only. • No Gaming Consoles, Computer Gaming, or VR headsets. • Returned items will be quarantined for 3 days upon return. Once they have been quarantined, they will be checked in and removed from your account. • No fines for materials returned.
"In a fast changing environment with new information coming out what seems like each day, it’s a challenge to keep up and have the best practices in place to keep everyone safe. After a lot of research and guidance from local officials and state librarians, we are confident that the guidelines established will provide safety for both library patrons and staff. We want people to feel safe coming to the library and checking out library materials," said Garland Public Library Director Tate Atkin.
The Garland Public Library will be doing a summer reading program for readers of all ages. The program is currently underway and will end August 30. Readers can track their reading minutes and there are prizes for those who read the most in each age group. Be sure to look for small challenges throughout the summer to keep readers motivated to keep reading.
"Due to the pandemic and current restrictions a few adjustments had to be made to this year’s summer reading program. We had to cancel our kick-off party as well as in person events throughout the summer," said Atkin.
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"Although we are disappointed with the cancelations, we are excited about the new tracking app we are using this year and think it will make tracking minutes easier and allows us to add fun challenges and prizes to keep the program exciting throughout the summer months," said Atkin when asked about this year’s program.
In addition to keeping readers busy in the summer reading program, the library urges parents to sign children up for this program to help prevent summer learning loss and help them retain what they learned throughout the school year.
"Research suggests that two to three hours of reading each week will help prevent summer learning loss and keep your child on track when the new school year starts, otherwise It can take up to two months for a child to get back to their previous level. By sixth grade, children who have suffered from summer learning loss will be on average two years behind their peers who kept reading during summer break," stated the Garland Public Library on their website.
"Our summer reading program is designed to help children avoid "summer slide" and help them hit the ground running at the start of the new school year. We have partnered with the elementary school librarians in the area to promote reading, give reading suggestions and keep children engaged in reading and learning during the summer months," their website added.
Ages groups for the summer reading program are:
- PRE-K (ages 0-5)
- Kindergarten to 5th grade (ages 5-12)
- Teen (ages 13-18)
- Adults (ages 18 and older)
Visit garlandlibrary.org/summer-reading for more information and to sign-up.
Young patrons not quite old enough for kindergarten are still encouraged to participate in the Garland Public Library’s "1,000 Books Before Kindergarten" program. Sign up at the library or at gplreads.readsquared.com.
The Garland Public Library is located at 86 W. Factory St., Garland.
Or call them at (435) 257-3118
Follow them on Facebook @GarlandPublicLibraryUT https://www.garlandlibrary.org
