Wadsworth Public Library holds final pop-up library event for the summer

WADSWORTH — Families with young children visited Valley View Park to take part in sensory activities, listen to a story and check out books on Tuesday at the Wadsworth's Public Library's final pop-up library event for the summer. Melissa Wagner is the manager of children's, youth and outreach services at the Wadsworth Library. She said the library started the program around the time of the pandemic and has continued putting it on since. "I think the public likes it, so we just continue to do it as a fun summer activity," she said. "It brings a little bit of the library into the neighborhood. We started off going to multiple different parks, but we ended up, in the last few years, staying at Valley View Park for consistency, and it worked out really well there." The summer reading program at the Wadsworth Library also recently ended. Wagner said more than 1,200 kids registered for the program across its baby, youth and teen categories. "We've had some really good attendance at all the summer reading programs that we put on," she said. "It was, overall, a very busy summer." It is important to keep kids engaged in reading over the summer to help avoid the summer slip, Wagner said. "It's really important to keep them reading and (keep) their skills up to date, so when they go back in the fall, they're not having to learn some of the things that they did the previous year," she said. "(Reading) also gives them a chance to unplug from some electronics and computers and keep their mind active." Visit wadsworthlibrary.com to see a list of upcoming library events. "We try to incorporate fun times at the library, so when they come here, they're excited about coming," Wagner said. "That correlates to reading." Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.