Summer Reading

Featured Events

Download Summer Reading 2023 brochur e

Rocky Mountain Puppets with Meghan Casey

Families will enjoy the fun storytelling of award-winning ventriloquist Meghan Casey from Rocky Mountain Puppets! Meet her puppets as they learn that the true meaning of friendship is sticking with each other through thick and thin, no matter what!

Yo-Yo Magic with Luke Renner

Families will be amazed by "The New Mexico Yo-Yo Slinger" Luke Renner as he performs yo-yo tricks this summer! Performances are a combination of expert skill on a string with a magical touch.

CANCELED Team Building Challenges with the LEGO Guy

Meet The LEGO Guy, Curtis Mork! He'll teach children a little bit about the history of LEGO, and encourage them to use their imagination, problem-solving skills, and teamwork to build LEGO challenges.

Movie Night at the Library

Join us for a movie night at the library! We'll be showing the classic movie The Wizard of Oz (1939). Watch for the first time or re-watch Dorothy, The Tin Man, The Scarecrow, and The Cowardly Lion on their journey to see the Wizard in The Emerald City. Fun, themed snacks will be provided. Photo booth props available. All ages are welcome!

STEAM Polka Workshop

Join award-winning polka musician and accordion player Mike Schneider as he presents a fun, interactive, and educational STEAM workshop!

Families will learn why a yodel can travel on earth, but cannot in space; how a computer and electronic accordion can be used to transcribe sheet music; how an accordion is made and what the parts inside do; and the importance of math in planning an hour-long radio show. Live accordion music will be played throughout this workshop.

Teen Pottery Painting with Fat Cat Pottery
Teens 12-18 are invited to attend a free class from Fat Cat Pottery's instructors and decorate your own pottery piece to keep! All supplies are included and this event is free of cost for teens to attend.

Teen Henna Class

Teens are invited to learn about the history, culture, and design of henna in a live, virtual presentation with professional henna artist Leah Reddell of Denver Henna. This hands on class will teach students how to create their own henna designs and how to apply them on themselves with natural, hand-made henna paste. All henna supplies will be provided to participants free of charge. Seating is limited and registration is required.

General Questions

Registration

How does Summer Reading work?

During Summer Reading, you will track your reading and activities online, earning points along the way. No paper log is required! Participating online lets you see the points you’ve earned, collect virtual badges for your accomplishments, and automatically enter prize drawings as you reach milestones throughout the summer! Specially designed Badge Books (ages birth-11) and Reading Journals (ages 12+) will allow you to track your progress on paper while doing fun activities.

Is there a list of books that I have to read?

You are completely free to read whatever you want! Participants can count newspapers, magazines, comics, blog posts, audiobooks, etc.

How do I sign up for Summer Reading?

Visit mesacountylibraries.beanstack.org and select “Register an Individual or Family” to get started. Follow the prompts to create your account. You can also sign up using the BeanStack Tracker App.
- Click here for a tutorial on how to register via the web.
- Click here for a tutorial on how to register via the BeanStack app.

What is BeanStack?

BeanStack is our web-based Summer Reading program management software. It allows you to track your reading and activities, write and read book reviews from your peers, earn online badges, and automatically be entered into drawings for which you are eligible.

What is an individual account vs a family account?

An individual account would be for a reader who is only registering themselves for the program. If you are registering multiple people in your household, and would like to manage all of those accounts using one login, then you can create a family account. This is ideal for parents and other caregivers who are logging reading and activities for children

I’m a daycare provider/preschool teacher/day camp counselor/summer school teacher. Do I need to register each child individually?

If you are caring for five or more children and the children in your class/group are approximately the same age, you can register your entire class/group at the same time. From the BeanStack sign-in page, select “Register a Class or Group,” and follow the instructions from there. Once you register, you can give each reader an individual name by going to your Profile Settings. Registering as a class/group will allow you to log reading and activities for all members of your class/group at the same time.

If I created a BeanStack account in the past, can I use that account this year?

All BeanStack accounts created prior to 2020 have been deleted. If your Beanstack account was created prior to 2020, you will need to create a new account. You are welcome to reuse the username and password from your previous account if you desire. If you created a BeanStack account to participate in Summer Reading last year, you can use the same account. Please contact us at 970-243-4442 if you need assistance accessing your account.

What if I forgot my password?

If you provide an email upon creating your account, you can select “Forgot Password” from the BeanStack sign-in page. You will be prompted to enter your username or your email address and a link will be emailed to reset your password. If you did not provide an email address upon sign-up, you can call 970-243-4442 and library staff will assist you in resetting your password.

Participation