April 18--The Porterville City Library has been sponsoring an array of prizes, classes and activities in honor of National Library Week.
Throughout the week, three times daily, people visiting the library have been receiving small prizes -- from book marks to key chains.
A mini-reading incentive program will continue through April 30. Children, ages 3 to 12, can join the program by signing up at the library and keeping track of books read on a reading log.
Programs have ran all week and continue at 10 a.m. today with Boppy Time -- story time for babies, ages 0 to 18 months. Play Doh time, for children of all ages, will be from 3 to 4 p.m. and Family Literacy Night is slated from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Family Literacy Night is based on the book "If you Give a Mouse a Cookie" and will consist of several stations consisting of math and guessing, all of them revolving around cookies.
Friday's activities include the showing of the movie "We Bought a Zoo" from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m; and Wii Dance exercise and play scheduled from 3 to 4:30 p.m. for all ages.
In addition to the array of programs, the library is also hosting a photo contest. It is open to the public and entries might be used for library promotions.
All photos must have one book, a library card and one person who must be visible in the photo.
Photos must be no larger than an 8-by-10 inch photograph.
Each entrant is responsible for printing the photo and submitting it to the library.
Deadline for submitting the photos is 5 p.m. Friday.
The photos will be judged Friday evening or early Saturday morning and placed on display at the Friends of the Library Book Sale.
An awards ceremony of first, second and third place wins will take place at 11:30 a.m. Saturday. It is free and open to the public.
Saturday's activities include a book sale by the Friends of the Library Book Sale, which will be held from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m; an "Introduction to Computers" class will be held at the city library from 10 to 11 a.m; and the Wild Child Adventures with Bubbleman, a show that will include a child being placed inside a bubble, will take place from 3 to 4:30 p.m.
Magic The Gathering Tournament is also on tap for Saturday night, running from 6 p.m. to midnight and including the collection card game, raffles, tournament prizes, snacks and drinks. Players of all skill levels are encouraged to participate.
For more information on all of the services or programs, visit the Porterville City Library at 41 W. Thurman, or call 784-0177.
Friends of the Library Book Sale is located at 301 N. Hockett.
Contact Esther Avila at 784-5000, Ext. 1045. Follow her on Twitter @Avila_recorder.
Credit: The Porterville Recorder, Calif.