Family Engagement Activities
Follow this calendar, or mix it up, and complete these in your own time.
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Activity 1: June 29 to July 5
Activity 1: June 29 to July 5
Plan your summer reading explorations!
Let's make a plan for summer reading! Do this with friends, family or people you care about! You can create a reading goal together. Check in periodically to see how you are reaching the reading goal you set. Encourage each other to keep it going!
Gather all the summer reading materials.
Print off the log.
Put your reading dates and times on the calendar.
Make a list of books you would like to read. Check out the highlighted ones here. (Some are links to hear the story read to you!) There is also another tab up top with some good books to check out.
Set a reading goal. You can set a goal to reach a certain number of minutes each day or a certain number of books by the end of the summer.
Do you have any books that fit the theme? The "Color Our World" theme could be about learning about art, famous artists, cooking, gardening, the science of rainbows or prisms, or an artistic expression of your own making. Use our list or make your own.
Need help finding new genres you might enjoy? This may help! Deciding About Genres? Try this!
Activity 2: Week of July 6 to July 12
Activity 2: Week of July 6 to July 12
Take a trip to the library to see how they can color your world! Cool off and visit the Huntington Public Library! There are 2 different locations. We can help each other choose great books when we work together. The librarians are waiting for you to visit!
Visit the library website. See what they have to offer. www.myhpl.org/
Make sure you have a library card! Here is how you can get a card:
myhpl.org/get-a-library-card-8711
Read the newsletter and see if there is a program you are interested in attending. myhpl.libnet.info/newsletter-8675
Make a date to visit the library this week.
Take out a library book and read it this week.
Sign up for their summer reading program.
Start thinking about your library visit with this story, Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen. Just like this lion, you can explore the library and all it has to offer! youtu.be/A668AzrLzHk
Other books that may inspire your visit:
The Midnight Library by Kazuno Kohara youtu.be/he1CO6FNsZg
Dinosaur vs. The Library by Bob Shea youtu.be/XpA1RZw90FE?feature=shared
Dewey: The Small-town Library Cat who Touched the World by Vicki Myron youtu.be/-RrZNfkBi2c?feature=shared
Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo youtu.be/7BpZTpXDh-U?feature=shared
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore by William Joyce youtu.be/L8k8dXiV11U
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein youtu.be/rO7wbDupfB0?feature=shared
Activity 3: Week of July 13 to July 19
Activity 3: Week of July 13 to July 19
Choose a summer craft from KidLitTV. Make your creation with family or friends! For most of these, you just need a paper plate and your imagination!
Choose a summer craft from KidLitTV. Make your creation with family or friends! For most of these, you just need a paper plate and your imagination!
Creativity is right at your fingertips. Click on the link below and choose an art activity or find out more about a great book.
www.kidlit.tv/2024/06/kidlit-crafts-and-activities-for-summer/
Activity 4: Week of July 20 to July 26
Activity 4: Week of July 20 to July 26
Color your world with new flavors and taste sensations. Be creative in your kitchen! Read a cookbook with your family and try a new food or recipe.
Color your world with new flavors and taste sensations. Be creative in your kitchen! Read a cookbook with your family and try a new food or recipe.
Let's have a food adventure with people we love. Read some recipe books, look online for some family friendly recipes, explore a new food or cuisine! Then make the recipe together right in your own home.
Here are some cookbooks and websites for families to explore together. These are available in the Huntington Public Library.
The Story of Pasta and How to Cook It! by Steven Guarnaccia.
Children's Quick and Easy Cookbook by Angela Wilkes
Blue Moon Soup (A Seasonal Cookbook) by Gary Goss
The Big, Fun Kids Cookbook by Hearst Books
Living on the Veg (A Meatless Cookbook) by Clive Clifford
Cooking Class Global Feast (44 Recipes that celebrate the world's cultures) by Deanna Cook
The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs by Molly Birnbaum
Would you also like to read books about cooking, adventures and new places? Try a deliciously fun chapter-book series from Emmy Award-winning celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis. The books follow the Bertolizzi siblings, Alfie and Emilia, as they discover the sights, sounds, and tastes of world’s greatest culinary destinations. They are available as ebooks from the Huntington Public Library! Recipe for Adventure Series
Activity 5: Week of July 27 to August 2
Activity 5: Week of July 27 to August 2
Did you know that Huntington has its very own art museum? Plan a visit to the Heckscher Museum of Art!
Did you know that Huntington has its very own art museum? Plan a visit to the Heckscher Museum of Art!
Explore the Heckscher Museum of Art and view their 2,500 pieces of artwork. Don't forget to walk through the incredible sculpture garden that features amazing life-size sculptures.
Activity 6: Week of August 3 to August 9
Activity 6: Week of August 3 to August 9
Poetry is a form of art and creative expression! Learn about the great poet Walt Whitman. His birthplace and museum is right here in town.
Poetry is a form of art and creative expression! Learn about the great poet Walt Whitman. His birthplace and museum is right here in town.
Have you learned about Walt Whitman? The mall and a local high school are named after him, but do you know why he is famous? Visit the museum of this famous poet and learn about his life and his poetry.
Walt Whitman is not our only famous poet! Check out some of these poets too. Jupiter Hammon, one of the earliest published African American authors was born on Long Island in 1711. Hammon was a slave at the Joseph Lloyd Manor, and it is where Hammon wrote his most significant works. The site is designated as a National Literary Landmark and is located in Lloyd Harbor.
Visit the Joseph Lloyd Manor house and learn about Jupiter Hammon. Plan for your visit by clicking here for the website to this historical museum: Joseph Lloyd Manor House Website
Activity 7: Week of August 10 to August 16
Activity 7: Week of August 10 to August 16
Did you know we are a train ride away from the most famous art museums in the world! Too often we do not take advantage of the many world renown sites right here in New York City.
Did you know we are a train ride away from the most famous art museums in the world! Too often we do not take advantage of the many world renown sites right here in New York City.
Feeling up to a trip into the best city in the world? Visit New York City and visit some of the most acclaimed art museums in the world!
Click on any of these links to learn about the museum and plan your trip.
Activity 8: Week of August 17 to August 23 Visit famous art museums and artists around the world with a book! Read about art or a museum in another country!
Activity 8: Week of August 17 to August 23 Visit famous art museums and artists around the world with a book! Read about art or a museum in another country!
Explore the non-fiction books in your library that take you far away from home. Learn some things about the art from another country! Pick a place you would like to visit one day or a country that has special meaning for you.
Here are a few books from the Huntington Public Library that may help inspire your "travels."
Where are the Great Pyramids? by Dorothy Hoobler
World of Glass : The Art of Dale Chihuly by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
The Museum Book : A Guide to Strange and Wonderful Collections by Jan Mark
Visiting the Art Museum by Laurene Krasny Brown and Marc Brown
The Louvre by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
Activity 9: Week of August 24 to August 30
Activity 9: Week of August 24 to August 30
Color the World by Helping A Fellow Huntingtonian!
Color the World by Helping A Fellow Huntingtonian!
During this activity, you can color the world by helping friends in our community to get ready for school. Everyone loves to have some new colorful school supplies to start the year. If you are getting all your school supplies, this is the time to consider others needs and help out.
Perhaps you would like to share some supplies with those in need? You can drop off any extra supplies you have at these locations in town. An adventure that results in helping others may be the best adventure of them all!
The Helping Hand Rescue Mission www.helpinghandsrescuemission.org/
The Family Service League www.fsl-li.org/
It's not over yet, but here is a story about
How I Spent My Summer Vacation by Mark Teague! youtu.be/AMke6tvj-5s
Adventure 10: Week of August 31 to September 1
Adventure 10: Week of August 31 to September 1
Color our world with a visit to a local garden!
Color our world with a visit to a local garden!
There is still time! One last activity to tackle! Pack a picnic an visit a local arboretum or garden and take your reading to the outdoors. While you are there, spend some time reading your favorite new book and check in on your reading goals.
Here are some local gardens to visit:
The Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay: Website
Old Westbury Gardens: Website
The Bayard Cutting Arboretum in Great River: Website
A bit farther but a July spectacular - Lavender by the Bay, Calverton, NY: Website
Don't forget to get these things done this week!
Visit the library. Return any books you enjoyed.
Take out some new ones, read a new genre, and the book(s) to your list.
Be sure your Summer Reading Log is filled in and put it in a folder so you can give it to your new teacher at school on the first day.
Get excited to see your friends, make some new ones, and learn new things in the 2025 - 2026 school year!
Here is the link to the reading log! Print Your Own Summer 2025 Log: Click Here
Can't make it to the library? Looking for more stories to listen to and share? Here is a library full of favorite stories read aloud. storylineonline.net/library/
Visit DayByDayNY.org to enjoy a story for each day of the summer months.
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