Reading Challenges
Reading challenges take place between June 8th - July 23rd
To participate: Register online at sumtercountylibrary.beanstack.org
Or stop by any Sumter County Library branch to register in person.
Early Reader Challenge ages 0 - 5
Children’s Reading Challenge ages 6 - 12
Teen Reading Challenge ages 13 - 17
Whatever way you register, you can pick up a paper
reading log, a tote bag, and a bookmark at any branch.
Each challenge, participants read a total of 600 minutes from
June 8th to July 23rd.
Record the time you spend reading on Beanstack at sumtercountylibrary.beanstack.org or the provided reading log.
Bring your completed reading log to any Sumter County Library branch before 6:00 PM on July 23rd to claim prizes and enter the raffle for a grand prize.
We will announce the grand prize winners on July 24th on Facebook and the library website. General prizes will be available until August 9th.
Grand Prizes
Early Readers (10 prizes)
Ages 0 - 2
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Fisher-Price Smart Walker
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Baysing Crawling Music Turtle
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3d Animal Puzzles
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Vtech Chomp and Count Dino
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Tosochir Sensory Caterpillar Toy
Ages 3 - 5
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DIY Pegboard Build Kit
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DUPLO Car and Truck Builder Set
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LiKee Open-Ended Wooden Shape Puzzles
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Wooden Stacking Dinosaur
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Dinosaur Magnetic Train
Children and Tweens (22 prizes)
Ages 6 - 12
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One of three LEGO Creation Kits
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National Geographic Mega Craft Mosaic Kit
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Choopheme Walkie Talkie Building Kit
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Sillbird Solar Robot Building Kit
Teens (7 prizes)
Ages 13 -17
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Bluetooth Alarm Clock
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Acrylic Markers
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Karaoke and Bluetooth Speaker
The winners of the grand prize drawing will be announced on July 25th on Facebook and sumtercountylibrary.org
Summer Reading Program Activities
Visit the library for educational and entertaining activities during our summer reading program.
For more information about our summer reading programs, refer to our Information Booklet.
Some activities require registration.
After May 20th, call or visit a library branch holding an activity you’d like to register for.
Please let us know if you can't make it to a program you registered for.
2026 Summer Reading Program Sponsors and Partners
Sponsors of the Summer Reading Program
Special thanks to the Friends of the Sumter County Library, who help make our Summer Reading Program possible through their continued funding of library programming.
The Following programs were made possible by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the South Carolina State Library.
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Dino Dot Art
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Build Your Own Dinosaur
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Outdoor Fossil Excavation Hunt
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Make a Quill
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Dino Topical Diorama
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Dinosaur Noodle Art
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Play-Doh Geology Activity (What’s In Your Soil?)
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Make a Fossil
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Bone Game Sculpture
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Revolutionary War Codebreakers
The South Carolina State Library provided supplementary materials for our summer reading program and other libraries around the state.
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Local Partners and Donors
Mid Carolina Exterminating sprayed the Wesmark Library lawn for pests before the Outdoor Fossil Excavation Hunt program on June 25th.
Music Gator donated the movies for Movie at the Library programming.
The Sumter Museum provided resources and staff for SC250 Revolutionary War History Day on June 30th. Additionally, Michael Bowman, the Sumter Museum’s Historic House Manager, presented Unearth the Revolutionary War and provided materials on July 9th.
The Sumter Soil and Water Conservation District manager, Anna Makiewicz, presented What’s In Your Soil? Prehistoric Pee Dee today and provided materials for the salt dough fossil activity on June 15th.
Lowe’s provided Build and Grow project kits for our Lowe's Build and Grow programs on July 6th and 7th.
Other Credits
This year’s theme was chosen by the Collaborative Summer Reading Program who commissioned work from the artist, Tom Bonson.