Maricopa County Reads is the award-winning summer reading program provided by the Maricopa County Library District to all public, tribal and military base libraries within Maricopa County. The primary goal of the program is to interrupt the summer slide, the common term given to the learning loss experienced by children while transitioning between school years. The secondary aim of the program is to promote early literacy among pre-readers (ages 0-4) and their families during the summer months.
Several approaches are employed to accomplish these goals:
Interrupt the Summer Slide
- Keep kids reading every day so they will not lose the reading comprehension skills that they learned during the school year.
- Read for 20 minutes a day! Reading 20 minutes a day will help build a lifelong habit of reading.
- Kids and adults can both count the minutes when adults read to kids or kids read to adults!
Advance Early Literacy Skills
- Conduct early literacy education programs for children and their caregivers.
- Encourage teens and adults to read with children and model independent reading behaviors.
- Encourage caregivers to engage in early literacy activities with children at home.
Build Home Libraries
- Read for 20 minutes a day, every day over the summer and earn a free book!
- Free books are available for all ages, from babies to adults.
- You can donate your book to a Head Start Classroom if you do not want to take one home.
Emphasize the Fun of Reading
- Attend fun, literacy-based events at the library to earn digital badges and gain points towards your goal of unlocking a free book!
- Have fun interacting with the online program by completing challenges and earning digital badges.
Connect Readers with Community Experiences
- Visit a community partner to learn something new and earn secret codes to unlock badges and earn more points.
- Try a community experience to connect your kids with books in a more meaningful way by bringing things to life that they have only read about.
The Maricopa County Reads online summer reading program began in the summer of 2013. It has continued to grow, and now hosts 65 public, tribal and military base libraries within Maricopa County. More than 80,000 children, teens, and adults participate in the program annually.
Summer Reading Program Prizes- County Wide
Your library may have additional milestone or drawing prizes, visit or call them for more information!
500 points
- Peter Piper Pizza personal pizza coupon (0-11)* (Redeem at your library)
- Raising Cane's free drink coupon (all ages)* (Redeem at your library)
750 points
- Arizona State Parks pass (Kids 5-11, Teens, Adults) Daily entrance into the State Parks is free to kids in the prereader age group. To plan your visit check out their website azstateparks.com and click on the parks tab. (Redeem at your library)*
- Ono BBQ free Ono Keiki meal (kids and teens 0-17) (Redeem at your library)*
- Phoenix Mercury tickets for select home games, participants can claim up to 2 tickets- redeemed through a link sent through in-game mail. Not all home games are available through the summer reading program, the Phoenix Mercury will open up games throughout the summer.
Phoenix Mercury FAQ /// How to claim tickets in Spinzo the new ticket platform
*WHILE SUPPLIES LAST. Pick up prizes from your library as you play (where applicable). No need to wait until the end of the program! The last day to pick up prizes is August 15.
1,000 points
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Free book- choose from over 150 titles! (all ages) * Redeem using the link sent through in-game mail. Last day to order your book is August 15.
*availability based on publisher stock, backordered titles will be replaced with a similar title.
Can I donate my free book? Yes! If you would like to donate your book to a child, simply click on the 'Donate your book' option on your 'My Profile' page. Donated books will go to organizations that support youth in your community.
Prize drawings
- Phoenix Art Museum prize packs (kids 5-11)
- Childsplay Theater family 4 pack ticket voucher and bag of books
- Childsplay Theater ticket voucher for 2
- Harkins Theatres family prize pack
- Uptown Jungle- Free jump prize packs
https://maricopacountyreads.org/en-US
