For the first time, some MMSD elementary school libraries will be open to all elementary students in Madison. BEAT the HEAT—READ is the theme for a summer book access program within MMSD.

Nine elementary school libraries will keep their doors open to readers this summer to provide easy access for city elementary age students to check out books from school libraries. Access to all libraries is open to elementary students throughout the city attending public and private schools.

Schools include the Extended Learning Summer School sites of Gompers, Hawthorne, Huegel, Leopold, and Schenk. Each site opens with the start of summer school on June 19 and runs through July 28 with hours 8-12 Monday-Thursdays. Hours will change after July 28 with extended hours through August 18. Schools will post hourly schedules and welcome all city elementary students throughout the nine weeks.

Four other elementary schools — Emerson, Franklin, Lindbergh and Muir — will be opened for ten hours each week from June 19 through August 18. Open hours will vary with the site.

The BEAT the HEAT—READ program's goal rests in the belief that children need to read to become better readers. Research shows that higher achieving students read three times as much per week as lower-achieving students.

This program is a cooperative effort developed within two divisions of the Department of Teaching and Learning: Library and Media Services and Language Arts and Reading.