Area children are invited to join the Wild About Reading Survivor Challenge during the summer.

POLAND – The Ricker Memorial Library Children’s Summer Reading Program will feature reading and activities based on the “Rainforests of the World.”

All children are invited to join the Wild About Reading Survivor Challenge by registering for the summer program. Each participant will be awarded a bandana and assigned a rain-forest team tribe.

The three tribes will be involved in weekly competitions and awarded prizes for their reading accomplishments over the course of five weeks. Masks, totem poles and large animal forms will decorate many areas throughout the library over the course of the summer.

The kickoff for the program, featuring the Maine Squeeze, a rollicking accordion and singing group from Peaks Island, is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday, June 20, on the library lawn.

The whole family event is free and provides an opportunity for many kids to pick up their tribe bandanas and tally cards. All events and programs offer open enrollments for pre-school children through the sixth grade.

Reading and craft groups will meet at 10 a.m. Mondays and Tuesdays.

Special events will include:

Monday, June 23, at 3 p.m., Chewonki Foundation Outreach Program, Scales and Tales, a presentation featuring four live reptiles.

Thursday, July 10, at 3 p.m., The Rhythm Outlet. Learn how to make music with friends through a positive multi-cultural and musical experience, emphasizing fun, creativity and community. Various instruments will be available to use, including rainsticks, bones, singing bowls and drums.

Monday and Wednesday, July 21 and 23, at 10:30 a.m., Kindermusik for ages 2 to 7. Learn the basic concepts of music with friends. The 45-minute program emphasizes the basic concepts of music.

The reading program is made available through the support of the Friends of the Ricker Memorial Library. For more information or to register stop by or call the library at 998-4390.