Plan Some Fun in August

Don't forget that August is Family Fun Month. Get together with your family to plan some fun before school gets back in session.

Need some help coming up with free or low-cost ideas for family fun? Check out our online carousel with items in our collection that are related to family fun. You can find the carousel at the top of our blog page or at the bottom of our home page.

Gather the Family for Some Weekend Fun

We've been announcing that August is Family Fun Month and the weekends are a great time to get the family together to make some new memories. Not sure what to do? There are plenty of fun events throughout Berks County and the surrounding area. Here's a sampling:

Want to expose your kids to opera? La Cenerentola (Cinderella) will be performed by the Berks Opera Company at RACC's very own Miller Center on Friday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m. and again on Sunday, August 13 at 3:00 p.m. According to venue's web site, "students in a Cinderella-themed costume, with a paying adult, will receive a free ticket for La Cenerentola....These tickets are only available at the Box Office on the day of the performance."

The Reading Fair ends its annual run on Friday and Saturday, August 11 and 12. Who doesn't love a fair? Ride the rides, take your chances on the many games, and eat all of that great fair food.

The Goschenhoppen Folk Festival in Perkiomenville celebrates the life of Pennsylvania Germans in the 18th and 19th centuries. Costumed craftsman teach their arts, visit farm animals and take a ride in a hay wagon, listen to music, and enjoy the food. The festival takes place on Friday (8/11) from 12:00 to 8:00 p.m. and on Saturday (8/12) from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Ever been to a rodeo? If not, you can experience it on Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. at the Mountain Springs Arena in Hamburg.

The Reading Railfest also takes place at the Reading Railroad Heritage Museum in Hamburg and starts with a rail excursion departing at 7:00 p.m. from the Kutztown Station. The festival continues on Saturday and Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. There's something for everyone. Kids can ride on the hand-pedaled "Munchkin Railway." And, of course, there will be some great food available.

If these events don't interest you, go to the Berks Fun web site for a list of additional happenings this weekend. Gather the kids, young and old, and go out and have some fun.

August is National Family Fun Month!

August is National Family Fun Month.

Gather your family and spend some time having fun with them. Board games, anyone? Trip to the pool or the beach? Afternoon at the movies? What do you do for fun when you're with family?

Family Fun Month: Read with Your Young Children

One of Baker's Dozen titles

Introduction to A Baker's Dozen
“The Pennsylvania Center for the Book works with hundreds of children's books each year while preparing booklists, activities, and curriculum materials. 

Our Family Literacy Activities Web page is designed to help parents and caregivers fill each child's world with a love of books.

We consider these 13 titles—a Baker's Dozen—to be the very best picture books published each year. They fulfill the goals of family literacy programs across the nation: to create lifelong readers and lovers of books; and to start with the youngest audience—preschool children.”

This information is from the Pennsylvania Center for the Book web site.