Parkland Community Library will be participating in summer reading this month.

This year's theme, "Dig Into Reading," is all about the wonders under our feet – root vegetables, buried treasure, dinosaur bones, evidence of ancient civilizations and, of course, the critters.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if every child participated in summer reading and, as a result, they raised literacy rates throughout the area?

When children read only 16.9 minutes a day, they are exposed to 1,168,000 words a year and test in the 70th percentile.

If children dig into reading just a little deeper and average 33.4 minutes a day, they devour a staggering 2,357,000 words a year.

Together with the family, libraries can build a stronger future for our children by opening a book for minutes a day.

Nurturing a more literate society is one of five literacies in Pa Forward, an initiative of the Pennsylvania Library Association.

When leveraged properly, our libraries can help solve some of Pennsylvania's biggest economic and social problems.

More than 75 percent of jobs in Pennsylvania demand education beyond high school.

And yet, nearly 120,000 Pennsylvania youths have dropped out of high school.

For more information on how Pa Forward impacts Pennsylvania, visit paforward.org.

Reading is the root of every child's success.

Visit parklandlibrary.org to see a complete list of activities and events.

Help them plant the seeds to learning with their summer reading program.