MAY 30, 2025 LIBRARIES Play the AADL Summer Game! ANN ARBOR DISTRICT LIBRARY Use your library this summer to find codes, solve puzzles, attend events and earn points towards awesome AADL prizes — courtesy of the Ann Arbor District Library and the Friends of the Ann Arbor District Library! You don't even need a Library card to play! Origins of the Summer Game The Ann Arbor Public Library promoted a summer reading program as far back as the 1930s, encouraging kids to continue reading over their summer break. In 1960 the theme was Highway to Alaska. In 1952 it was Flight to Mystery Island. Who could forget 1954’s Space Ship to the Moon? The modern Summer Game was born in 2011, combining the classic Summer Reading Game but adding much, much more for kids, teens and adults. Today's Summer Game is a puzzle-filled spectacular with codes, clues, scavenger hunts, badges and more! Three ways to play 1. The Summer Reading Game: Kids can complete the Summer Reading Game by reading or listening to 10 books. Finish 10 books to earn Summer Game points, a free book and a coupon for $1 off a book at any of the Friends shelves at any AADL location. Teens and adults can complete the Summer Reading Game by consuming 10 ANYTHINGS (books, podcasts, magazines, articles or pieces of content) to earn Summer Game points, a free book, and a coupon for $1 off a book at any of the Friends shelves at any AADL location. Pick up an Explorer Guide/Summer Game Reading Card at any AADL library, or download it from our website! 2. The Summer Game Explorer Codes: Explore parks, all five AADL locations and sites across the city, or attend in-person or online AADL events to find Summer Game codes. Redeem those codes for points, badges and prizes galore. 3. The Summer Game Online Codes: Hidden in the AADL’s online catalog and the internet at large are hundreds of Summer Game codes worth thousands of points. Every Friday, the AADL Summer Game team releases a new series of themed online puzzles, which can be solved with savvy searches of our catalog and the web. Discover these secret codes, unlock points for prizes and earn special badges throughout the summer. YOU KEEP MENTIONING PRIZES! Every code you enter, every badge you earn, and every puzzle you solve gives you Summer Game points. Those points can be used to get Summer Game prizes in the Summer Game shop, which opens in early July. Past prizes have included t-shirts, stuffed animals, vintage lunch boxes, pins, coffee from Roos Roast, tea from Arbor Teas, coffee mugs, notebooks, frisbees, beach blankets, tote bags, umbrellas and so much more! How to get started 1. Sign up for the Summer Game using your existing AADL account. If you don't have a Library card, you can still create a Summer Game account and play along. For parents: you can add kids and teens to your Summer Game profile as well! 2. You can also text NEWPLAYER to 734-327-4200 to create a profile and play via text (messaging and data rates may apply). 3. To play the Summer Reading Game, pick up a Summer Reading Game card at any AADL location, or download an editable Summer Reading Game card. 4. To earn points from online codes, tackle an easy puzzle first by solving a standard difficulty websearch badge. Decipher the clues and use AADL's catalog search to find game codes. Find all five and earn the badge! 5. To become a Summer Game Explorer, check out the main Summer Game page and look for where you might track down codes first. A good start is inside all five libraries. Don't forget to look for the Summer Game banners outside! 1,001 ways to earn Summer Game points 1. Find codes inside all AADL buildings, the sides of AAATA buses, in newspaper ads or at in-person and online AADL events. 2. Solve online puzzles by searching the AADL catalog and the internet for codes — and get bonus points for completing badge series! 3. Finish the Summer Reading Game! 4. Earn 50 points per day for reading, watching, or listening to stuff. Bonuses for the more days you log! 5. Review items in AADL's catalog. 6. Rate items in our catalog. 7. Points-O-Matic! Help the AADL Archives and our collection of Ann Arbor newspaper microfilm, or help the AADL collections team with its series data in the Points-O-Matic News Sprinter and Points-O-Matic Super Serializer. You can also earn points for reviewing reviews for items in our collection with the Points-O-Matic Review Reviewer. FAQs 1) Is the Summer Game just for kids? Heck no! Kids (and parents) have tons of fun participating in the Summer Reading Game but guess what? At least half of our players aren’t kids! Teens and adults love puzzles, scavenger hunts and getting points to use for free stuff too! Fun for all ages—and we're not just saying that! 2) How long does the Summer Game go? The Summer Game runs from June 11 through August 24, 2025. Players can sign up at any time during the summer and have plenty of days to earn points, win prizes, and have fun. 3) Can my kids play the Summer Game if they don’t have a Library card? Absolutely! Summer Game accounts can add extra players to their profiles and help young ones and family members enjoy the Summer Game as well. Codes can be entered separately for each player or texted through a single number to credit each account with the code. 4) Do I need an Ann Arbor District Library card to play the Summer Game? Nope! Anyone can play the Summer Game if they create an account on aadl.org. 5) Where can I find some easy codes to get started? If you're into exploring, a lot of players like to walk through each of AADL's five libraries, tracking down the 10 codes hidden inside each branch and 15 codes Downtown! There's also a big banner hanging on the outside of each library with a larger-than-life code as well. 6) When does the Summer Game Shop open? The Summer Game shop opens in July. We're sure to make a big announcement when we have the exact date. 8) When are new codes and badges added to the Summer Game? New badges drop every Friday during the Summer Game, plus a few surprise badge drops here and there. Check the main page at play.aadl.org to keep up on the latest drops. 9) I heard about Summer Game lawn and library codes. Are those coming back? AADL lawn and library codes will be back this year! Stay tuned for details on the play.aadl.org page. If you have any questions, or comments, or have trouble with any part of the Summer Game: Email askus@aadl.org, Text or call 734-327-4200 or visit the contact us page on AADL.org GROUNDCOVER NEWS 5
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