Beanstack, Your Fitbit for Reading!

There are a lot of ways that you can keep track of your reading. Many people will keep a list of every title they’ve ever read, filling paper after paper with titles and authors. Some may have modernized and decided to make a handy spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel. As helpful as those methods may be, it makes it difficult to bring your reading list on the go. That’s where Citrus Libraries has partnered with Beanstack to make your reading log easily accessible and easier than ever to expand!

Beanstack is available both on the web and as a mobile app. Readers of all ages are eligible to make an account. Simply head to citruslibraries.org and look for Beanstack under the Books & Media section. You can register with your email, phone, and library card number. It’s that easy! Once you create your Beanstack account you can see all of the reading challenges that are currently available with our library system and join in.

Before we talk about challenges, let’s look at how Beanstack can truly be your Fitbit for reading. When you choose the “Log Reading” feature, you have three options. You can do it by the book, how many minutes you read, or how many pages. Depending on the type of reader you are, the option you choose may vary. For those that just want a record of the titles they’ve read, logging by the book is the best option. While logging the title of the book is optional, when you begin to type the title, Beanstack will automatically find the correct full title and author. This makes sure you have all the information you’ll need in your reading log for future reference. Those that use the mobile app also have the option to just scan the barcode on the back of the book for easy information retrieval.

After you’ve logged a few books or hours, you start what Beanstack calls a “streak”. Starting and continuing streaks is one of the many ways that Beanstack motivates consistent reading for both adults and children. Depending on the challenges hosted by your library and the activities associated with it, logging your reading and continuing reading streaks will unlock digital achievements and sometimes actual prizes! So, let’s talk about all the fun challenges that you can participate in and how to sign up. When you first log into Beanstack you will see a number of themed and titled challenges available. Under the title in green you can see the type of interactions that each challenge calls for. These can range from reading a certain number of books or minutes, to attending library programs and getting a secret code. You can always tell the age that a challenge is meant for by clicking on the challenge and looking at the ages marked in blue. To join a challenge simply click the “Join Challenge” button.

Currently the Citrus County Library system has challenges aimed at engaging readers of all ages. Get your child back into the school reading rhythm after Christmas break with the SSYRA (Sunshine State Young Reader Awards) challenges for each age range, or start an adventure for 2023 by challenging yourself to read 10,000 minutes with the Adventure 365 challenge. While these challenges only give digital badges there are times when physical rewards can be won. Sign up for Beanstack and keep an eye out for these exciting opportunities. Our 2022 Summer Reading Programs for students ages 5-17 used Beanstack participation to give away exciting prizes like family fun baskets, kayak vouchers, and a family fishing trip!

To register and join reading challenges please visit citruslibraries.beanstack.org. For additional information about the library and reading challenges please call your local library branch, go to the library’s website, citruslibraries.org, or follow Citrus Libraries on Facebook and Instagram at @CitrusLibraries.