Now that the 2022-2023 school year has come to an end and students are enjoying the freedom from early mornings and classroom schedules, they might be looking for something to do with their excess time.

HISD’s Library Services Department is providing access to Comic Plus and MackinVIA, ebook platforms that keep library books and comics available to students over the summer months and motivate them to read wherever they are. HISD is also encouraging students to take advantage of the Houston Public Library’s John P. McGovern Summer Reading Program.

Houston Public Library John P. McGovern Summer Reading Program

The Houston Public Library’s John P. McGovern Summer Reading Program is open for registration. Students or parents can sign up for a free account on Beanstack to track reading progress. Students of all ages can participate, from babies/toddlers to teens (grades 6-12).

Students can read either physical books or ebooks for the opportunity to earn prizes including free books, STEM kits, and more. Every 20 minutes of reading nets one entry into a random prize drawing.

Readers also earn milestone badges through Beanstack to gamify their progress. Every book read counts towards the ultimate reading goal: 30 books for readers four and younger or 30 days for older kids, teens, and adults.

The HPL is also offering camps, STEM classes, and other fun summer activities. Check out the HPL website for more information.

MackinVIA

MackinVIA is an interactive e-reader app that allows users to bookmark pages, highlight and take notes, cite sources, and more. MackinVIA allows readers to access a bounty of books and digital resources, including Comics Plus’ catalogue of digital comics.

To access MackinVIA, go to https://canvas.houstonisd.org/ and log into Canvas. Then, click Resources on the left-hand side of the page, and then click Digital Resources.

This will take you to Clever. Click Library References and find the button for MackinVIA.

Readers will be asked to log in. Use the drop-down meu to find your school name, then click Log In. Clever may log you into the correct school automatically.

You now have access to HISD Library Services’ collection of ebooks and Comics Plus digital comics! Happy reading! For further instruction on using MackinVIA, click here.

Comics Plus

Comics Plus is a collection of age-appropriate digital comics and graphic novels for student readers of all ages. Comics Plus can be accessed by HISD students through the Databases tab in MackinVIA. HISD provides access to Comics Plus for all students with unlimited, simultaneous checkouts to maximize circulation and encourage participation in summer reading programs.

For more information about HISD’s Library Services Department, visit their webpage.