Do you have some books picked out for your summer reading? I have always loved to read. Some of my earliest memories are of going to the local library and picking out books. I can still picture the shelf where some of my favorite books were located. For some children, reading doesn’t come as easy. But it’s no less important. And I’d argue that reading is almost as important for adults too.
Summer is the perfect time to set some reading goals. For children, time off school shouldn’t mean time off from reading. I spent five years teaching reading skills to struggling elementary level students. Being a good reader affects every other aspect of a student’s studies. You need to be a good reader to be successful in history, math, science, and, ultimately, life. Studies have shown that three months off for summer vacation can have a negative influence on students’ reading ability. It’s called the summer slide. If students don’t read over their vacation, their reading skills suffer. It is not unusual for a student to return to school in the fall reading one, two or even more levels below where they left off before summer vacation.
Summer Reading Goals
Setting summer reading goals is the best ways to fight the backsliding so often seen over the long summer break. I have seen lots of different ways to set summer reading goals and make it fun for you and your children. Yes, you. Because a parent who reads is more likely to have a child who reads. I set a goal to read 50 books this year. I’ve read about 30 so far. Summer is the time for me to really get ahead on that goal. I will probably be close to 50 books by summer’s end. Look for a future post where I review the best books I read this summer.
Start at the Library
When my kids were young, we would go down to our local library and sign up for their summer reading program. Our library has programs for kids, teens, and adults. I still sign up as an adult even though my kids are mostly grown and do summer reading assignments for school instead of for fun. Check out what your local library has to offer. You might be surprised.
Our library offers events to go along with the reading challenges including a party and prizes at summer’s end. I can log all my reading online. Kids can earn badges and rewards for the number of books they read. They even have fun events like a visiting magician and a creative writing workshop for kids. And the library is about as inexpensive as you can get…free!
Online Summer Reading Challenges
I found some great summer reading websites while doing research for this post. Check out my favorites below.
Readingbrightly.com – Reading Brightly has partnered with the Melissa & Doug toy brand. Their website has 20 interactive ideas to encourage summer reading for kids.
Reading Rockets- Reading Rockets has summer reading book lists for toddlers to adults. If you’re not sure what to read, this is a great place to start.
Scholastic – Scholastic has an online summer reading challenge that is open to teachers, parents, and kids. The parents page includes link to great resources like podcasts, reading logs, certificates to self print, and articles on the importance of summer reading.
Barnes and Noble – Barnes and Noble offers kids a free book for participating in their summer reading program. You can download a summer reading journal and get started on their website.
Half Price Books – I’d never heard of Half Price Books before. It’s a bookstore chain with outlets all over the U.S. If you have one near you, check out their website and summer reading program. If you read 15 minutes a day for two months, you can earn gift cards to buy more books.
Bookbub – Forget the kids. Bookbub has lots of great ideas for adult summer reading. Check out the link to get started.
Other Summer Reading Rewards
Chuck E Cheese – Offers 10 free tokens for every two weeks of reading. Check out the link to print out the rules and the calendar you’ll need to fill out.
Free Audio Books for Teens – Check out this link to sign up for free audio books for teens. Listening to books isn’t as good for your student as actually reading, but this is still a great program to keep your teenagers interested in books.
Summer Reading Can Take You Anywhere
One of the best things about summer reading is all the amazing places it can take you. Can’t afford a trip to a tropical locale? Read a book about a murder mystery on a tropical island. Disney World not in your budget this year? Read a book about Walt Disney or one of his amazing parks. When I can’t travel, I often check out travel stories from the library. Books can take us places we couldn’t go to in any other way. Hogwarts, Narnia, the distant past, the far away future are all reachable if we travel there by reading a book.
When Reading Isn’t Fun
I can’t believe I just wrote that because reading is always fun to me. I was that kid who hid a reading book on my lap so I could keep reading instead of listening to the teacher. Very few things in life bring as much pleasure to me as reading a good story. But I do realize that there are some people who don’t enjoy reading like I do. What do you do if your kids really hate to read? Make it fun. Make it a challenge. Give praise and rewards. And be a good example. Let them see you reading, both to them and to yourself.
Make It fun
Pick books that interest you and your child. Pick books that make you laugh. I love the Elephant and Piggie series by Mo Willems for early readers. I enjoyed reading them to my kids as much as they did. According to J.K. Rowling, “If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book yet.” Find the right book and reading will be more enjoyable. Summer reading is perfect for this. Instead of reading what’s been assigned to you, read what you like all summer long.
Make It a Challenge
The way I challenge myself is by setting a goal and then keeping track to make sure I reach it. I use Goodreads.com to keep track of my books. There are loads of ways to track your reading. Several of the links listed above can help. Most libraries have websites that offer tracking too. When my kids were small, we’d make a chart and add stickers or stars and keep track that way. And once the goal was reached, we’d celebrate in some way.
Give Praise and Rewards
Make reading a positive thing. Give praise and encouragement. And when those goals or challenges are met, give a reward. I reward myself with another book (or two or three). My kids used to get an ice cream cone at the local ice cream parlor as their reward. Or we’d save up and go somewhere fun to celebrate our reading accomplishments at the end of summer vacation. One year, it was a local amusement park. Another time, it was the children’s museum.
I can’t say enough about what summer reading has done and continues to do for me and my family. I know if you embrace a summer reading program, it will benefit you and yours as well. This is especially true for those who struggle with reading. As little as 15 minutes per day is all it takes to see a difference in your abilities. When I was a reading teacher, I would hand out reading logs from our local library to my students and encourage them to sign up for the program because I knew it would make a difference in their skills come the fall.
For us adults, reading can reduce stress and depression, increase relaxation and self-esteem, and give us greater understanding and empathy for others. Sounds like a win-win situation to me.
As always. thank you for reading. Please use the social media buttons below to share and all comments are welcome in the space provided below.
Here are a few links to some funny books on Amazon. Some are great for kids. Others are adult level humor. Please note that I am an Amazon affiliate and may receive a commission if you purchase a book through these links. See disclosure page for details.
