Don’t you just love the lazy, hazy days of summer when you can lay around all day, dreaming and reading, planning and scheming? Or are your summer days action-packed and on-the-go from sun-up to sun-down?
When it comes to academics, kids lose traction over the summer months. Keeping up their reading skills between the end of one school year to the beginning of the next will make the start of a new school year much smoother.
To help motivate your children (and yourself!) this summer to make time for reading, check out the following resources.
Summer Reading Programs
Barnes & Noble offers a free book to each child who reads a designated number of books, logs them in a reading journal provided on their website, and presents the journal to their local store. The offer is going on through July and August this year.
Book Adventure is an interactive website that will help you set up reading goals for your child(ren) with reading assessment and management, plus a rewards program.
Books-a-Million’s Summer Reading Adventure is offering a prize to readers who read 4 books from their suggested reading list. All you have to do is keep a log of books read and present it at your local BAM store.
Chuck E Cheese has a fun Rewards Calendar to help motivate our children to reach their summer goals. You can use the calendar to chart progress for behaviors, good habits, daily chores, and reading! When they complete the chart, take it to your local Chuck E. Cheese restaurant to receive 10 free play points or tokens (a food purchase is required.)
Half Price Books is hosting a Summer Reading Camp. You can log your child’s reading on the HPB website. There are chances to win gift cards and receive discounts when purchasing books. Their website has printable coloring pages available, online storytime as well as book recommendations for all ages.
Local Libraries usually have programs that encourage and reward reading. Often there is a weekly storytime (in person or virtual) with a theme and possibly prizes.
Pizza Hut has been offering their BOOK IT! reading program during the school year for grades 1-6 since 1984, but recently added a summer program called Camp BOOK IT! Once you sign up, you help your student(s) set a reading goal for the months of June, July, and August and they can earn a personal pan pizza at any participating Pizza Hut restaurant each of those months.
Professional Sports Teams sometimes have programs to inspire their young fans to get reading over the summer.
Scholastic has a fun reading program this summer. Kids can visit the summer zone in Scholastic Home Base to begin their reading streak, meet their favorite Scholastic characters, and print out reading achievement reports.
Reading Lists
If you need a few ideas about what to read, be sure to visit the Crew’s Summer Reading List article. You’ll find individual lists for elementary, middle school, high school, boys, and girls that will keep your kids reading all summer.
A big thank you to Linda Sears of
Apron Strings & Other Things for writing this Crew Article.
Let’s Encourage Each Other!
Do your know of a summer reading program not mentioned?
Please share with others in the comments below!