May Feature

Keeping children reading during the summer

Research shows children lose one to three months of learning every summer. You can help prevent this summer learning loss if you offer children opportunities to learn all summer long.

• Take a trip to the library. With a little imagination and a library card, kids can explore new places, meet new people, and discover new things. All they need to do is to look at the books and magazines in the library. Kids can also participate in the story hours, puppet shows and other fun activities most libraries offer during the summer. Contact your local library to learn more.
• Help the children make a reading corner, club house or tent where they can read by themselves or with others.
• Cooking and making crafts are great ways to model reading and following directions.
• Plan a “booknic” at your favorite outdoor spot or in your yard. Pack a lunch and plenty to read. Encourage kids to read cereal boxes and food labels as they munch on their favorite summer treats.
• Send letters to friends who have left for the summer.
• Ask each child to find something small enough to put in his/her pocket. Write or tell stories about the objects.
• Read a picture book without words. Ask the children to use their own words to tell the story.
• Start a round-robin story. Tell the beginning of the story, and then ask each child to add to it until it has an ending.
• Take a walk. Write about or draw the things you see that show that it is summer. Or write or draw about the sounds you hear on the walk.
• An animal escaped from the zoo! Make up a story about it. Tell it to a friend or family member—or write it down. Draw pictures.
• If the children are going to the swimming pool, soccer or baseball games, find books about those topics to read to them.
• Make a story pack out of an old backpack. Fill it with books to read aloud. Take the story pack wherever you go to provide entertainment when children are tired or bored.
• Make up a song together.
• Plant a garden. Make a graph showing how tall each kind of plant grows, how much water is in the rain gauge, and how many seeds you plant. Count how many flowers are on each plant or how many tomatoes you grow.
• Read books about worms, ants, bees and other animals and insects you see during the summer. Count how many you find in your yard or playground.
• Make a chart of how many books you and the children read during the summer. Try to reach a goal: 100 books!
• Help children make their own books about their summer vacation or a special event such as July 4th.

Adapted from:

• Colker, Laura J. “What Can Families Do To Keep Children Reading During the Summer?” RIF Exchange Show #407. http://www.rif.org
• “RIF’s Guide to Summertime Reading for Children of All Ages: A Guide for Parents.” http://www.rif.org