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Continuing with our Summer Reading series of blogs, we would like to make another suggestion to ensure a summer full of reading. Our last few blogs were about how to stop summer learning loss and get even the most reluctant readers excited about reading. Today we encourage you to empower the kids by making them part of the process by having them help to create a positive at-home reading environment.
A reading-friendly home environment is more than just a quiet comfortable place to sit and read. A home reading environment checklist includes:
- Creating a special place for independent reading, which could be a bedroom, family room, or outdoor space
- Making books available around the house and in the car
- Establishing family reading time where adults and children read together or on their own
- Regular conversations about books, newspapers, magazines, movies or special television shows at family meals
Of course we encourage you to use READS to verify that the kids understand what they have read without your having to read everything that they read.
by Ashley Spires is for kids age 7 to 10. “In Binky’s third adventure, our intrepid, sometimes accident-prone hero is shaken out of his routine when he’s forced to contend with Gracie, a dainty striped foster kitty who comes to live at Binky’s space station (aka his home at 42 Sentinel Parkway). Binky instantly resents the new arrival, whose cute face and perfect manners are downright annoying. Indeed, Gracie seems too perfect. So Binky decides to do some undercover investigating and discovers a shocking truth about the family guest. Soon Binky is thrust full-throttle into a situation that puts all his Space Cat skills to the ultimate test!” Review from Amazon.
by Matt Phelan is for kids age 10 and up. “Tall tale. Thriller. Gripping historical fiction. This artful, sparely told graphic novel — a tale of a boy in Dust Bowl America — will resonate with young readers today.
by Jennifer Holm is for kids age 7 to 10. “In this energetic comic by a brother-sister team (Jennifer’s Our Only May Amelia was a Newbery Honor Book), Babymouse, a wise-cracking rodent stand-in for your average, adventure-seeking nine-year-old, strives to capture popular Felicia’s goodwill, finally achieving her end at the expense of Wilson Weasel, truest of friends. But, wouldn’t you know it, Felicia’s world has little to offer a smart, fun-loving mouse, after all. The Holms spruce up some well-trod ground with breathless pacing and clever flights of Babymouse’s imagination, and their manic, pink-toned illustrations of Babymouse and her cohorts vigorously reflect the internal life of any million-ideas-a-minute middle-school student. Jesse Karp, Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved” Review from Amazon.
by Paul Moxham is for kids of all ages. “When twelve year old Joe Mitchell, along with his two younger sisters, arrive at the sleepy seaside town of Smugglers Cove, they are expecting a quiet uneventful holiday. But the children get caught up in a mystery while exploring Bracknesh Castle. This ruined fortress sits on the outskirts of the village and, as the children soon discover, holds more secrets than they could ever imagine.
by A.J. Cosmo is for kids in grades 2 – 4. “What happens to all those socks that go missing? Monsters eat them of course!” “This book has a fun story with cheerful, fitting art. The monster has the right combination of ugly monster-ness while being cute and charming to a child’s eye. The book has a clever ending that will make you grin, instead of the usual “moral of the story” type formulas.” Reviews from Amazon.
by Frank E. Peretti is for kids grade 4 and up. “The Door in the Dragon’s Throat reads like a shortened version of Raiders of the Lost Ark, but the hero succeeds because, in his own words, “we serve a mighty God who is greater than any curse.” Dr. Cooper and his children, Jay and Lila, have come to Nepur, in the Middle East, to enter the Dragon’s Throat and unlock the door which legend says hides a treasure. Every imaginable disaster befalls the man explosion, a kidnapping, falling boulders, a viper attack, earthquakes but in spite of numerous setbacks, the expedition succeeds. The writing is full of clichés and inconsistencies: a desert setting, a greedy king and his sly aide, a cavern in the earth where the forces of good and evil are fighting for control, an archaeologist who brandishes a gun as readily as he prays to God. The dialogue is stilted, and the vocabulary is too difficult for young readers who might overlook the poor characterization and heavily imposed theme of Christian belief. Far better fantasy adventures are Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising (Atheneum, 1973), Nancy Bond’s Country of Broken Stone (Atheneum, 1980) and Robin McKinley’s The Blue Sword (Greenwillow, 1982). Constance Allen, Tabor Academy, Marion, Mass. Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.” Review from Amazon.
by Meg Cabot is for kids in grades 3 to 5. “Allie looks forward to starting school again after winter vacation, but the arrival of a new girl, Cheyenne, changes everything. Within days, Cheyenne gathers a clique, starts a chase-and-kiss game at recess, and bullies most of her classmates into pairing off and “going with” each other, even though they’re not sure exactly what that means. Using Allie’s fresh voice and believable fourth-grade perspective, Cabot gets across her “let children be children” message in a way that will make sense to other kids. The third Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls book sympathetically portrays the broad emotional range of fourth-graders. –Carolyn Phelan -” Review from Amazon.
by Debora Geary is for kids aged 4 to 9.
by Adam Kisiel is for kids of all ages. “A collection of 150 best, editor-picked knock knock jokes for kids (and also for their fluffy friends on 4 paws). Suitable for kids of all ages who will enjoy reading and telling their best friends clean and great jokes assembled in this book.
by Theresa Golding is for kids 5 to 7 years old. “It’s Memorial Day and Marco and Mama are going to see the parade. On their way, they pass Marco’s grandfather’s house. They usually stop to see Grandfather, but today Mama is in a rush because she has promised Marco a surprise. Marco can’t imagine what the surprise might be. Could it be the marching band? The fire engines? The candy tossed to the crowd by a woman dressed as the Statue of Liberty? Mama promises that it will be a better surprise than candy. As the parade goes by, Marco wishes his grandfather were with him to enjoy it. Then, marching down the street, come the veterans, wearing uniforms and shiny medals. But look! Who is that leading them? Marco never imagined the kind of surprise in store for him.” Review from Amazon.
by Madeline Collins. “This book is dedicated in memory of the brave men and women who have fought to keep our country safe. Written by Madeline Collins for her Girl Scout Gold Award. Proceeds from the sale of this book are donated to ReMind: The Bob Wooddruff Foundation.
by Eve Bunting is for kids age 4 to 8. “A boy and his father have come to the Vietnam War Memorial to look for the boy’s grandfather’s name among those who were killed in the war. They find his name surrounded, but far from lost, in the rows of print that “march side by side, like rows of soldiers.” “I’m proud that your grandfather’s name is on this wall,” says the boy’s father. The boy agrees, adding, “but I’d rather have my grandpa here.” Before this powerful book is half finished, readers will be deeply moved. Bunting’s understated prose captures the meaning of the memorial to the American people, especially to those who lost loved ones, without being maudlin or heavy-handed. Himler’s gauzy watercolors are a perfect accompaniment: impressionistic enough for the characters to appear as everymen. A sensitive and moving picture book, and a great discussion book as well. — Catherine vanSonnenberg, San Diego Public Library, CA Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.” Review from Amazon.
by Jim Trelease is for parents of kids from birth and up. “A New York Times and million copy bestseller, the classic handbook on reading aloud to children—revised and updated. Recommended by ‘Dear Abby’, The New York Times and The Washington Post, for three decades, millions of parents and educators have turned to Jim Trelease’s beloved classic to help countless children become avid readers through awakening their imaginations and improving their language skills. Now this new edition of The Read-Aloud Handbook imparts the benefits, rewards, and importance of reading aloud to children of a new generation. Supported by delightful anecdotes as well as the latest research, The Read-Aloud Handbook offers proven techniques and strategies—and the reasoning behind them—for helping children discover the pleasures of reading and setting them on the road to becoming lifelong readers. Penguin Books named The Read-Aloud Handbook as one of the seventy-five most important books it published in its seventy-five-year history.” Review from Amazon.
by Lisa Trumbauer is for kids in, well, first grade. The Brain Quest series has pretty much any grade level available. “Jam-packed with hundreds of curriculum-based activities, exercises and games in every subject, Brain Quest Workbook: Grade 1 reinforces what kids are learning in the classroom. The workbook’s lively layout and easy-to-follow explanations make learning fun, interactive, and concrete. Plus it’s written to help parents follow and explain key concepts. Includes phonics, spelling, vocabulary, find the rhyme, addition, subtraction, skip counting, time, money, maps, science, brain boxes, and much, much more.” Review from Amazon.
is a compilation by Summer Bridge Activities. “School Stops for Summer. Learning Never Should! Prevent summer learning loss with our award winning, best-selling summer learning series! Summer Bridge Activities: Bridging Grades Third to Fourth reinforces essential skills across the curriculum and helps prepare children for second grade. With 12 weeks’ worth of activities, completing Summer Bridge Activities™ is the perfect way to keep skills sharp all summer long!
