Avoid The Summer Slide!

Scholastic’s Tips for Helping Kids Avoid the Summer Slide:

Encourage your children to read four or more books. Research shows that kids who don’t read at least four books during the summer break lose valuable reading comprehension skills that can put them behind when they go back to school in the fall.

Find great books. Nine out of 10 kids say that they are more likely to finish reading a book if they pick it out themselves, so make a trip to the bookstore or library more exciting by allowing them to show you which books they want to read!

Take reading beyond the book. Ask your child questions about the story they are reading and try to find relevant supplemental activities to enhance their comprehension, such as a visit to a museum, checking out the author or book website, or doing an arts and crafts project.

Join a fun, free summer reading program. Scholastic’s Summer Challenge is completely free and easy to use! Kids read books, log their minutes, and earn rewards! Parents receive emails each time their child hits a reading milestone so that they can keep the encouragement going all summer long.

Fun For Kids! On April 27th, Scholastic will launch the 5th annual Summer Challenge, a free online reading program for kids grades K-8, found at www.scholastic.com/summer . The Summer Challenge encourages kids to read books that are interesting to them and to log the minutes they spend reading on the website in order to win prizes and contribute to the Read For the World Record. Last summer, kids around the world read 52,710,368 minutes which broke the previous record, and we’re confident that they will do it again this year! Kids can keep track of their personal reading minutes and can also choose to contribute to their school’s tally.

Parents Win Too! Parents are provided with free recommended reading lists, and will receive emails when their kids hit milestones during the course of the summer. Plus, the site offers free resources, expert articles, and downloadable reading certificates you can print and hang on the fridge.