Summer
Reading BY DANA KAMP
Whether your child is entering school for the first time or starting his senior year of high school, there is an interesting, enjoyable book out there to entertain him and to help keep his reading skills up to par during the summer break. FOR TODDLERS Use the summer as a tool for teaching your little one about the seasons. Find cute summer-themed books such as “Carl’s Summer Vacation” or “Are You Ready to Play Outside?” Discuss some things you can do now that it is summer and the cold weather is gone. “Curious George Goes to the Beach” can get your thought process rolling. Grab a book about whatever summer means to you — picnics, vacations, watermelon, ice cold lemonade, time at the park — and read it with your child!
for books with several chapters or even a book series. The “Jigsaw Jones” series and “Geronimo Stilton” series are adventure-mystery books, which are appropriate for this age group. Most likely your older elementary child has become a fan of the “High School Musical” phenomenon, so use that interest to keep her reading. Buy or borrow the “High School Musical” and “Hannah Montana” books, instead of watching the movies on the big screen. If you have a sports enthusiast, the “Baseball Card Adventure” series is a fun set of books that allows the reader to travel back in time and meet actual baseball players. He won’t even realize he’s getting a history lesson, because he’s so intrigued by the players’ stories. Another great historical fiction book is “Esperanza Rising.” This story takes place during the Great Depression and will captivate your child, while also giving her an inside look at what children of this era experienced. FOR TEENAGERS Middle school and high school students are required to read several novels during the school year and your child’s school may also provide a summer reading list. Even with that list, you can supplement with enjoyable books to help continue building vocabulary and comprehension skills. “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” and “Schooled” are both well-liked novels for this age group. While all Margaret Peterson Haddix’s books seem to be popular with teenagers, “Found” seems to be particularly fascinating. Once again, book series are great for the summer because the reader can really get involved with the characters and has time to read several, if not all, of the books in a series. “The Clique,” “Twilight” and “The Lightning Thief” are all great series selections. With the “Twilight” movie in theaters and “The Lightning Thief” movie coming soon, your child may be encouraged to read these because of the media coverage surrounding these novels. A great reward for finishing the books could be a trip to see the movie!
FOR KINDERGARTENERS Beginning elementary school is a big event (for a five year old and for Mom and Dad). Sharing books about upcoming occurrences and possible emotions is a great way to get your child ready for the first day of school. Both “The Kissing Hand” and “Little Quack” can help with the separation anxiety, which is something commonly felt when being away from Mom all day. “David Goes to School” is a funny story that can lead to discussions about proper school behavior. Sharing and kindness are pertinent in the sweet story “One .com gpublications giggle@irvin Smile” and self-acceptance is the main theme of “A Frog Thing.”
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FOR ELEMENTARY-AGE CHILDREN Once your child has gotten those basic reading skills down and is ready to read on her own, look
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