Summer reading is the way to improve your child’s language skills. Numerous studies show that students who don’t read or read infrequently during their summer vacation see their reading abilities decline once they are back to work again in the fall.
However, this “summer slide” can be avoided by making sure that children are as engaged as possible in what they are reading.
Anything that keeps students reading works. The more interested in the text your child is, the more they will comprehend what they are reading.
The best ways to keep your child from becoming a “rusty reader” over the summer are:
Encourage your children to read books they enjoy for at least 30 minutes per day or choose a pages per day approach. Your child will likely be more interested in material they choose themselves than material that is forced on them.
Provide incentives for reluctant readers. For example, if your child enjoys basketball, agree to take them to the local court if they do their “daily reading.”
Make reading a social act. Establish a time during the day when all members of the family gather and read on their own, or take turns reading the same book aloud.
Connect your reading to family outings. If you take your kids to an aquarium, consider reading a book about fish or the ocean with them later that day. The outing can help place the reading into a broader context.
Take your children to your local library or bookstore and let them pick out a book they’re going to love. They will be better readers tomorrow for it.