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Summer is here, and along with the hot New Orleans weather comes a relaxed and laid-back attitude. Though kids deserve to have a fun-filled summer, time away from the classroom can cause children to forget what they learned during the school year. This is commonly referred to as the summer slide. Basically, if you don’t use it, you lose it.
Research has shown the best way to battle "summer slide" is to keep kiddos reading. Here are a few, fun ways to engage your children in reading while school is out.
Challenge Yourself with the New Orleans Public Library Summer Fun & Reading Challenge
The library has set forth a challenge for children, teens, and adults in New Orleans! After reading 800 minutes and completing four activities, you can head to your local library and receive a prize (while supplies last). The last day to complete the challenge is Monday, July 31. Check out the library’s website to learn more.
Join the Scholastic Summer Reading Home Base
Scholastic is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of books. They have many initiatives to support a love of literacy for young people. Their Summer Reading Home Base program is a fun, free program for kids, available between May 4 - September 7th. It offers stories, characters, and games, and is moderated for safety 24/7. See what Homebase is talking about!
Whip Something Up in the Kitchen
Many benefits come with preparing meals with your children and promoting literacy skills is one of them. Cooking together requires lots of talking and listening to each other. Kiddos are required to do quite a bit of reading to find the right ingredients or follow the steps of a recipe. The ability to focus on cooking can be transferred to other skills (like reading) that children need to have sustained attention. Food Network has a collection of healthy recipes kids can make.
These easy steps will make sure you and your young ones have a fun and literacy-filled summer. Happy reading, y’all!
