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Summer Reading Packet
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Resources, Ideas and Websites to Help Parents
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Summer is a time for fun and family. As the summertime rolls,
sometimes kids can lose what they have learned in school. This packet is
designed to give you information, resources and booklists you can use
with your children to keep them reading and writing this summer and
prevent summer brain drain. These resources are from many areas on the
internet and this packet is designed to help save you time searching and
evaluating resources alone. I hope you find them enjoyable and they help
your family learn together!
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Table of Contents
Providing a Literacy-Rich Home Environment ........... 3
Use Summer Fun to Build Background Knowledge .... 5
Booklists to Keep Your Kids in a Good Book .............. 6
Activities with Kids ......................................................... 7
Healthy Media Use Pact .................................................. 9
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Providing a Literacy-Rich Home Environment
Literacy development is a continuous process that begins in infancy when babies are first exposed to
language, books, and stories. Its roots are in the home, with branches extending to other environments.
Books are the key ingredient to creating a literacy-rich home environment. Families can support language
and literacy learning by creating a home atmosphere in which reading, writing, talking, and listening are a
natural part of daily life.
Literacy-rich homes and families:

Establish a regular time and place for daily read-aloud sessions, such as before bed or during bath
time. Balance time devoted to sports, television, and other activities.

Keep on hand a variety of reading materials: picture books, chapter books, atlases, dictionaries,
magazines, and newspapers. Some kids, especially boys, prefer nonfiction books. Also get library
cards for everyone and use them often.

Share their love of books and reading. Parents may say to children, "This was my favorite book when
I was your age" or "I can't wait to start my new book."

Talk about what they read and encourage children to think, solve problems, and make predictions.
Parents may discuss the books a child is reading, then ask questions such as, "Did you ever...?" or
"How would you feel if that happened to you?"

Have plenty of paper and writing tools.

Store books and writing materials in places children can reach.

Have frequent conversations with each child, as well as with the family as a whole. Parents should
encourage everyone to express their ideas, opinions, and feelings.

Reinforce language and literacy skills by doing puzzles and playing games that reinforce literacy,
such as Lotto, Candy Land, Old Maid, Concentration, Scrabble, and Trivial Pursuit.

Model reading and writing for pleasure and for specific uses, such as making a shopping list. Ask
your child to help you write out the grocery list, a thank you note to Grandma, or to keep a journal of
special things that happen at home. When writing, encourage your child to use the letter and sound
patterns he is learning at school.

Respond positively to children's reading and writing efforts. Remind him or her that writing involves
several steps. No one does it perfectly the first time.

Show your child how to summarize a story in a few sentences or how to make predictions about what
might happen next. Both strategies help a child comprehend and remember .

Talk about everyday activities to build your child's background knowledge, which is crucial to listening
and reading comprehension. Keep up a running patter, for example, while cooking together, visiting
somewhere new, or after watching a TV show.
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
Let your child see you use a dictionary. Say, "Hmm, I'm not sure what that word means... I think I'll
look it up." Explain how related words have similar spellings and meanings. Show how a word like
knowledge, for example, relates to a word like know.

Take turns adding to a story the two of you make up while riding in a car or bus. Try making the story
funny or spooky.

Encourage your child to re-read favorite books and poems. Re-reading helps kids read more quickly
and accurately.
These strategies tell children reading and writing are important lifelong activities that are fun and useful.
Families can also show children how much they value reading and writing by building partnerships with
child development programs and schools.
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Use Summer Fun to Build Background Knowledge
You don’t need to have a book in hand to help your child become a better reader. Interesting
experiences give kids a broader framework for new information they might encounter in books. When kids
have lots of experiences to draw on, they have a better chance of making a connection with what they
read! How can you help build background knowledge this summer?
Step 1: Take summer field trips
Go to the park, the zoo, the aquarium, a sports event, a historical landmark, or a children’s museum.
Go on a hike or to a natural attraction in your area. When you’re indoors, watch a TV program about
volcanoes or the rainforest or marsupials, or use the web to take a virtual field trip to a faraway place.
Step 2: Talk about it
Talk about the plants and animals you see, or the rules of a game, or the history of your town, or the
new things you learned. Ask questions that get your child to talk, like “If you could be one of those
animals we saw today, which one would you be?” or “Why do you think those boulders were shaped
like that?”
Step 3: Follow up with a book
Find out what interests your child, and visit the library to get more information. Check out books about
butterflies or basketball players or whatever caught your child’s attention. Encourage their learning
with comments like, “That was cool to see the inside of a computer at the museum today. Let’s learn
more about that.
”You could even have your children create their own book, with photos or illustrations of your activity
and their own commentary. This is great writing practice and makes a wonderful summer memory
book. Building background knowledge isn’t just fun, it’s also a great way to spend your summer!
For more ideas to help kids learn over the summer, visit:
http://www.readingrockets.org/calendar/summer/
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Booklists to Keep Your Kids in a Good Book
If you check on the internet there are booklists galore but what will help keep your child reading over
the summer? When you are helping your children look for books help them keep in mind interest and
reading level. The important thing is your child is reading and using the skills they have learned through
the school year.
Take your child’s cue when it comes to interest. Allow them to pick out books. Have them scan the
front and back cover and flip to a random page and have them read it. This will help them check if it is a
book they would enjoy and is on their reading level. If they are not interested in the book or they are
stumbling over words move on, it is not a good selection for now. Don’t be concerned with reading on
grade level but rather your child’s individual level. Remember it’s summer and they should read for
enjoyment.
Here are websites to get your family started on the search for the right summer books.

http://www.readingrockets.org/books/booksbytheme/
This site offers a list of books by certain themes. Great for if you are looking for books about a
particular subject.

http://www.haisln.org/recommendedreadinglists.html
Although there are a ton of book lists on the internet (I found many making this packet.) I really
liked this one because each grade level is a PDF file with a little information about the book. If
you believe your child is reading above or below grade level look at those lists as well.

http://inkrethink.blogspot.com/ and http://www.ncte.org/awards/orbispictus
Don’t forget the non-fiction! Did you know that kids use different reading skills when they read
non-fiction? These sites give booklists for non-fiction texts. These books are written for children
and will help them continue to learn about other topics while they practice their non-fiction
reading.

http://www.readingrockets.org/books/summer/2012/audio_books/
Remember children learn by example. They need to hear good readers read. That can be you, a
family member, or story time at the local library. Thanks to technology it can also be on a
recording! Here is a list of audiobooks for children.
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Activities with Kids
Online and Offline Activities
Some students enjoy doing worksheets while others get very excited about puzzle books and word
scrambles. Teacher Planet offers loads of links to summer-themed printable activity sheets and Harper
Collins Children's Books has literature quizzes, games, and pintables in their Games & Contests section.
ReadWriteThink.org has many games and activities you can do on their own or use it with a book your
child is using. There are links below for individual grade level bands.
Here are a list of websites for online and offline reading activities for kids.

Teacher Planet: http://www.teacherplanet.com/resource/summer.php

Harper Collins Children’s Books: http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/kids/gamesandcontests/

Grades 1-2 Activities: http://www.readwritethink.org/parent-afterschool-resources/grade/1-2/

Grades 3-4 Activities: http://www.readwritethink.org/parent-afterschool-resources/grade/3-4/

Grades 5-6 Activities: http://www.readwritethink.org/parent-afterschool-resources/grade/5-6/
Check Out the Summer Reading Club at Your Local Library
Check with your local public library to sign kids up for summer reading. Ask the librarian about summer
activities, educational videos, and audio books at the library. Don’t forget to sign up for a card while you
are there!
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Other Summer Reading Activities
Check out free summer reading incentive programs. The Scholastic Summer Challenge encourages kids
to log the minutes they spend reading and map their accomplishments. Kids can participate in weekly
challenges, earn digital rewards, and enter to win prizes. The iVillage PBS Kids Summer Reading
Community Challenge runs from June 6 to July 15 and will feature free literacy-building resources for
parents and children. Guest "coaches" include cast members and characters from PBS Kids shows. The
Barnes & Noble Imagination Destination challenge gives your child the ability to earn a free book after
reading eight books and keeping track of them in a reading log.
Here are the links to check out these programs:

Scholastic Summer Challenge:
http://www.scholastic.com/summer/

iVillage PBS Kids Summer Reading Community Challenge:
http://www.ivillage.com/challenges/summerreading/signup

Barnes & Noble Imagination Destination Challenge:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/summer-reading/379003570
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Healthy Media Use Pact
Technology is wonderful but they can sometimes take the place of other activities such as reading.
The following brochure gives your family ideas for teaching your children about healthy media use and
includes a pact that you and your children can complete to promise to use media responsibly.
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