Team Inspiration- Final
Reading Push 
Great Summer
Reading Activities!
Let’s Celebrate Reading !
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Reading well offers
many
opportunities for
academic success.
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Knowledge!
Fun!
Adventure!
Freedom to
explore!
Vocabulary, vocabulary,
vocabulary !
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Children in grades three
through twelve learn the
meanings of about 3,000
new words a year. The
majority of new words are
learned incidentally while
reading books and other
materials.
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Research supports the
importance of independent
reading. Classroom
instruction cannot possibly
teach every word and its
meaning.
A look at the facts:
Variation in the Amount of Independent
Reading
percentile rank
minutes/day
words experienced in
a year
(Books, magazines, newspapers)
98th
90th
70th
50th
30th
10th
2nd
67.3
33.4
16.9
9.2
4.3
1.0
0.0
4,733,000
2,357,000
1,168,000
601,000
251,000
51,000
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The Research is clear: Good readers, READ!
Anderson, Wilson, and Fielding. Reading Research Quarterly
“Growth in reading and how children spend their time outside of school.”
Independent readers: 9-12 years
Provide your brain a steady
flow of books and
conversations about them.
 Find some kids in your
neighborhood and form your
own book group. Chat it up
with family and friends!
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Continue reading books that
challenge your vocabulary
and thinking skills.
Self-select books that
interest you!
 Reading materials can be
any genre, series, or author.
Newspapers and comics count
too!
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Voracious readers are
made, not born. Children
who read most, also read
best. It’s never too late to
become a good reader!
We Must Stop the “Summer
Slip”
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Most children,
especially
struggling readers,
forget some of
what they’ve
learned, or “slip”
out of reading
practice during the
summer months.
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Research shows
that reading just
six books (or
approximately 16 minutes a
during the
summer may
keep a reader
from regressing.
day)
Summer Reading
Suggestions
(You can find many of these
at York County Library!)
Summer Reading Project
Book List – Fourth Grade
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Any Roald Dahl book 
Shiloh
Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing
Bunnicula
Cricket in Times Square
Diary of A Wimpy Kid
Dork Diaries
How to Eat Fried Worms
Frindle and No Talking
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Judy Blume
James Howe
George Selden
Jeff Kinney
Rachel Renee Russell
Thomas Rockwell
Andrew Clements
Summer Reading Project
Book List – Fourth Grade
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Tale of Despereaux
Bobby vs. Girls
Eleven
The Library Card
Judy Moody (movie)
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Katie Kazoo Switcheroo
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Stuart Little
Charlotte’s Web
Dear America, (series)
A Dog’s Life Autobiography of a Stray
The Lemonade War
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Kate DiCamillo
Lisa Yee
Patricia Reilly Giff
Jerry Spinelli
Megan McDonald and
Peter Reynolds
Nancy E. Krulik and
John Wendy
E.B. White
E.B. White
Various Authors
Ann M. Martin
Jacqueline Davies
Summer Reading Project
Book List – Fifth Grade
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Any Gordon Korman book or series 
Hatchet
Holes
The Cay
Island of the Blue Dolphin
The Lightning Thief Series (movie!)
When You Reach Me
(a recent Newberry Winner!)
The 39 Clues
The Hunger Games (movie!)
Gary Paulsen
Louis Sachar
Theodore Taylor
Scott O’Dell
Rick Riordan
Rebecca Stead
Various Authors
Summer Reading Project
Book List – Fifth Grade
Continued
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Love That Dog/Hate That Cat
Spiderwick Chronicles
Because of Anya
Sharon Creech
Tony DiTerlizzi
Margaret Peterson
Haddix
Chronicles of Narnia
C.S. Lewis
Harry Potter
J.K. Rowling
Mr. Popper’s Penguins (movie!)
Richard Atwater
Soul Surfer (movie!)
Bethany Hamilton,
Rick Bundschuh
and Sheryl Berk
Million Dollar Throw
Mike Lupica
(or any other book written by this popular sports writer)
Extension Activities
Extension Activities for
the books you read!
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Make a picture book of the novel.
Pick a scene from the book and rewrite
it as a play.
Construct puppets and present a show
of one or more interesting parts of the
book.
Write and/or perform an original song
that tells the story of the book.
Create a tri-fold brochure or
pamphlet advertising your novel.
Extension Activities for
the books you read!
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Write a full description of two of the
characters in the book. Draw a
portrait to accompany each
description.
Create a comic strip for your book.
Create a PowerPoint presentation
describing the elements of fiction
(setting, plot, characters, theme,
mood) as they relate to your book.
Computer Fun!
Great websites to help you
find books!
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http://palibraries.libguides.com/content.p
hp?pid=364208&sid=3847016 DAIS
WEBSITE for SUMMER READING!
Http://youarewhatyouread.scholastic.com/ Get
book recommendations from celebrities!
http://scholastic.com/clashofthetitles/ Clash of
the Books- Vote for your favorite books and
scope out the winners!
Keep your brain sharp!
Reading Extension
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http://teacher.scholastic.com/activiti
es/scrapbook/ Make a character
scrapbook. Perfect to do after
reading any book!
Word Games (Vocabulary)
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www.freerice.com you can practice
vocabulary and help others!
http://www.scholastic.com/wordgirl/syn
onym_toast.htm Wordgirl- Synonyms
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/
athens_games/game.htm# Root Words!
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/
adventure/grammar1.htm# Clean up
your Grammar!
http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/
games/frog/frog.html Word Frog
Spelling Games
http://www.kidsspell.com/ (click on
Select A Spelling List- you can find
lists for any grade)
 http://www.abcya.com/fourth_grade
_computers.htm spelling and
vocabulary choices for 4th grade
 http://www.earobics.com/gamegoo/
games/frieda/frieda.html
 http://www.funbrain.com/spellroo/in
dex.html
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Creative Writing Activities
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http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/storyst
arters/storystarter1.htm Silly Story Starters!
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroomresources/student-interactives/comic-creator30021.html Comic Creator!
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroomresources/student-interactives/readwritethinkprinting-press-30036.html Printing Pressprovides many cool ways to format your
writing! (make newspapers, magazines, etc.)
For Parents
Questions to ask your readers
Questions to Ask Your Child-
Before Reading
Why does this book interest you?
 Based on the title and the pictures,
what do you predict will happen in
the story?
 Do you think there will be a problem
in the story? Why or why not?
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Questions to Ask Your Child-
During Reading
What do you think will happen next?
 Can you put what you’ve just read
in your own words?
 What do you know about the main
character?
 What would you have done if you
were the character?
 Are any of the characters changing?
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Questions to Ask Your Child-
After Reading
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What was the most interesting situation
in the story?
Why do you think the author wrote this
book?
Were you satisfied by the ending of the
book? Why or why not?
If you could change one thing in the
story, what would it be?
Is there a character in the story like you?
How are you alike?
Super Six Reading
Strategies
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Predictions (I predict… because…)
Connections (text to self, text to text,
text to world)
Monitoring (Does the reading make
sense? What are difficult words or ideas?)
Questioning (I wonder… because…)
Evaluating (How do I rate the story and
the author’s style?)
Summarizing (In the beginning, next,
then, after that, in the end)