Summer Reading — It’s Almost Here!
This time next week will be the very first day of Summer Vacation!
I’m just going to be completely honest here. I’m both excited and sad. My kids have had such a great year at school. They have wonderful teachers. We’ll miss the school and all their friends.
But.
Summer. I mean…SUMMER.
I can’t wait for days of sleeping in (a little) and lazy days (kind of). I’m excited for trips to Grand Haven and zoos and a vacation. I really want a summer without a tornado so we can enjoy some leisure time.
Most of all, I just want to have my kids with me for awhile. I miss them. I need to be around them so we can be silly together and have fun conversations.
And I really super can’t wait to read to them.
We are a reading family. Now all three of my kids can read by themselves, which is a joy to this mama’s heart. Still, I’m planning on reading to them.
Last summer we read through all of the Oz books (there are 14 of them). This summer we’re reading a bunch of stand-alones, some Newberry winners, and we’re starting the Harry Potter series (although, we’re only going to read #1 this summer…#2 if we really can’t wait to read more…but they other ones get a little scary for my smaller guys). And we’re going to dig into a Kids Devotion from Our Daily Bread (we won it on Jessie Clemence’s blog…Thanks, Jessie!).
Now, you may wonder why, if all my kids can read now, do I still want to read to them. Well, a few reasons.
1. They still like it! It’s fun! They ask me to read to them and beg me for one more chapter. I mean, why would I pass that up? That’s gold, my friends!
2. It’s so so so good for us! Kids who are read to have a higher level of literacy throughout their lives. They learn new words (which are above their reading level), grow to love books and the written word. They are exposed to real life situations in a safe atmosphere and with an adult (me) who can help them grapple with them. Oh, and it’s an excellent way to get them away from screens for a bit (TV can’t even come close to being as awesome as a book). Also, it’s such great together time.
I’ve not done everything right as a mom. I know that. I’ve messed up a lot. But I know that the time I’ve spent reading to my kids has been a good move. I cherish the time we have to explore books together.
We’re still putting together a reading bucket list for this summer. Any great recommendations?
susiefinkbeiner.com 
I love reading to my kids too! I read to both of them before bed every night. I wish we could find more books that they both enjoy and that my 4th grader hasn’t already read. However I found a few that should work for this summer: The One and Only Ivan and The Midnight Zoo.
In the past, we’ve done some classics too like Sign of the Beaver; Charlotte’s Web; The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; and The Mouse and the Motorcycle.
I can’t wait to see what other people recommend. I have a running list on GoodReads for my kids.
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We read The One and Only Ivan during Spring Break this year. It’s so good. You’ll love it. We also read Adventures with Waffles and Fortunately the Milk. Both were fantastic.
Sign of the Beaver is on our list for this summer and I’ll have to look up The Midnight Zoo.
Thanks, Janyre!
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I read aloud to my kids (ages 10 to 17) every day while they eat breakfast (We just started ‘Under God’ by Toby Mac and Michael Tait.) and lunch (We’re currently working our way through Rick Riordan’s ‘Heroes of Olympus’ series.) It’s really the best time to get them all sitting still at the same time (I eat when they go do chores or independent reading, depending on the time of day.) My husband even sits in and listens. It makes for a fun family time and some great conversation starters.
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Yes! We read at lunch for that same reason. This year I’m going to do breakfast devos with them (the Our Daily Bread book). I’m really looking forward to adding that to our summer routine!
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Recommendations? Don’t get me started! How do you even begin to choose? I’d love to know what’s on your list and also when and where you like to read together. I love reading to my kiddos too but I sometimes get discouraged over how hard it can be to find the time and make it a routine rather than hit and miss. Any suggestions?
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We read at lunch. This started because I eat faster than they do and they were a captive audience. 🙂 Jeff reads the Bible to them before bed.
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