Summer break means vacations, camps, swimming, and free time. Along with the fun of summer, many kids can lose significant ground academically and forget a lot of what they learned during the school year. In fact, this phenomenon is so common, it’s even been given a name, the “summer slide.” Sounds like fun, but it really indicates the loss of achievement and learning over the summer months.
According to Scholastic, preventing the “summer slide” can be avoided by most families by following a few easy steps. Scholastic outlines three suggestions to avoid regressing over the summer months:
Read at least six books over the course of the summer.
Read something everyday, even it’s just the newspaper, magazines, or comic books.
Read aloud!
Since folktales come from the oral tradition, we’re strong advocates of reading aloud. In Jim Trelease’s book, The Read Aloud Handbook, he explains how reading aloud promotes brain development, even doctors are prescribing books. Not only that, it nurtures a child’s imagination and his/her love of books. In addition, reading aloud gives parents and kids a unique way to bond and learn together. On April 16th, The New York Times reported on the many benefits of reading aloud to children.
This summer, consider Story Cove as a supplemental reading resource. In our summer reading newsletter, last May, we outlined 7 best practices for summer reading:
Match approximate reading level
Incorporate books that include a child’s interests
Select books that are rich in language nutrition
Set up a consistent reading schedule each week
Make reading a social activity with discussions and activities
Use incentives for reluctant readers
Target a minimum goal of 60 hours for the summer or 30 minutes a day
The Story Cove series was developed to provide active supplemental reading activities for kids entering Kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade and even 3rd grade. The 22 picture books are leveled for kids in these grades and since the stories came from the world’s great oral traditions, the language is easy to follow, comprehend and remember for young, emerging readers.
All of the stories include differentiated lesson plans that correlate with the Common Core Standards for Reading in Kindergarten through 2nd grade. Each lesson plan contains discussion questions, activities, and worksheets that enrich the reading experience for any child. We supply all of the necessary resources for parents to keep their children reading throughout the summer months, all from the comfort of their home.
In addition, each picture book can be used with an online animated version of the story at storycove.com with a read-along version and a read-to-me version to make it easier for kids to comprehend the stories and practice their fluency skills.
So this summer, along with swimming and lazy summer days, take advantage of the extra free-time to avoid the summer slide with daily free-form reading, combined with reading 6 or more books over the 12-week break and finding time each day or several times a week, to sit down and read aloud together. Not only is reading aloud a fun way to spend time as a family, it’s a great time to bond. Practicing these 3 tips, makes going back to school in the fall far less difficult and something that kids can positively look forward to.