That's a Wrap!

As the academic school year comes to a close, we have a lot to be thankful for here at Promising Pages. The work being done by our old and new bookworms is just astounding! Erma will surely miss the bright faces of her faithful readers this summer. However, there are some things each and every bookworm can do this summer to make sure their reading continues to improve!

           

Some may believe that reading levels will simply remain the same over the summer months. What if I told you that this is not the case? In fact, the lack of reading over the summer can actually create a shockingly vast decline in reading levels from the previous school year. According to Reading Rockets, “it is the students who can least afford to lose the reading gains they’ve achieved during the school year who fall the farthest behind when they return to the classroom after summer break.” BUT…this doesn’t have to be the reality.  It is the goal of Promising Pages to develop a community in which reading occurs even when school’s out for the summer. Scholastic collected a number of summer learning loss statistics, and two months of reading skills are lost over the summer when students don’t pick up their books. Let’s all agree that this summer will be the summer in which our bookworms defeat these statistics!

           

So how do we make sure our bookworms remember to read this summer? Well first, we must understand what summer reading loss really means. Summer reading loss is best explained through this video that shows what happens over the summer when students aren’t engaging with reading material every day. 

As you can see, the dilemma of summer reading loss is a very real problem for our students each year. There are so many cool and unique tools and resources to help encourage young readers to keep reading, regardless of their summer plans.

Where do you think bookworms can read over the summer? They can read…

1. At the pool!
2. On the beach!
3. In a car/on a plane/on a train!
4. At the park!
5. At the mountains!
6. Before bed!
7. At camp!
8. At grandma’s!
9. At Disney World!
10. And most importantly…AT HOME!!!

While your bookworm may not always be excited about diving into a book over their summer break, there are many interesting ways to get students more enthusiastic about reading!

Try playing a fun game of Summer Reading Bingo! A unique way to reward young readers for reading outside, reading to a parent/sibling, reading on a rainy day and much more!

For students who would rather draw, color and create rather than read a book, check out this printable coloring sheet! Readers can color in a book each time they read a book front to back! This is a great way to visually show children just how many books they read and get them excited about their progress.

 

For children who love sports and are more competitive, get them involved in Scholastic’s Summer Reading Challenge! This is a chance for students to read and log their minutes all summer, unlocking special stories, games, and prizes. Get a group of friends to see who can read the most minutes this summer!

Lastly, where does Promising Pages fit into summer reading? Well, according to the chart above, students from low-income households with no access to books experience detrimental losses in their reading levels. The mission of Promising Pages is to make sure these children from under-served communities get the access to books that they so desperately need, especially during the summer months.

We are so excited for our high school and college interns to join us this summer for Team Read 2016! This is a big time for our organization to promote and encourage summer reading. With the help of our volunteers, sponsors, interns and staff, we hope to crush the statistics of summer reading loss and create even more bookworms in the Greater Charlotte Area!

Remember…books matter and kids matter!