While I feel it is important to provide our children with a change from their school environment during the summer holidays, I also like to avoid a “brain drain”. In my personal experience, a summer reading programme is the perfect answer, whether you organise it yourself or take advantage of your local library.
My son Tom and daughter Mary both enjoy combining a good children’s book or two with visits to the swimming pool or picnics with friends when they are on vacation. To me, that is a perfect balance between intellectual and physical stimulation during the holidays.
If you are looking for a book recommendation, a fellow blogger recommends Mommy Brings Home the Bacon, a story to help explain why working mums must leave home every day.
Summer Reading Syndrome: Every Mum’s Dream!
Here are a some of my best tips to encourage summer reading:
It’s a good idea to check out the summer reading activities at your local library. Last year I signed Mary and Tom up for a programme called “Destinations Around The World”. It was free and a lot of fun! There were 20 children involved, and each one had to choose a book about a particular travel spot and make a short presentation on the book in a competition at the end of the programme.
They could use the library any time to look up additional material on-line or borrow relevant DVDs. The library became a favourite haunt! A whole bunch of prizes were on offer as incentives, including free tickets to the cinema and a free travel book!
Do you have any good book recommendations for children?
Tags: children's book, library, reading, reading time, summer holidays, summer reading, summer reading programme