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There are few things kids look forward to more than summer break. Visions of swimming pools, sleeping in and playing as many video games as possible might be the first things on their to-do lists, however it’s critical to keep children engaged in learning over the summer to prevent what researchers have identified as the “summer slide”. Summer slide is the loss of learning that grade-school students experience over the months when classes are out. Extensive research has been conducted linking academic achievement gaps to a lack of engagement and learning over summer breaks – but there is good news!
There are several programs and support systems available (for free!) to help parents keep their kid’s minds sharp over summer break.
1. Scholastic Summer Reading ChallengeGo on a virtual reading adventure with the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge. It’s a free online reading program for children that runs now through September 7th, 2018. After registering, kiddos are challenged to read as many minutes as they can – then log their minutes to earn virtual prizes!
2. Pizza Hut BOOK IT! ProgramThe Pizza Hut BOOK IT! Program has partnered with Candlewick Press to bring kids summer reading activities – for free! There are several activities and books just waiting to be downloaded to keep those minds engaged.
3. Books-A-MillionBooks-A-Million is hosting an online, as well as an in-store, summer reading challenge. There are several reading lists to choose from, jam-packed with great books for all age levels.
4. Explore summer reading lists on PinterestTap into the power of crowdsourcing to see the top book recommendations for summer reading. Lists can be filtered by age, genre and difficulty level. There are even lists for teachers and parents.
5. Base librariesBe sure to check your base library as many offer summer reading programs, story time, family movie days, activities and more throughout the long, sun-drenched days of summer. Explore USAFE libraries for more info!
Happy reading!
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