Want your kids to love reading as much as playing video games? Are you plagued will the fear that they will waste their summer away staring like a zombie at a screen. Friend, you are not alone, read on to learn how to spark a love for reading.
In the summer my girls have a TON of free time. So if I’m not intentional in scheduling in some parental fun (reading) time for them, it will never happen.
After I taught my kids to read with The Reading Lesson, I thought they would just take off and devour books like their mom. Reading for me is very enjoyable and honestly my favorite pastime, but not so much for them.
Like you, I want my kids to have a bit of a break from school work, especially after this virus hit and my two that are in public school HAD to do crisis-school/eLearning, yuck! But I still want to keep their brains engaged.
They most likely don’t want to read because they relate it to schoolwork, so we have to find other ways to interest and motivate them by making it seem worth their while.
Perhaps without all the other stresses of real schoolwork, and a shiny new rewards/reading habits. They may just be able to relax into it and realize that after all, it actually is pretty enjoyable to read a good book.
One of the best gifts we can pass on to our kids is a passion for reading.
5 WAYS TO SPARK A LOVE FOR READING
Since most kids aren’t inherently excited to curl up with a good book, here are a few ideas to help spark a love for reading.
They Learn By EXAMPLE – My girls know that I love to read. They see me reading all. the. time. Our kids pick up more than we lay down. If they see us reading and enjoying it, eventually they will become curious as to what is so special about reading and why Mom, or Dad love to do it so much.
READ to Them – There are so many benefits that come from reading aloud to your kids. One is that they eventually become avid readers themselves. The more you read to your kids, the more books just become a normal part of their life. They will realize and grow to love the new adventure in each book and want to experience it for themselves.
LISTEN to Audiobooks or Podcasts – Audiobooks and podcasts shouldn’t be used as a substitute for reading, but it’s a great way to get them interested in books in a similar way as reading to them. Use audiobooks to supplement and stir and interest in exciting stories.
CREATE a Fun Reading Spot – Where they read really does matter. Our library has little reading nooks and a huge treehouse for kids to climb up into and read. This adds to the adventure and keeps them interested. At home you could build a reading fort out of blankets or let find them a special reading tree to read under.
GIVE Rewards or Incentives – We all know that rewards usually motivate kids. They even motivate me. That’s exactly why I created the Summer Reading Challenge Binder!
A Summer Reading Challenge is a perfect way to keep kids safe from the dreaded summer slide without overwhelming them and feeling like an overlord forcing them to do something that feels like school.
Kid’s love a challenge, especially when it comes with rewards!
>Check out the Summer Reading Challenge Binder currently on sale!! <<
SUMMER READING CHALLENGE BINDER
The binder includes several different ways to challenge your kids. Here is what you will receive in this printable.
- Summer At-A-Glance Calendar
- Undated June, July and August Calendars
- Summer Weekly Schedule Sheet so you can pencil in reading times.
- Hole Punch Bookmark Challenge Bookmarks – Give each child his own bookmark. Cut these out on cardstock and for every book your child reads they get to punch a hole, they also can be used to save the place in their current read. You can give incentive for each book or pick a specific amount of holes before they get a prize. I suggest giving them a GRAND PRIZE for all holes punched.
- Hole Punch Challenge Cards – These cards can be used as an alternative to the Hole Punch Bookmarks.
- Book Tracker – Keep track of all of those books your child read.
- Book List – Create a list of great books for your child to choose from.
- Reading Habit Tracker – It is said that a new habit takes 21 days to be formed. Keep track of the days that your child reads.
- Reading Journal – Your child can reflect on the story in this free-write journal.
- Book Report Youth – If you want to add a little more learning use these fun book report sheets for younger kids.
- Book Report Junior – These are designed for older kids.
- Reading Bingo Challenge – Give each child his own bingo card. Print these out on cardstock paper. If they complete one row this is a “bingo”. For each bingo, they earn a small prize. If they get a “blackout” (whole card) they get a GRAND PRIZE.
- Story drawing – This is where the story comes to life. Have your child draw what happened in the story they read each day.
- Coloring Bookmarks – These coloring bookmarks are another little motivator, especially for kids who love to color.
Check out this list of wholesome books for kids!
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Forest Rose is a God Loving, Blessed Wife, & Mama to 3 girls. She’s passionate about lifting moms out of the trenches that are discouraged, overwhelmed, or feeling alone or isolated. Her hope is to point them to Christ and equip them to rise up with a newfound hope and joy within, that He alone can provide. Besides blogging, she also loves to create printables!
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