Growing a Reader: Kids' Books, Tips and More

“Sometimes I wonder what I'm a gonna do
But there ain't no cure for the summertime blues”
-Eddie Cochrane, from the song Summertime Blues

Photo Credit: Pixabay on a CC license

It's August, mid-summer.

You have just spent the first half of the summer taking the kids to the movies, the ball game, the parks, camp, maybe a few day-trips or a longer holiday. Of course, you have also dropped by your local library to stock up on books and participate in some fun programs, and signed up for the TD Summer Reading Club.

You give yourself a little pat on the shoulder and think that for the past four or five weeks you have done a pretty good job keeping the kids busy, stimulated, and entertained. 

Then you hear those two little words: “I’m bored.” Or, if you have more than one child, you may endure listening to extended rounds of verbal ping pong featuring various iterations of this phrase: 

Welcome to the Summer Slump. As we tumble forward with excitement, dread, and joy toward the start of the new school year, you suddenly realize you still have a few weeks left to fill to occupy the kids.

Fortunately there are many outlets available to satisfy that pent up physical energy: the pools are still open for swimming, there are tree houses yet to be built, many street and neighbourhood festivals to attend, and endless paths to cycle, hike, and explore. However, the Summer Slump can also affect a child’s reading habits. They may seem bored with reading just like any other activity they may have too much time for, even if they still have a pile of books that they have picked out from the library waiting to be read.

The TD Summer Reading Club offers a variety of ways to not only motivate a child to continue to read, but also to engage them and have some fun.  Along with talking about their books with staff, tracking the titles they have read in their notebooks and earning stickers, they’re invited to nurture their inner critic and share their thoughts on their books with kids all across the country by writing reviews for the TD Summer Reading Club website, earning more virtual badges.  

Beyond the Club, there are other ways to spice up their reading routines. Befitting this year’s theme of “Play”, one way would be to make up an easy Reading Bingo card.  Take some of the titles they have chosen to read, a couple of titles you’d like to suggest for them to read (be prepared to explain why you think they’d enjoy the book), some reading challenges, and write them down in the boxes of a handmade Bingo card in lieu of numbers.  

Offer them a small prize each time they complete a line of reading, like a popsicle or, better yet, spending some time with them doing something they want to do, like a bike ride. You can offer them a “grand prize” if they can complete the card, such as a trip to the park or a movie. 

Above all, continue to allow your kids to enjoy  the rest of their summer. Now’s not the time to start making them read books that will “prepare them for school”. You can offer suggestions, but give them the freedom to choose what to read and set their own reading goals and you should have a better chance of pulling them through the Summer Slump.

And if you still hear the words “I’m bored”, well, there’s nothing a few trips of Back to School shopping won’t solve.

Do you have your own ideas on how to avoid the Summer Slump, reading or otherwise? Share them with us!