Teach Mom Learn

Reading over the summer is a fantastic way to help your child build their reading fluency and comprehension skills with books they actually want to read. Many schools give lists for summer reading options, but my favorite summer reading assignments are when the students get to choose. All school year, they read what we want them to. Why not let them have fun over the summer?

Motivating your child to do their summer reading isn’t always easy. Growing up, I remember hating choosing among the list, each option more depressing and disturbing than the next. I just wanted to read my choice. So I plowed through my required reading in the first week of the summer, jotted down notes, and was relieved to be free by the end of June.

Here are some strategies to help motivate your child to complete not only their summer reading assignment, but other books as well:

1. Start by setting a SMART goal together

When we set goals for students, we always make sure they’re SMART goals.

What is a SMART goal? It’s a practical, actionable, clearly-defined goal that is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely.

Here is an example of a goal that isn’t SMART: I will read over the summer.

This goal is far too vague. What will you read? How much will you read? How often?

A SMART goal clearly defines your expectations. An example would be: I will read one book every two weeks over the summer. This goal is specific in the amount of books, it’s measurable, and there is a clear timeframe to accomplish it.

Sit down with your child and talk about their goals for summer reading. Have your own goal in mind as well. Work together to build your goal in a way that reflects your child’s views.

If your kid wants to read 1 magazine a week instead of a book, that’s great! Maybe they want to read books in a series, or maybe they’re more interested in reading one long book. All that matters is that they’re reading something they enjoy. Remember, all reading is good reading!

Pay close attention to the Attainable piece. Your child may want to read all 7 Harry Potter books, and that’s wonderful, but you don’t want them to put too much pressure on themselves. Setting an unrealistic, overly-ambitious goal can be very discouraging.

2. Consider making reading a group project

There are many options to make your child’s summer reading a fun project you can enjoy together. For younger children, consider reading with them. Try acting out some reader’s theater for a scene they really love.

Older children may be less interested in you becoming involved with their summer reading, but it could be fun to have a book club with your child. Read the books they choose and get together to discuss them. It’s a great way for them to share their interests with you and for you to see how insightful your child is.

Another option is to start a book club for your child and their friends. Each child could choose a book for the group, and they could all get together and discuss it over pizza.

For even more fun, select a book that was adapted into a movie. Have the book club over for a movie night, or build your own outdoor movie theater with a sheet on your fence or one of those inflatable movie screens. Pop some popcorn, encourage the kids to bring their sleeping bags, and celebrate their reading!

3. Get the required reading done early, and choose wisely

I’m a huge advocate for doing what you need to do first so you can have fun later. The summer reading selections from school districts are often heavy books that include challenging content. They’re likely more serious than what your child would choose to read on their own.

While there is value in reading material like this, it can be emotionally overwhelming for children. You may prefer to talk to them about sensitive topics in your own way rather than through a book. Go through the list together and try to find options that interest your child.

Read whatever your child chooses before they do. As a special education teacher, I’ve made the effort to read many of my students’ summer reading books so I can help them with their essay assignments in September.

As a result, I’ve sent many mid-summer emails to parents warning them about rape scenes, graphic sex scenes, people being lit on fire, torture, animal abuse, and pretty much anything else you can think of. That way, they have the opportunity to decide how they’d like to handle the content in the way that is best for their own child. They may choose to do nothing, and that’s totally fine too, but I want them to at least have the option.

If you are at all concerned about what your child might encounter in their assigned summer reading, read it ahead of time. You can also visit Common Sense Media (one of my all-time favorite teacher resources), for a detailed explanation of any challenging content in many books from both parent and child perspectives.

Make sure your child takes notes on the book they choose so they can remember what they need to in September. Consider purchasing the book and annotating it so they don’t need to track it down at the library if their writing assignment requires direct quotes.

And once they’re done, it’s all about what they want to read!

4. Make a plan for rewards

Positive reinforcement is powerful! And while you don’t want to consistently reward your child for doing what is expected of them, there is nothing wrong with rewarding them for hard work. Especially after this year!

I would recommend making some kind of a sticker chart or a graph you can color in to help them track their goal. You can track progress based on the number of pages read, the number of books read, or even based on time spent reading.

The younger your child, the easier the reward should be to to earn. For a young child, 2 hours of reading in a week or 3 short books may be worthy of an ice cream. Especially reluctant readers or children with challenges reading should also earn rewards easily because it’s that much harder for them to show up and get the task done.

For motivated readers or older children, stretch out the rewards. It may seem easy for them to stay on track, but they still deserve a reward for their hard work!

For more ideas to make reading fun, check out these tips to inspire a lifelong love of reading. And for younger kids, check out these story time tips!

How do you motivate your child to read over the summer? What are your summer reading picks? Let me know in the comments below!