Turn Summer Reading into a reading vacation not a reading assignment.

Research indicates that children lose ground academically during the summer months unless they use the skills they learn in school throughout the year.  Note the following:
~ By sixth grade, 80% of the achievement gap is the result of the summer slides between kindergarten and sixth grade.
~ Low-income students lose about three months of academic ground each summer due to the summer slide compared to middle-income students.
~ Giving kids books to read during the summer may be just as effective as kids going to summer school, say researchers.
~ Many kids are tempted to spend a lot of their time watching TV, surfing the internet, or playing video games. Let them do some of those activities in moderation, while also ensuring that they’re doing activities that keep them learning in fun ways.

Activities that keep children engaged in learning— reading books, taking a class, involvement in activities or sports, camp—all of these activities makes a big difference in how well they’ll make the transition back to school in the fall. One easy and fun way to help children maintain those skills is fun, enjoyable summer reading.  Summer reading shouldn’t be about learning new words or reading books that are difficult, it should be about easy reading. Children, just like adults get burned out and summer gives them the break they need from their regular school routine. Inspire children to read by providing books that feature their favorite characters, hobbies, sports or people.Turn summer reading into a vacation, not an assignment.