Summer Reading Activities For Kids
Your kids are out of for the summer, and like every other parent you don’t want them to lose and forget everything they worked so hard to learn during the school year. Reading, for kids is the perfect way to keep their brains stimulated, and we have tips on how to get them to read this summer.
It’s finally summer time, and all your kids want to do is forget about school and learning. But as a parent you don’t want them to forget what they had just learned in school, and know that continuing their learning in the summer will help them so much in the following school year.
We want your child to strive as well, and keep or gain that interest in reading. So we hope giving you some fun ideas to get them reading this summer will help keep the momentum going, and not lose it.
I remember when I was younger I hated reading. Now as I’m older I wish I read more when I was little. It’s fun to get lost in a book and escape from the real world, for a bit. Opening your mind to more than what you know.
I love sitting with my boys and reading to them. The more I do it the more they are interested in reading, they actually pick out a book for me to read to them.
As a parent sometimes it can be hard to remember to read to your kids. With the hustle during the day, then you have dinner, clean up, bath time and you’re just focused on getting your child to bed. We get it!
An easy way to find time to read aloud to your child is try planning ahead. Make it a priority, and know that it can be something quick and easy. Take a look at your schedule and see when you can squeeze 15 minutes of reading in-it doesn’t always have to be at bedtime.
Pin this to keep ideas to get your kids to read
Please note: Post may contains affiliate links, see our disclosures for more information
Reading To Your Child Is A Fun Activity For Them
Getting a fun book and sitting with your child is a great boding time. It helps them just sit and relax before bedtime, or take a little break from all the running around during the day.
Not only is it a perfect boding activity, it does wonders on their brain development. Whether they know how to read, or they are just little infants reading out loud to your child stimulate so many parts of their learning development.
Reading aloud helps boost their imagination and they start to grasp how the world works around them. Having them listen to you read improves their listening and language development.
Spending time with your child reading will also help them develop writing skills along with reading skills. They learn their sentence formations and how to say words correctly.
Another way to improve their vocabulary by reading is letting them read their favorite book over and over again. It may be annoying to do so, but if they enjoy the book they are reading, they stay focus. Also the repetitiveness of reading the same book over and over, improves their vocabulary; repetition with kid’s learning is crucial, because it increases their comprehension skills.
What are the benefits of reading to your child: And What Activities You Can Do With Them
Prenatal Reading
The benefits of reading to your child starts as early as prenatal. Your baby can hear your voice while they are in your tummy. Reading to your stomach may feel weird and awkward, but just know there is someone in there listening.
This gives them a jump start to their vocabulary and their overall development. You can sit down and read an actual book to them just as if they were already born. Or you can sit and talk to your belly and have a full conversation, such a fun way to bond with your little baby before you meet him or her.
Benefits Of Reading To Your Infant
Reading to your tiny infant also helps with their vocabulary and development. When they watch you talk and move your lips, they start to figure out how to make noises and sounds. They may start to try and copy your mouth movements.
Once they are a little older, reading out loud helps with their motor skills because when they see you turning pages, pointing at the words and pictures they will start to imitate what you’re doing. It will encourage them to pick up a book and try to turn the pages themselves.
Many times they won’t sit long enough to read the whole book or even one page, but you can still read as they are playing and walk around. Or have them sit on your lap and point to the the page and describe what the picture is; what animal it is, the sounds they make, the colors on the page etc.
Reading in different voices to match the characters also teaches them emotions and helps them learn how to express what they feel before they can talk. Plus it makes them laugh and creates an enjoyable reading experience.
Having books just laying around for them to play with is great to get them interested in reading as well.
Benefits Of Reading To Your Toddler
Have quality reading time really boosts their development along with so many other benefits, like parent and baby connection.
Reading time, whether you read before bath time, nap time, bed time or all of the above, causes their brain to burst with imagination. Reading out loud helps with their pronunciation, and enunciation.
Preschool age is an exciting time for reading. They are starting to understand how reading works, able to put stories together and understand what is going on in the book. The more exciting you make reading, (voices, tone of voice, showing excitement), the more they will want to read.
When you’re reading out loud make it interactive. Ask questions about the book. What is in the pictures? What colors do you see? What is shapes do you see? What do they think is going to happen?
Let them show more interest in reading by letting them pick out the book, even if you have read it a million times. Doing this may spark an interest in other books and curiosity in what the book is about.
Benefits Of Reading For School Kids
Reading aloud to kids from kindergarten to 12th grade is still important. Their reading is more advanced. They are starting or have learned the complexion of reading and the structures of a story.
At this age reading builds their vocabulary, comprehension skills, writing skills and social skills.
You might think reading to your teen is weird and that they are too old for that. You don’t have to have them cuddle up to you and read or sit on the ground as you read to your teen. However, you can read an interesting article you have read or something along those lines.
If you as a parent show excitement in reading and make reading part of your family’s lives, the more interested in reading they will become.
Interesting fact about kids reading fiction books compared to non-fiction or not reading at all.
“ According to published research, kids and teens who read fiction, as opposed to non-fiction or nothing at all, are better able to understand their own emotions and the emotions of others – a trait known as empathy.
As studies out of Emory University in Atlanta show, fiction helps to trick our brain into thinking we’re a part of the story – meaning kids are able to feel sympathy for the characters, which can extend to how they interact with real people in their own lives. They begin to develop better “feeling words”, and are better able to relate to their friends and peers.”( choa.org)
So as you can see why it is important to start reading to your kids as early as you can, it opens up so many doors in their brain.
How to make reading fun this summer with these activities
Here are a few fun reading activities that I thought looked fun for kids this summer
1. Create a fun reading challenge. See if your kid can finish all 25 challenges before the summer ends. (via Natural Beach Living)
2. Feed the dog. This is a cute printable using sight words. When your child can read the word then you feed the dog a bone. (via Tot Schooling)
3. Go hunting. This word hunt your kids will love. Hide words all over the house and they have to go find them, and write down what word they have found. (via Walking By The Way)
4. Reading BINGO. Your child can pick a task from the BINGO chart and once they have completed it they cross it off. Once they get a BINGO they get rewarded with a prize. (via The Crafting Chicks)
5. Sight Word Twister. This will for sure make them like to read, the most fun way to get kids to have fun reading. (via This Reading Mama)
Reading Projects
These are great to get your kids to be interactive while reading. We created these free printables for your child to make reading super fun.
Baby Literacy printout is packed with simple ways to help your baby get ready to read. Fun activities you can do with your baby.
Sight Words for your toddler to start recognizing and putting them together to create sentences.
Beginner Reader Books for your child who is starting to learn to read, or a struggling beginner reader.
A book report to get your child thinking about what they just read and reflect.
With that you can reward them when they use their book reward book mark. Every time they accomplish a task they get rewarded with the prize on the bookmark.
RELATED: Educational Activities
Website Reading Games
Room Recess– is a free website that has all sorts of fun reading games for kids k-6. They don’t only have reading games that have other subjects your child maybe learning.
PBS– is one of my kids’ favorites, and mine too. These games are fun and free with their favorite characters.
Fun Brain– As a bunch of fun reading, and math games for free that your kids will love to play for grades 1st-8th.
Primary Games– Has reading and math basic and advance, for K-8th.
ABC Mouse– They have so many different reading games. Completely interactive and so much fun. You can play it on the computer or a tablet. Our kids love ABC mouse.https://rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/cm?o=1&p=12&l=ur1&category=audible&banner=0SHFJWNXGG6K3K7K7G82&f=ifr&linkID=8140c08319cd518c01b4b3045df81a83&t=themomsquad01-20&tracking_id=themomsquad01-20
Fun books for babies, toddlers, tweens and teens
Books For Babies
1. First 100 Words– Your baby will have fun learning their first 100 words with this colorful picture book. Have fun talking about the pictures and making sounds with your baby.
2. Non-Toxic Cloth Book– A set of 8 non-toxic soft touch books. They will learn color, shape, characters, numbers, food, animals, vegitables, and the undersea world.
3. VTech Musical Rhymes Book– Fun interactive books with 6 classic nursery rhymes. My babies love this book. Easy to turn pages, that light up for extra.
4. VTech Peek and Play Book– Interactive book with soft pages, and flaps for peek a boo fun. Introduces characters, objects, animals, and rhymes. With 50 different songs, and sounds. With car seat hook taking the fun on the go.
5. Busy Noisy Farm– Looks like a classic children’s book with buttons of the farm animals. The story ques your child to look for the correct button.
6. VTech Touch and Teach Elephant Book– The book had 150 songs, melodies, phrases and sounds. Has a question button to test your pre-k’s comprehension.
7. Interactive Listen and Learn– Fun interactive books for your baby to learn their ABC’s, numbers, and first words. Fun illustrations with buttons to hear what the picture, letter, number is.
Books For Toddlers
1. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom– This is a classic book that your child will love. It’s fun and has a catchy rhyme to teach your child the alphabet and help them remember it.
2. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?– Another classic. Makes it fun for your child to learn their animals and colors. Make it extra by entertaining you can make the animal noises too.
3. My First Library Board Book– No better way to learn than with Eric Carle’s books like the Very Hungry Caterpillar. This collection comes with 12 books to learn ABC’s, numbers, and objects.
4. Very Hungry Caterpillar– One of the best classics. Teaches your child about life and how a cute caterpillar turns into a butterfly after eating everything is sight.
5. Tommy O’Tom In A Tub O’Trouble– This is a fun bedtime story with a rhyming rhythm to make it fun and funny to read. Not all books have to be strictly learning. This is a great book to have fun with.
6. The Hiccupotamus– This is a funny and cute book your toddler will love. The illustrations are fun and colorful. With funny rhyming to make it fun to listen to.
7. VTech Touch and Learn– This is a fun interactive book with detailed pages. This teaches over 100 words in 16 different categories. My 20 mo old twins LOVE this book. They pick it up and sit with it and love it!
8. Baby Elephant Adventure– This book is great because it’s also a puzzle. While reading the pages you can put together the little puzzle together that each page has.
Books For School Age Kids
K-3rd Grade
1. The Wonderful World Of Dr. Seuss– These are a must for your kids. My 5 year old discovered Dr. Seuss at school and LOVED them. His favorite is Green Eggs and Ham. He asks me to read him Seuss’ books every night.
2. Pete The Cat– This collection they will love. They are fun first reads for kids with fun illustrations. Read what adventure Pete the Cat goes on.
3. Where The Sidewalk Ends– These poems are great for kids. It helps them learn different types of reading and opens their minds. My sister and I loved this book when we were little.
4-6th grade
4. Train Your Angry Dragon– This book is to teach your child how to control his or her emotions. When they get upset what to do without having an out burst.
5. The Hardy Boys Collection– These books are fun and perfect to get your child’s imagination going. If they like mystery books they will love these.
6. Diary Of The Wimpy Kid– These are fun reads and will keep your child busy. The collection comes with 12 books and will for sure keep them busy this summer.
7. The Never Girls Collection– These are great for your girls and boys. They are about Disney fairies and Tinkerbell going beyond Neverland. Early chapter books to transition them to older kid books.
8. Marvel Comic Bundle– To really keep reading fun and entertaining for your kids, you can’t go wrong with Marvel. This will make them want to read everyday.
9. Nancy Drew Collection– This is another great collection. When I was little I loved mystery books and Nancy Drew books. Perfect for your daughter who likes a good mystery.
10. Star Wars: Original Trilogy Novel– Star Wars is a hit with kids and will be sure to get them to read. Star wars is an ultimate classic. It could be fun to read together and have your inner child come out.
11. DC Super Hero Box– Super Hero girls, perfect to get your girl feeling like a super hero and know she can do anything she puts her mind to. Fun illustrations to keep them engaged.
12. Goodnight Stories For Rebel Girls– These books are to inspire girls to dream big. Take real inspirational women and transition their stories into a fairy-tale.
All of these reading activities are perfect for the whole year round to keep their brains sharp and continue to grow their love of reading.
