Summer reading provides a big academic boost for children
Commentary by MARILYN HOWARD
As summer break arrives for our more than 245,000 Idaho school children,
it's time for a vacation from the classroom, but not from reading. This past school year
saw an intense focus on reading in classrooms across Idaho and in the state Department of
Education.
Reading is absolutely fundamental to everything else that children do in
school, so the attention was warranted. New laws helped spur this interest. The Idaho
Reading Initiative required regular assessment of children in grades kindergarten through
third, additional preparation for teachers and extended year programs for struggling
readers.
The state Department of Education and educators in local school districts
worked together to develop thoughtful, sequential programs that are intended to help all
children be successful readers. I've seen the educators of our state embrace this goal,
and I want to applaud them for their part in making this pilot year successful.
Now, I am calling on parents for the important role they play in building
successful readers. Summer reading is key to your child retaining and building on the
skills he or she has learned during the past nine months. But more importantly, this is a
time for children to engage their imaginations, find entertainment in books, and to learn
to love reading.
This year, Idaho's public libraries, First Lady Patricia Kempthorne, and I
are inviting ldahoans to set out on a reading quest to make books and reading part of your
child's summer fun.
To help make that quest successful, here are some quick tips for
encouraging summer reading:
Sign your child up for a library card and a library summer reading
program. Bring along a friend.
Make sure your child has access to books, writing paper, pencils and
crayons. Play word and number games as a family.
Buy books for your child to read and create a special place for your
child to read those books. Encourage your child to read a book aloud.
Find opportunities to read to your child. Read signs at the boat dock,
camping grounds, and amusement parks. Pack books or comics with you on trips to the park.
Listen to books on tape during vacation car trips.
Check with your child care provider about making trips to the library or
creating special areas for reading.
Share what types of books you like to read with your child, and be a
reader yourself.
Summer—television retina season—also is a great time for
families to renew their commitment to reading together for 20 minutes every day. If you
are looking for a book to start with, I'd like to share with you the Top 10 Books for Kids
created by the Books for Kids Foundation:
1. "Charlotte's Web" (E.B. White, 1952)
2. "Where the Wild Things Are" (Maurice Sendak, 1963)
3. "The Diary of A Young Girl" (Anne Frank, 1967)
4. "Make Way for Ducklings" (Robert McCloskey, 1941)
5. "A Light in the Attic" (Shel Silverstein, 1981)
6. "Frog & Toad Together" (Arnold Lobel, 1972)
7. "The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales" (Virginia
Hamilton, 1985)
8. "Goodnight Moon" (Margaret Wise Brown, 1947)
9. "Story of Ferdinand" (Munro Leaf, 1936)
10. "Tale of Peter Rabbit" (Beatrix Potter, 1904)
If you want to pursue more titles visit their Website at
www.booksforkidsfoundation. org or visit my Dinner and Book Website at
www.sde.state.id.us/DinnerandaBook/.
In kicking off a national summer reading campaign earlier this month, U.S.
Secretary of Education Richard Riley told reporters: "Students who read over the
summer are better prepared to learn when they return to school in the fall." Riley
also noted that research shows us that students who do not read throughout the summer may
fall back as much as a grade level in their skills.
Families, who emphasize reading as fun rather than a chore, can help
create a positive attitude toward reading in their children. The next three months are a
great time to teach your child a lesson for life: the joy of reading.
Marilyn Howard is Idaho's superintendent of public
instruction.
