Summer is for Reading

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     Once again summer is upon us. The first day of summer hasn’t actually arrived yet but somehow we always equate summer beginning with the end of the school year. Hopefully your children had a more normal school year than the last one, but if you have been paying attention to news articles, it seems that reading scores and literacy rates are falling even lower here in Michigan. Everyone will tell you that the solution is to read over the summer. Simple right? Not necessarily. Forcing kids to read is not the answer and you know that telling them that something is good for them will just make them balk. The answer? Combine reading with fun activities that will also build background knowledge.

Things to consider?

Nature, nature, NATURE!

If you’ve read our blogs before, you know that we stress raising a natural child that grows and thrives in the outdoors. I’ve even seen the benefits in my own child and when combined with books, it makes learning natural. Just a week ago we took a trip to John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids to see the Washed Ashore Traveling Exhibit. My daughter surprised me when she recognized the type of penguins they had in the aquarium because we had recently read Pierre the Penguin: A True Story. It doesn’t take a drill sergeant approach to reading. We just read every night, both fiction and non-fiction, and she often amazes me with all that she has grasped and retained and can recall during an experience. Building background knowledge is so important. It helps children feel very wise indeed when they can use their knowledge to impress you. Read a book that correlates with what you might be doing or seeing before your planned activity. It just might generate a great discussion during and after.

Teach your children to be Naturalists by reviewing and thinking about the following skill key:

The Naturalist Skill Key (borrowed from Exploring Nature Activity Book for Kids: 50 Creative Projects to Spark Curiosity in the Outdoors by Kim Andrews)

Noticing (look, listen, smell, feel)
Arts and Crafts (draw, paint, create)
Tracking (recognize and follow animal signs)
Using Caution (safety skills)
Reasoning (wonder, think, predict)
Adventuring (explore nature)
Language Arts (journal, write & read about nature)
Identification (research & identify nature)
Survival (grow plants, catch food & find your way)
Tinkering (collect, build, make)

So grab some sunglasses and SPF and head for the outdoors, leaving that screen behind.

Nature Trails
Take a hike and see what you see. Fill a backpack with water, binoculars, a magnifying glass, a compass, flashlight and any other essentials you think you might need (a snack perhaps?) Also include a notebook and pen to jot down what you see or even bring a camera (or your phone) to take photos, which you can later use to create a scrapbook.

Some of our favorite books to encourage a love of nature:

Bird Watching:

For that budding ornithologist, grab some binoculars, a notebook and a pen and listen for the songs from our fine feathered friends to locate birds in your backyard, in the forest or just at the park. Something that can also be done from a bedroom window. Have children build a feeder or a birdhouse as a summer project. And make sure to read all about birds as well!

If these don’t appeal to your child, think about including other outdoor activities such as gardening (both veggies and flowers), camping, studying plants, trees, bugs, animals, rocks, lakes and oceans. Read both fiction and non-fiction books and head outside to explore the nature around you whenever you get the chance.

Looking for more titles about nature and gardening?
Browse through our book lists:

Nature Books

Gardening & Farm Books

Happy reading and adventuring!

-Kate @ BTBL

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Author

We are three generations that seek a way to get back to basics. It’s not that we eschew technology, but sometimes simpler is better, especially in raising our children. Mom was a reading teacher, Amanda is an early childhood educator and Kate a children’s literature specialist and former school librarian along with the latest additions, a daughter (now 6) for Kate, and two sons (now 4 and 2) for Amanda. We advocate reading aloud, the simple toys that use imagination and encourage creativity and learning in the kitchen, which can be a fun mess but also teaches life skills. Join us in raising healthy, happy, inquisitive and intelligent children.