Summer Reading Fun anyone?

Unwrapping an end of summer fun idea...

The last week or so of summer can find your child bored, restless, and wanting to have school start but NOT wanting to have it start.  This is a time when a creative parent can add a bit of reading pizzazz into his/her life and perhaps start a little backyard book club with some of your child's friends or the kid's in the neighbourhood.  

You and your child can co-design a creative invitation to drop off into mailboxes to invite kid's over to read books... yes... you heard me right... read books!!  Check out Punchbowl.com or Smilebox.com for amazing invitation ideas.  Kid's are encouraged to bring along their favourite book to share, or you as the facilitator, can feature a new book to read out loud to them each day.  It is not going to be a boring event but extremely enjoyable to all those in attendance (you included),  as friends gather together and bond over picture books and novels.  

Try to keep it around an hour in length and everyone will leave  inspired,  extremely happy with reading skills honed for the upcoming brand-new school year.  You can feature it for a one day event, for two days, or a whole week extravaganza, whatever works best for you.  It would be ideal if other parents caught your vision and volunteered to take a turn and then you could have a progressive book club experience, enabling each child to take a turn hosting the group at his/her home.

Here are some ideas you may consider to make yours a success:

1.  Set your backyard up with pillows or lawn chairs to lounge on. Perhaps set up a tent to use as a reading room stuffed with blankets and pillows, and be sure to have loads of books available so kids can choose a variety of reading material to browse through and enjoy.  

Try to make your tent bigger than this please!  Share the space and the wonderful books! :)

2.  Set up a digital reading station for kids who may want to enjoy a turn at listening to audio books. If you have a laptop and feel comfortable there are many online storytelling sites to plug kids into also.

3.  Have a "picnic" book encounter.  Spread out some blankets, place some books in picnic baskets, open up the baskets and unleash the fun......

4.  Serve food...that always livens up the group.  Serve it thematically tied in with the book you are reading. You can take your cooking cue from the book's setting or historical time period.  For example: Chronicles of Narnia - bring on the Turkish Delight, for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - a chocolate fondue is perfect, just to name a few.

For younger readers:  Bread and Jam For Frances by Russell Hoban,  The Popcorn Book by Tomie de Palola, Pizza at Sally's by Monica Wellington, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by John Scieszka.

5.  Read the book and then watch the movie.  Its always interesting to see a book's transformation to the big screen.  Reading a book and comparing it to the movie provides for an engaging discussion.  Here are some suggestions for books that are also on film to get you started:

* Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

* How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell

*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

*Hotel for Dogs by Lois Duncan

*Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

*The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo

Have fun everyone in the sun!  Use your imagination and come up with some amazing venues for book reading this summer.  Hope this helps you think of some possibilities.   Have an amazing rest of your weekend and thanks for dropping by and visiting me at Storywraps today, a place that you are always welcome.

Read on and read always!

It's a wrap.

Contact me at storywrapsblog@gmail.com