Summer Reading, Summer Writing

Summer Reading, Summer Writing

By Ann Green

Teachers talk about the “summer slide,” the regression in skills resulting from the mental shut-down many students engage in when school is over.  Take heart, parents, there are ways to help them keep their mental muscles in shape without having it feel like homework. 

Keep it positive.  I’ve seen parents urge a child to “Go read a book!” as though it was punishment.  They won’t read because you force them to, but they might if reading is a shared activity in the family.  Children are more likely to read if they see their parents reading and if their parents read to them. 

While many parents know instinctively that it’s important that their children read, fewer think about encouraging them to write.  There are ways to encourage
writing that might even be considered fun.  Your child can write and illustrate a short “how-to” book on a hobby or favorite topic as a gift for the grandparents. 
He can make his own greeting cards; who doesn’t love homemade cards?  Have your child blog about a subject she’s passionate about.  Local papers love to
print articles by kids; your young scholar can submit opinion pieces or movie,
book and restaurant reviews.  Play Bananagrams, Scrabble or other word-oriented board games with your kids.  Visit www.scholastic.com for more ideas on
writing projects that won’t feel like chores.

Back to reading.  Children are sometimes surprised to discover that there are books about absolutely anything they’re interested in --  sports, animals, outer space, the Old West, cars, vampires.  When they find books that engage their
passion, reading takes on a personal dimension.  The personal dimension is also heightened when they become enamored with a character in a series.  A short list of popular characters would include Curious George, Amelia Bedelia,  Harry Potter, the March Sisters, Junie B. Jones, Frog and Toad, Artemis Fowl,
Madeline, Mia Thermopolis, Captain Underpants, Percy Jackson and Lena, Tibby, Bridget and Carmen.  Read with your son or daughter the books you never got to read as a child.  Having never read the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, I enjoyed reading them to my daughter, who is now 22.  Some school systems assign books over the summer.  If your child finds those books difficult or unappealing, read them together and discuss over snacks.  Audio books can accompany the family on trips. Give a subscription to a children’s magazine.  It’s fun to get a new issue every month.

Make an honest assessment of how much time your kids spend in front of screens. That includes phones, tablets, video games and TVs.  These media work against your child’s developing the ability to engage in deep reading, the sustained, focused reading which truly educates and enlightens.   

In his book Amusing Ourselves to Death, media theorist Neil Postman explained that even the best “educational” shows do not teach.  “Sesame Street,” he wrote, “does not encourage children to love school or anything about school.  It encourages them to love television.”  Postman, who served as chairman of the
Department of Culture and Communication at New York University, proposed a
thought experiment which illustrates the effect of TV and similar media.  Think of an historical figure, such as George Washington, Babe Ruth or Albert Einstein. 
In your mind’s eye you will see an image of a face, noted Postman, “Of
words, almost nothing will come to mind.  This is the difference between living in a word-centered culture and thinking in an image-centered culture.”  What
kids pick up on TV and on-line tends to be a mile wide and an inch deep.   In The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains, Nicholas Carr details the research which explores the effect of the Internet on how we think and gather information.  One result of the Internet culture, writes Carr, is that we are more likely to skim instead of read.

Before the kids pick up their phones as soon as school is over, why not celebrate the last day by taking them to buy a book and an ice cream.  Go to www.kidsreads.com for book lists and synopses of books for all ages.  Have a
stimulating summer!

Ann Green is a free-lance writer and writing tutor who lives in Natick.  Her website is www.writetimewriteplace.com