Top Tips for Reading and Learning All Summer Long

The more reading a student does (whether it’s over the summer or during the school year), the more opportunity they have to build and strengthen their comprehension, vocabulary, critical thinking skills, background knowledge and efficiency. Research has shown that children without summer reading and learning support may lose one to three months of the reading skills they built in the previous school year. This, in addition to a disrupted and stressful school year, might leave families wondering, how can we keep reading and learning this summer, while still having fun?

Join the Ultimate Summer Challenge

Blast off to free summer fun with the Ultimate Summer Challenge at Calgary Public Library. Kids ages 0 – 12 can reach reading milestones, complete activities, and attend free interactive online programs. Those ages 13 – 17 can join the Teen Takeover. Registration automatically enters you to win prizes that are out of this world! Tracking your progress online helps you earn badges and qualify for weekly prizes.

Sign up for Ultimate Summer Challenge

Read aloud

A great way to expose kids to books that are slightly outside their range is by reading more difficult books aloud. Generally, it is good for kids to read things at their independent level and be read to at a higher level because it helps to build vocabulary and helps makes the listener a better reader.

Do something unexpected

Read in unexpected places and ways, like a tent or around the campfire. Switch roles and have kids read to you at their bedtime!

Listen

Listening to audiobooks counts as reading too! Listening to books can be a great way to immerse yourself in a series and can make a long car trip fly by. Download kids audiobooks for free with your Library card in our Digital Library.

Browse audiobooks

Read before you watch

Read the book before you watch the movie. Why not start a family book club this summer and invite grandparents who live far away to read the book too? Check out great online videos of Canadian author readings and illustrator demos from the Canadian Children’s Book Centre.

Go to Canadian Children’s Book Centre

Share through a book swap

Kids love to read recommendations from friends. This summer ask a group of friends to bring three to five titles over for a book swap. Kids will ask each other about the books and you'll naturally get the same kind of conversations that go on in the classroom.

Get recommendations from the Library

Need new ideas? The Library is always a good place to start looking for children’s books. Check out our recommended reads for summer.

See the list

This blog post is published as part of The Kitchen Table Classroom: A Series to Support Learning from Home, a partnership with Edmonton Public Library. Visit our website for information on the next live, online workshop in the series and for more tips and tools to support learning from home.