Tackling Summer Slide

Reading is an essential part of learning. Scholars should be reading all year long, not just during the school year. Without practice, scholars can lose up to two months of reading skills while school is out of session. This is known as “Summer Slide”.

To prevent the “Summer Slide” with your scholars, here are some fun reading activities and resources.

Visit the Library! 

Arthur Brown once said “Having fun isn’t hard, when you’ve got a library card!” Hennepin County Library offers programming for all ages all year round. Taking your scholar to the library to browse different types of books helps them discover new information and interests. By signing up for a library card you and your scholar can access ebooks and audiobooks right from Hennepin County Library website. Check out the Hennepin County Library website for more information or stop by your local library to sign up for your very own library card.

Check out your neighborhood “Little Free Library”

Little Free Libraries are located all over North Minneapolis and offer 24/7 free access to books for everyone! Check out this map to find the closest “Little Free Library” near you. Stop by NAZ Central at 2123 West Broadway Ave and explore NAZ’s Little Free Library.

Read with your scholar

Reading with your scholar can create a love for reading and create lasting connections. Reading to and with your scholar at any age is beneficial. Reading to your baby or scholar and listening to your scholar read to you, provides special time together. When your scholar reads to you about their interests (even if you have had enough Fortnite information to last a lifetime) it shows your scholar that you are interested in learning more about what they love. Asking questions about what your scholars are reading or what they would like to learn more about can open up conversations and lead your scholar to new literary discoveries.

Be creative!

No one knows your scholar better than you do. Find something fun to motivate their summer reading! For example, after your scholar reads 25 books, they have a water balloon fight, or if they read 100 minutes they can have ice cream before dinner. You and your scholar can set the goals and rewards together.

Connect with your NAZ  Family Achievement Coach

Your NAZ Family Achievement Coach is a great resource for setting and achieving literacy goals with you and for your scholar. Your coach will have information about NAZ Read-In events, virtual literacy tutoring as well as NAZ’s Family Academy classes.