The Benefits of Summer Reading Programs For Kids

In the kids’ eyes, there are a huge number of benefits to taking part in this type of program. Although most kids don’t like the idea of being forced to “work” during their holidays, they do like the idea of the rewards they can get by taking part in reading programs! Most reading programs offer incentives and rewards such as gift certificates, bookmarks or school supplies. And it’s also a good opportunity to spend time with other kids.

You can also turn your summer reading program into a themed event to make it more fun and enticing. Try reading all the books by the same author, reading a specific series, or books in the same genre but written by different authors. Follow your kids’ directions and let them be the guide.

My 9 year old is a horse lover and her grandmother found a series of books called Canterwood Crest by Jessica Burkhart. At first I thought they might be a little bit old for her since the characters seem to be in middle school but she is flying through these books! She got the first ones in the series in February as a birthday gift and she’s nearly done with #5. I promised her #6 would be for her good report card so we’ll be making a trip to the book store this week.

For schools, there are many additional benefits to encouraging students to join a reading program. For a start, it keeps kids learning during the long weeks in which they’re away from school. It helps to keep kids in the habit of reading regularly, which in turn will help them absorb new words and knowledge, which in turn helps cut down on the amount of review needed in September. And, by using organized programs, kids can often get the books for free from their local library, with a reading schedule that’s already laid out for you in advance.

For parents, the new books and incentives will keep the kids busy during the day so we can get some work done! Set up 30 minute increments using the kitchen timer so you can check your emails or write an article while they’re reading. Personally, I work much more quickly under deadline and it’s amazing how much I can do in 30 minutes before the timer goes off!

Finding Local Summer Reading Programs For Kids

The best place to start is with your local library. Find out if they’re offering any reading programs and, if so, for what age groups. Do this ahead of time so that your child can join in from the very beginning. Other places to check with include your child’s school and local universities.

Some of the larger bookstore chains also run summer reading programs for kids. They’re free to join but their meetings, or story times, are inside the store so your kids might start asking to buy new books as opposed to borrowing them from the library. That could also serve as an incentive to sticking with the summer reading program: a brand new book to add to their bookshelves at the end of the summer.

For those kids who prefer to use an ereader, you don’t need to go broke buying books for download. If your library has a website, they most likely have a way to “borrow” ebooks. As always, be diligent with what titles your child downloads, even from the library. My teen’s favorite author writes very dark, depressing books and even though they’re bestsellers, we put a limit on how many she can read.

Life is hard enough without filling your free reading with depressing stories, don’t you think? Especially when the main characters are her age and getting into all sorts of awful trouble.

Starting Your Own Summer Reading Program

If you live in an area without a library or any summer reading programs for kids then you may consider starting your own if there is enough interest among your neighbors and friends. You’ll need to choose a place to meet, and decide how long you want the reading program to last (usually up to two months).

Before you get going, decide on the specific books you’ll want to include in your reading program. Go online to find summer reading lists if you’re not sure where to begin. You could offer rewards to kids who read all of the set books, or it could be less formal and simply a time to discuss what they’ve read, similar to a book club meeting.

You could also keep things very informal within your family and let your children determine how many books to read and the titles. My kids give me LOTS of resistance if I get too bossy and lay out the rules so this is something you could easily put them in charge of. They can make progress charts, keep track of their progress by using colorful stickers from the dollar store, and they can give you a weekly update on their progress while you eat dinner.

Certainly summer reading programs are not just limited to the children! Since kids often imitate their parents’ behavior, why not make a point of choosing a book to read and lead by example? I know that’s tough when you’re trying to get work done but instead of watching television at night, dedicate 20-30 minutes before bed as family reading time.

Even if you choose a cookbook to read for your weekly meal planning, the kids will still see you reading.

Making summer reading fun is important but whatever you do, you’ll be offering great value to the kids by creating your own version of a summer reading program.

Here are some more free resources for summer reading programs:

Family Literacy & You
Scholastic Summer Challenge

We come to the walkin periodically and I figured it wouldn’t be very busy since we got here at 10:30am. I know coming in after school is really busy. But alas, it doesn’t matter during the flu season. I’m an idiot.

Thankfully I had charged my phone so I’m using the wordpress android app to blog this from the waiting room. But I wish I had my notebook to write out newsletters. I don’t have all my sites loaded in this app yet and I can’t remember other passwords.  I’ve been meaning to get them all loaded but I obviously needed something like this to make it more of a priority.

I always carry my notebook and pen with me when I’m going to be waiting anywhere. It’s sped up my wait time everywhere because I’m prepared for the wait. Of course, the time I don’t bring it will be the longest wait in years.  My bad.

I was eating small light meals today and that’s going to kick my butt. A little bowl of cheerios 3 hours ago is just not cutting it. Lol

I will definitely remember to bring my notebook everywhere I go now. I will also remember to put protein bar in my purse that I can eat. The one in my purse has whey so I can’t eat it. But daughter could if she was hungry. I swear now that they’ve gotten older I need a diaperbag size purse again. I have to pack so much stuff for sports and appointments.  Then there is all the stuff I need so I can be productive while I’m waiting around.

Now I think I’ll go search out more apps since I don’t sit and research all that this phone can do for me.  Have to be productive somehow!

From now on there will more info on here about the kids and working at home. It’s something I myself am doing better about focusing on again as we are all in a schedule since school started back up. There are so many little things you can do daily to create a positive environment for your kids. You’d be surprised at how easy they are and many times they are things you are doing, you can just change how you word your comments a little for a huge improvement.

I’m excited to be a new ambassador for Fishful Thinking. A site dedicated to helping grow optimistic children. This site has many tips, videos and resources for encouraging your kids. I hope you’ll join me for a fun year on Fishful Thinking and what looks to be some GREAT giveaways!

I’ve been wanting an offline VA. Seriously, I have had no idea how to find one, but I’ve really wanted one. But how do you go about finding someone, then trusting them to come in to your house? That’s going to take some serious time and even then I’m not sure.

Then I had a total epiphany. Why am I not using my kids? I’m not talking about slave labor here, but using the internet skills I teach them?

I’ve taught them a lot about research. I also want them to take over any internet empire I create. It seems only right at 13 and 11 that I teach them even more. DUH!

My son at 11 is all over it. My 13, almost 14, daughter is on vacation for another week.

But my goal is to help them go through my inventory in the extra bedroom. I’ll teach them how to take the pics. I’ll teach them how to put up killer descriptions. I’ll especially teach the oldest how to do some html. I’d have to teach someone anyway, this only makes since. Now I can work on a percentage only basis. My son already signed up for a perecentage and he doesn’t know what that means.

But considering how much is in the extra bedroom, umm, they could seriously make a lot this summer. lol I’m so happy I thought of it. I’d much rather pay the kids to help out then find someone else. This cures three things. Cleaning extra bedroom, keeping them from boredom, and getting them extra spending money.

They look very cool, but it is just yet another one of those things that won’t get used? How many people have gotten them as gifts and left them in the box? Is there a reason that they are not out in the open at more houses?

I wonder if it is because a lot of people don’t know exactly what to do with them. See this is how my brain works and why I end up in so much trouble. I see something and I see how it’s not working. This is a big problem with other people’s businesses on and offline. But that is for more posts in the future.

Make sure and leave hints around the computer on places to shop. Akoya pearls make a wonderful gift. I was surprised with a set of pearls 3 years ago and tear up thinking about it. I’m not a jewelry gal, so to have the set given to me without me even asking for it was wonderful.

Enjoy your day and set time apart to thank your own Mother for helping to make you the awesome WAHM you are!

But I know my husband has brought it to my attention many times, and I’m glad he has, that I’m always on the computer. It’s an addiction and I know it. There is just always something I can work on.

A week ago we went on a weekend away as a family. It was very difficult not to take my computer with me. I knew we wouldn’t have internet access but I can work on ebooks, autoresponders and just a ton of other stuff offline. I did that when we drove to the ocean and it worked well.

But I just had a feeling it wasn’t going to sit well this time and it wouldn’t have. I left the computer at home, even though I knew I would come back to 100′s of emails and 1000′s of spam to go through. It was totally worth it and refreshing to not think of business.

Now it’s time for hubby and I to go away for a couple of days. While he would be ok with me taking it with, i probably won’t. I do need to figure out where we want to stay, even narrowing down a city is difficult because there are so many cool little places in Washington within a 2 hour drive, let alone going 4. I have to hit cheap hotels and pick by who has the best deal’s. lol

This year I am just going to have the Halloween party because no one stepped up. I don’t mind having it at all, in fact we will enjoy doing it. But I just figured someone with more room would want to hold it. So I’ve ordered the ultimate Halloween ebook package and I’m going to have the best party ever. My friend’s are already excited to play silly kids games. I mean, when is the last time you bobbed for apples? I believe I was 5 or 6. lol There are other fun games to play as a family and decoration ideas as well.

I know that your time is just as precious as mine. So save time and buy the halloween party ebook to get everything in one place and get your party done! You’ll save so much time preparing that you will actually enjoy your party.

Order it now and get prepared for the best halloween party ever!

When things like this go up for sale I just have to jump back and stand down. Like I need anything else to do, good grief. lol Thankfully Anita is a good enough friend she would laugh her butt off and tell me NOOOOOOOOOO WAAAAYYYYYY! lol If you are looking for a business I encourage you to look at it. It’s a great deal.

Saves Time

Planning your meals ahead of time will save you a lot of time. When you visit your grocery store, take a list with you that shows everything you need for your weekly meals. This way there will be no return visits to the grocery store for something you forgot, and you won’t waste any time deciding what you are going to have for dinner that night. Forgetting a key ingredient or having to fight in long lines at the grocery store can be very frustrating, but meal planning can completely eliminate that.

Saves Money

Who doesn’t like to save money? And if you can reduce the amount you spend on grocery bills, you can save it up for something really fun – like a special night out or a family vacation. Meal planning saves anyone a significant amount of money, since meal planning is much cheaper than eating fast food. Also, since you will be bringing a shopping list with you to the grocery store, there will be no more impulse buys and wasted food. We’ve all fallen victim to foods that we suddenly have a craving for when we are shopping only to get home and realize that we need other ingredients to turn it into a meal. And having a shopping list will make it easier for you to clip coupons, since you know what you will be purchasing each week. This means even more savings to you and your family.

Meal planning allows you to create a calendar of what you will have for dinner each night. If you create a menu one month at a time, you can ensure that you aren’t having chicken nuggets five nights a week. Have an overall calendar of meals will allow you to shop for foods when they are on sale and buy in bulk whenever possible.

Health

Planning out what you are going to cook for dinner will make it possible to ensure you are cooking a healthy meal every day of the week. While eating out is convenient in our ever busy world, eating fast food or at restaurants is not nearly as healthy as cooking it at home. This is largely due to the fact that you don’t have control over what goes in those meals. By preparing your own meals, you can choose healthy options, like baked chicken, and add any of your favorites for a side like a fresh green salad or steamed vegetables. Most boxed or frozen dinners contain a great amount of fat and sodium, but cooking the meal from scratch can eliminate them. You control the flavor and the fat. You can take steps to reduce the amount of fat by adding seasoning and spices to perk up the flavor.

Prevent Obesity

The rise of fast food chains in the world means that more people are becoming overweight and obese. Obesity can bring on many health issues, including heart or breathing problems. It is important to prevent a child from becoming overweight and teach them the importance of balanced meals. Cooking homemade healthy meals can do this. When you plan out what you are going to make, you can be certain that it will be healthy for the entire family. It allows you to have a better handle on the nutritional content of your meals. You can also tailor it to each family member’s needs. If there is someone who needs to watch their fat consumption, you can cook grill or broil instead of fry. If there is someone that is trying to get more servings of vegetables in their diet, you can help by offering two veggies for side dishes.

Spending More Time With Your Family

Because planning out your meals gives you more time during the day, you can spend it doing something that really matters. Spending time with family should be the first thing on anyone’s priority list, and being able to spend more time with them is a wonderful perk to meal planning. You can use this time to either play with your children outside, or maybe talk with your spouse about their day at work. With the time saved with meal planning, the family can enjoy a walk together after dinner, play yard games such as croquet or bocce ball, or compete in a board game night. No matter how you use the time, it is special and necessary to keep a family running. And when you kids are grown up and look back on their childhood, those will be the times they remember most fondly. Just think about all the home cooked meals that you look back on warmly. No one cooks it like mom does.

Teaching Essential Skills

By including children in the meal planning process, they can learn many skills that will carry with them into adulthood. They can help to plan the meals, and learn about the different nutrition groups. Learning how to assemble a balanced meal is a great skill to have. Measuring different ingredients in the meals teaches children about fractions. Younger kids can just play with the different kitchen utensils, which allows them to explore and learn about the huge world they have yet to explore and learn about. Spouses can get in on the fun, making it possible to bond with one another by cooking a meal for each other. Meals where each person can individually tailor food to their liking, such as making your own pizzas or a taco bar, allow a great opportunity for the whole family to cook and learn together.

Reduces Stress

Our world is hectic. We are being pulled in several different directions each day. Because we live in a fast paced world, it is important to do everything possible to reduce your stress load. We have enough stress with our every day lives without mealtime stressing us out. Planning meals can reduce your stress since you won’t have to worry about everything that goes into making a meal for your family. As long as you bring your list to the store and buy everything on the list, you will be all set. You can choose to either visit the store each week or twice a month, rather than a million times like before. The increased time you have will allow you to relax more often, and even feel great when interacting with your children. If you are enrolled in a food delivery service, having a handy list makes online shopping a breeze. Have it with you when you log in to order food and you won’t have to worry about a thing.

As you can see, there are many benefits to meal planning. From the ever crucial facts of saving money and eating healthier, to reducing stress and spending more time with your family. Meal planning only takes a little extra effort. And once you get the hang of it, it’ll become second nature and make you life so much easier. You’ll be wondering why you hadn’t started meal planning earlier. And will all the time and money you save you can spend on something that really matters – your family!

For more great meal ideas and a free menu planning report visit menu planning central – Watch for a great meal planning offer after you sign up and let me – The Menu Mom – help you take care of dinner tonight!