When the lazy days of summer are gone and your kiddo’s schedule is filled with play dates, swimming lessons, sports, and after school activities, it can be a challenge to find time for reading.
But kids’ reading skills don’t have to stop when the school days are done! Here are some ways to make reading a natural part of your child’s day:
Read on the road~ Going on a long car trip for the weekend (or maybe even a long commute to school and work?) Keeping the back seat of the car stocked up with favorite books for the kiddos is a wonderful idea! Having them read aloud or even getting audio books for the car ride will for sure keep them entertained and continue to grow their reading skills.
Explore your library~ A good get out of the house activity is to visit the local library to check out some books and magazines that your kids haven’t seen before. This can keep their attention and it will definitely amuse them! Many libraries have reading programs, book clubs, contests and classes for even the youngest borrowers. Young kids will feel extra grown-up checking out books with their own library card, too.
Make your own books~ A fun and creative project you can do is pick one of your family’s favorite activities or memories— whether it’s swimming, eating ice cream, a fun vacation, or baseball games— and have your kiddo draw or cut out related pictures from magazines or other articles. Paste the pictures onto paper to make a book, and then encourage your little one to come up with text for each page. For our youngsters, they can dictate the story for you to write down (using their own words). When you’re done, read the book together and share with other family members.
Keep up the reading rituals~ Even if everything else changes once summer comes, keep up the reading routines already in place at your house. Read with your kids every day — if it’s just before bedtime or when it’s cool outside out on the patio. And don’t forget to take a book to the beach 
Just brush the sand off the pages!
These are some fun reads for the kiddos written by my cousin, Kelly Polark:
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