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Mrs. Eilertsen's 2023 Summer Reading Lists

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Disrupting Thinking Beers and Probst 2017 10 minutes a day

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scholastic.com-Three Ways to Prevent Summer Slide

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The SAG-AFTRA Foundation's Daytime Emmy-nominated, Storyline Online, features celebrated actors reading children's books to inspire a love of reading in millions of children worldwide.

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Summer Learning Loss: What We Know and What We're Learning

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Summer Learning Loss: What We Know and What We're Learning

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nwea.org-Summer Learning Loss What We Know and What Were Learning

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Scholastic

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Leveled reading uses various assessment tools to determine how well your child reads, and then matches them to books that are challenging enough for them to make progress. Books are categorized into levels of difficulty, which is how a perfect match, based on ability, can be made.

There are several leveled reading systems utilized in schools across the country. Three of the most common leveled reading methods include Guided Reading Level (GRL), Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA) and Lexile Measures.
Guided Reading Level (GRL)
At the beginning of the school year, your child will sit one-on-one with their teacher and read from a benchmark book (one considered standard for the grade). Kids may also be asked to answer questions about the text or retell the story. Their teacher may use a Reading Record to calculate any oral reading mistakes and to help determine a suitable guided reading level and books for your child. Under GRL, books run from A to Z, with A being easiest.

Throughout the year, your child's teacher will gradually move your child step by step into more difficult text, providing guided instruction along the way. At home, you can support the reading in the classroom by providing books at the appropriate level for your child to read independently.

Here are great books for different Guided Reading Levels:

A-C: Bob Books Set 1: Beginning Readers

D-E: A Diaper David Board Books Collection

F-K: Fly Guy Pack (Books 1-14)

L-M: Branches Missy's Super Duper Royal Deluxe Pack (Books 1-4)

M-O: Branches Kung Pow Chicken Pack (Books 1-4)

P-S: Dog Man: The Supa Epic Collection (Books 1-6)

P-U: American Girl Series Starter Bundle (Pack of 5)

V-W: Harry Potter Illustrated Collection (Pack of 4)

Read more about guided reading levels here.
Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA)
Similar to GRL, at the beginning of the school year your child will read a benchmark book to the teacher and then retell the story. The teacher then scores your child on a range of skills, such as accuracy of reading, comprehension, and fluency. This system starts with level A, for the easiest books, and then switches to numeric levels, running from 1 to 80.
Lexile® Measures
Your child may receive a Lexile measure in one of two ways: by taking a school-administered Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) assessment, specifically designed to generate a Lexile measure of reading ability, or by taking a standardized leveled reading test that converts the results to a Lexile measure. Lexile also evaluates books for difficulty, with levels ranging from 200L to 1700L+ for advanced readers.
FAQs:

How can I find the "just right" books for my child?
Ask your child's teacher what level they're at, and request a list of appropriate books. However, when reading at home, educators say that children should read a level or twobelow the one they read at in school, when they are receiving instruction from the teacher.

How can I help my child become a better reader?
Continue to read to them every day and expose them to the language of books. Have them read to you. If they make a mistake, simply tell them the correct word and let them move on. This increases enjoyment and fluency. To increase comprehension, talk about the story after you've read it.

What level should my child be reading at in each grade?
There is a range of levels within each grade. Your child's teacher can address your child's current level and the goals they are working on with your child. To see how levels generally correspond to each grade, review the chart below. With good instruction, your child will steadily become a better reader, even if they are one or two levels behind peers.
Want more activities and reading ideas? Sign up for our Scholastic Parents newsletter.

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Leveled reading uses various assessment tools to determine how well your child reads, and then matches them to books that are challenging enough for them to make progress. Books are categorized into levels of difficulty, which is how a perfect match, based on ability, can be made.

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Two Writing Teachers

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Some Summer Writing Motivation

The idea of creating anything at all that motivates children to continue learning and developing themselves as writers has kept me awake over the last few nights. And after a conversation with a few VERY trusted colleagues, I'm thinking sleep is going to be intermittent tonight, too. (Why can't I just turn off?)

I know that there are some students who will write no matter what. And there are some students who won't write no matter what. But what about the students who are in the middle? Is there anything I could provide that might be a little different, a little shiny, a little bit enough of a nudge to inspire them to think about their writing lives? Here are a few ideas that are maybe a little different for summer writing. Maybe one or two of them could be the invitation some of those "in the middle" writers would accept.

As a writer, one of the most important things I do is read. I read a lot, and I read like a writer. Regardless of genre, I pay attention to what I like, what pulls me in, and what I want to try in my own writing. I try to figure out what the author did. When readers notice and name the tricks of other writers, then they are more apt to use those tricks in their own writing.

What if a summer challenge involved reading like a writer? Students could pick a book, a story, or a text (or two or three or four!) and try out the mentor text activities in the chart below. It wouldn't matter whether they chose a picture book, a nonfiction text, or just a part of a longer book. They could study the writing and pay attention to what they notice, even using grade level charts and checklists to help if those were available.

Here's a chart of what it could look like.
2. Create a personal toolkit
Many teachers have charts they use in the classrooms, and those charts make great sense to whoever has created them, but some of my favorite work I've done has involved challenging kids to make their own charts. What if one of the projects students worked on over the summer was to make their own toolkit, designing charts in ways that make sense to them? While the anchor charts would vary by grade levels, the process and the concept could be fairly consistent across ages. Here's how I could picture a week possibly going:

Activity Sample Chart

Monday

This chart tells what a story should include for the end of the year in your grade. Make it your own. Use words that make sense to you. Use pictures that help you. Add whatever details you'd like! You don't have to copy mine!

Tuesday

Sometimes charts tell us what to do. Make a chart that helps you remember the steps for writing a story. If you want to add any tips or tricks to your chart, that would be great!
Steps to Consider
Think of an idea
Plan
Draw pictures
Write
Add more writing

Wednesday

Writers have a lot to remember in order to get ready to write. What are the tools you need in order to get ready? Some of you might not need the same thing.
Tools you might need
Paper- what kind?
Pencils or pens
Checklists
Scissors
Tape
Spelling charts

Thursday

Sometimes spelling a really hard part for writers. What helps you spell? What tricks do you have? Make a chart of spelling tricks for yourself. It doesn't have to include everything. What are the tricks that work for you?

Some Spelling Tricks
Stretch out words
Listen for small words
Break the word into parts
Use a tool (letter chart, vowel chart, word bank)

3. Write With Published Authors
Authors are such generous people, and many of them have given time to make videos and share their knowledge and work with children. Here is a list of some of my favorites, and I'm sure there are many more!
4. Writing Contests
There are a few writing contests with summer deadlines. Everyone loves a cash incentive, and some of these are offering just that!

A K-3 Contest sponsored by PBS of Southern California, students are invited to submit stories and poems by July 31, 2020

A worldwide poetry contest for all ages with prizes and a July 1, 2020 deadline

A poetry contest for ages 11-17 with a deadline of July 1, 2020

Students in K-8 are invited to write a book about bullying and submit it by July 15, 2020 for this contest.

It's hard to picture some of our students sitting back in front of a screen for some assigned writing, so maybe authenticity, interactions, purpose, and audience could motivate them. (Maybe the possibility of a little money, too...) Choice boards also have a lot of appeal, and I have used Kathleen's virtual field trips in many different ways over the last several weeks. Therapi's post about journaling is another great opportunity for motivating summer writing.

If anyone has other ideas or resources of meaningful summer learning around writing, let's share! And in the meantime, I'll keep thinking...

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The idea of creating anything at all that motivates children to continue learning and developing themselves as writers has kept me awake over the last few nights. And after a conversation with a few VERY trusted colleagues, I'm thinking sleep is going to be intermittent tonight, too. (Why can't I just turn off?)

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Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic

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journalbuddies.com-37 Summer Writing Ideas for Kids

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Summer Writing

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Try these writing activities:

Tips for helping young writers:

Nature Journals

Science and math explorations provide your child with a chance to record all kinds of observations. Help your child to make a special journal and encourage her to write down what she observes about her surroundings - looking at both the big picture and the small, examining plants and rocks and insects up close. Use all of your senses! Here are some ideas for things to look for:

A flower tally

Count the flowers in an area in the spring once a week for three weeks. Compare your tallies. Your child will have fun watching the numbers go up as flowers bloom in the spring and summer.

Ant watching

There are ants everywhere! Try following them to their home and see what they're up to. Where do they live? How many can you count in one place? Record these observations and your ant grand total.

Nature scavenger hunt

Use your notebook to make (or draw) a list of some common things and a few rare ones that can be found outside near your home or in a park. Include things like: acorn, pine cone, flat rock, bird feather, weed, flower. Hand your child the notebook and let the scavenger hunt begin!

Create a Poetree

Beautiful tree + beautiful poems = A poetree

Do you have a small tree in your front yard with low branches? That's perfect for a poetree! If you don't have a "just right" tree in your yard, you could find out about adopting a tree in your neighborhood or city park for the summer. Start your poetree with a favorite family poem or a poem that your child writes himself. Check out the ideas below to help with writing an original poem. If you're looking for wonderful published poems, browse our collection of poetry books.

Along with your poems, you'll need a few supplies to create your poetree: white and colored construction paper, scissors, single-hole punch, yarn or twist ties, clear packing tape and a pen or marker. Cut strips of white or colored paper the same width as your packing tape. Have your child write the poem on a strip, then cover each strip with packing tape on the front and back. Let your child use the hole punch to make a hole at the top of the strip in the center. Then thread the yarn or twist ties through the holes. Hang the poem on the tree and invite readers to stop by and add their poems to the poetree.

Poetry Challenge: Clip It, Pick It, Write It

Create poems with your child based on five "found" words from your newspaper (or a magazine). Cut out words that appeal to you both and put the words into an envelope, then draw five words that you each must include in a poem. After you've finished writing, read your poems together and gather them up into a collection to share with others. (Scholastic)

List Poems

Look around, what do you see? Start a poem with a list of nouns that name everything you see, then add colorful verbs or adjectives. ( Imagination Soup)

Example:
Grass grows
Trees whisper
Flowers bathe

Cinquain

Write a cinquain (a 5-line poem, often inspired by nature) about a memorable place you have visited: the ocean, a planetarium, the forest, your backyard, a neighborhood park, your school playground - even the flowering tree at the end of your block can be inspiring. Here are the "rules" of a cinquain:

Line 1: One word title, a noun that identifies your topic

Line 2: Two adjectives that describe your topic

Line 3: Three "ing" verbs that describe action

Line 4: A phrase that describes something about your topic

Line 5: A noun that is a synonym or another way to name your topic

Example:
tree
reaching, bending, fluttering
leaves and twigs in the wind
aspen/>

Recipe Share

In Linda Sue Park's picture book Bee-Bim Bop! we join a young Korean girl and her mom as they shop, chop, and prepare a delicious meal together. Everyone has a favorite family recipe, something wonderful that is cooked up for special friends or special occasions. What's yours? Does it have special meaning for your family? You'll need a kitchen partner - your mom, dad, grandparent, or older sibling - to help you cook this delicious dish.

Write up the recipe (be sure you have the correct measurements for each ingredient), the step-by-step directions and one descriptive sentence about the experience of cooking and sharing the food with others. Include a drawing if you like, and make copies to share with family, friends and neighbors. Be sure your directions are crystal clear so that others can try out the recipe!

Review It!

Summer is a great time for new experiences and field trips, near or far. After visiting new places, have your child write reviews of their adventures and create a summer scrapbook. Did you try the new sandwich shop on the corner, see the newest Pixar movie in 3D or explore all the animal habitats at the zoo? Encourage your child to record their thoughts and experiences. All you need is a 3-ring binder, some inexpensive scrapbook paper and adhesive - or you can buy an scrapbook album from a local craft store. Kids can add things like menus, ticket stubs, museum tour maps, autographs and hiking trail maps to accompany their reviews. If you have a digital camera and printer, your child can include his own photos.

Explain It!

Trying to record your favorite show with the DVR but can't remember how to do it? Yep, that's familiar. Put kids to work writing up "how-to" guides for tricky devices (like DVRs) or other instructions, such as how to reset the microwave clock after the power goes out; or how to load the dishwasher so that you can fit the most dishes in; or how to replace the tube on a bicycle wheel. This activity helps children practice skills in sequencing, attention to detail, and writing clearly.

Teach your child how something works by demonstrating each step. Go slowly so that he can observe carefully. (If your kid is doing the teaching, then skip this step!)

Provide a notepad and pencil so that your child can record the steps, make special notes, and add any helpful diagrams.

Check over the writing to make sure it's clear, and then try following the directions together. If there are any errors or missing steps, you can demonstrate the steps again.

Your child can create the final guide using construction paper or printer paper (don't forget the title!) And remember to stash the booklet in a handy place!

Writing Tips from Author Mary Amato

Children's author and writing coach Mary Amato ( Snarf Attack, Underfoodle, and the Secret of Life: The Riot Brothers Tell All) shares her best tips on keeping a diary or writer's notebook, as well as ideas for parents to encourage their children's creative writing. You can also watch our Reading Rockets video interview with Mary Amato.

A diary is a place to write down your own life experiences. Keeping a diary can be rewarding, even if you're not interested in becoming a writer. If you speak to its pages with honesty and emotion, it becomes the most amazing keepsake possible: a record of your life.

A writer's notebook is a place where you can write all kinds of things: ideas, questions, thoughts, true stories, invented stories, rough drafts for poems, songs, or stories, bits of dialogue that you overhear, and more. It's different from a diary, which is a record of your own life experiences.

Discover more than a dozen ideas for encouraging your child to write, including creative and simple ways to get the whole family involved. You'll also find out how WOW stories can help unlock story structure for young writers.

Write Like a Journalist

Just a few pages from your newspaper can be turned into a good writing exercise. Cut out a few pictures from the paper. Ask your child to write a caption for each one. Compare their caption with the paper's caption. Talk about ways captions help readers understand one small piece of the story. Turn a recent family event into a newspaper story. Try to write a headline, the story, include a picture or drawing, and add a caption.

Write to Your Favorite Author

Does your child have a favorite author? Here's a great way to engage kids in a conversation about books they love and wonder about the real person who wrote those books. Here's some advice from children's writer Mary Amato on how to write to an author:

Write a thoughtful, personal letter. Tell the author something about yourself and why you enjoy her books.

Ask thoughtful questions, like how did you come up with the setting for a particular book, or why did a character behave a certain way in the story. (Your child might also share that she, too, wants to be a writer, and what was the path the author took to get there?)

Learn the five parts of a formal letter: heading (address and date), greeting, message, closing, and signature - and where each of those parts are placed on the paper. Which punctuation mark follows the greeting and the closing? This article, An Introduction to Letter Writing, is really helpful.

Write a rough draft of the letter using the letter format. Help your child edit the letter by checking spelling, sentence and paragraph construction, and capitalization.

Write the final draft. A handwritten letter is especially personal!

Send the letter to the writer "in care of" her publisher. Here's how to find that: look for the publisher's address inside the book. Usually, the mailing address will be listed in the first few pages of the book. (If the complete address is not shown, you can always find it on the publisher's website.)

Include an envelope with your name and address and a stamp, ready to go. Make it easy for a busy author to respond.

To get to know some of your favorite children's authors and illustrators, watch the author interviews on Reading Rockets!

Tips for Helping Young Writers

Launching Young Writers

Find out why writing is so important in our lives, as well as practical suggestions for activities to help your child become a stronger writer. Get tips >

Kids Who Blog

Writing for an audience gives kids a reason to use their developing reading and writing skills. Here are some tips to get you and your child started with free, safe blogging sites. Get tips >

Download PDF: English | Spanish

How Parents Can Support the Common Core Writing Standards

Is your school using the new Common Core standards? This is a big change for students - and their parents. The standards support all writing genres, but put a new emphasis on persuasive and expository (explanatory) writing. Get to know the four "anchors" of the Common Core writing standards and simple things you can do at home to help your child build skills in all of these areas. Get tips >

Download PDF: English | Spanish

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Try these writing activities: Nature Journals Create a Poetree Recipe Share Review It! Explain It! Write Like a Journalist Writing Tips from Author Mary Amato Write to Your Favorite Author Tips for helping young writers: Launching Young Writers Kids Who Blog How Parents Can Support the Common Core Writing Standards Nature Journals Science and math explorations provide your child with a chance to record all kinds of observations.

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Association of Library Services to Children Summer Reading List K-2

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Association of Library Services to Children Summer Reading List K-2

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Association of Library Services to Children Summer Reading list 3-5

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Association of Library Services to Children Summer Reading list 3-5

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Skip to main content

It looks like you're using Internet Explorer 11 or older. This website works best with modern browsers such as the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. If you continue with this browser, you may see unexpected results.

Use our Digital Library to find great books for younger readers! To get you started, we have made this sampler of E-book recommendations for Kindergartners & First Graders. Questions about logging in? Get answers here.

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LibGuides: Early Reader Digital Services: Early Reader Digital Services

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Skip to main content It looks like you're using Internet Explorer 11 or older. This website works best with modern browsers such as the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. If you continue with this browser, you may see unexpected results. Use our Digital Library to find great books for younger readers!

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Top Graphic Novels for Reluctant Readers

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FREE

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CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website

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Overview

Summer Reading School Reporting Form - Complete by November 9, 2020
It's that time of year to encourage your students to participate in CONNECTICUT READS, the 2020 Governor's Summer Reading Challenge!

To support summer reading, the CT State Library is offering students and families access to RBDigital, a vast collection of free audiobooks and eBooks. For more information, visit the RBDigital Web site at https://iconnct.rbdigital.com.

Information on the 2020 Summer Reading Challenge Suggested Summer Reading

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Summer Reading School Reporting Form - Complete by November 9, 2020 It's that time of year to encourage your students to participate in CONNECTICUT READS, the 2020 Governor's Summer Reading Challenge! To support summer reading, the CT State Library is offering students and families access to RBDigital, a vast collection of free audiobooks and eBooks.

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Bedford Middle School Library Media Center - Summer Reading

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Middle School Assignments Entering Grade 6 Entering Grades 7 & 8

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" All Events

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Free

Starting Thursday, June 1, children may sign up for our Summer Reading Program which continues through Labor Day weekend. Register online and keep track of minutes read. For every 100 minutes come into the library and decorate a summer sun that will be displayed. Earn a sweet treat from Shake Shack at 500 minutes read. When you reach 1000 minutes, you can choose a free book to keep from our selection of titles. For more summer fun and prizes, play our Summer Bingo to earn more free books.
Read anything, anytime, anywhere all summer long! SIGNUP BEGINS: THURSDAY, JUNE 1 SUMMER READING PROGRAM ENDS: MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4 Our thanks to the Westport Young Women's League for sponsoring I magine Your Summer and to Shake Shack for providing our 500-minute prize.

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Summer Reading 2023: Imagine Your Summer

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" All Events Free Starting Thursday, June 1, children may sign up for our Summer Reading Program which continues through Labor Day weekend. Register online and keep track of minutes read. For every 100 minutes come into the library and decorate a summer sun that will be displayed.

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Participation is a fun and easy way for kids to earn free books. They simply read a designated number of books - library books, books borrowed from friends or books bought at Barnes & Noble - write about their favorite part in our Reading Journal, and bring a completed Reading Journal to a Barnes & Noble bookstore. Children then choose their free book from the books listed on the Reading Journal and collect their free book from a store near them during July and August.

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The Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program is a fun and easy way for kids to foster their love of reading and earn free books. Learn how to participate.