Every summer we partake in the summer reading program at our library. It is pretty amazing if you ask me for a teeny tiny library in a teeny tiny town. Our Children's Librarian does an incredible job year round but she really outdoes herself with the summer program. In the 5 years we have been attending we have seen animals including sloths, penguins, and spotted clouded leopards brought from the semi-local zoo. There have been reptile experts and 15 foot pythons, a children's theater troop, magicians, comedians, and it is all topped off with a carnival with food, games, and inflatables at the end of the program. Who could ask for more??
Apparently us. LOL.. When we first started going to the summer reading program we were in the toddler and preschool program and they had some really great incentives to get the kids to read. T-shirts and some really amazing prizes at the end of the summer party. As the kids have grown and there are more kids coming to the programs, the prizes have gotten smaller and less exciting. Now, don't get me wrong, my kids LOVE to read just for the sake of reading and I love that more and more children are attending, however those prizes at the end of the summer were a huge draw for them and they really enjoyed trying to be a "top reader" to earn one. Since we still want to enjoy the local summer reading program but they also want bigger incentives, I decided that this would be a great year to implement our own at-home Summer Reading Program.
Here is how I did it:
1) Plan how you want to structure your program. Prizes or not? Set number of books or by minutes? Dates you want to run the program.
We chose to start June 5 and end on August 18, the day before we leave for vacation.
We will be doing prizes (more on that in a minute) and I am doing increasing value prizes that they earn by reading 20 minutes a day. On the 10th day of this, they will earn a prize that get more enticing as the weeks go on.
2) Choose your prizes if you are going that route
Your prizes do not have to cost money to be exciting! Ours are a mixture of monetary and free prizes. These are the ones we chose though I have not chosen their order just yet:
A) Pick what we are having for dinner from the menu
B) Pick the restaurant when we eat out. We eat out twice a month so this one is exciting for them!
C) Trip to get frozen yogurt
D) $5 to spend at 5 Below
E) $2 or less iTunes download
F) Get out of chores free
G) Unlimited iPad time for the day
H) New Book
3) Determine how many minutes or books you want them to read before each incentive is earned.
For us it will be after every tenth 20 minute reading session.
Additionally, I am doing a larger incentive where if they read 100 books this summer they will earn a larger prize to be valued around $20. That may be a new video game, or toy, or whatever they choose that is reasonable in that price range. They will choose before we start so they have something to work toward. Since I don't want to discourage chapter book reading for the sake of hitting 100 books, for each 30 pages in a chapter book they will be able to mark off one book read.
4) Have a way to track it all!
I made a couple of charts that I will link to below that are free for you to use if you'd like!
That's all you really need to get your own summer reading program up and running!
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