☀️ Summer reading is upon us!

Summer break is a time for kids to relax, recharge, and enjoy a break from the daily routine of school—but it doesn’t mean learning has to stop! In fact, making time for reading during the summer can offer huge benefits for students of all ages. Whether they’re just learning their sight words, developing their comprehension skills, or preparing for college and beyond, students can use summer reading to stay sharp and discover new interests.

🍎 K–G5 Students:

1. Maintain Reading Skills
   Young readers are still building foundational skills. Regular reading helps prevent learning loss, especially during long breaks.

2. Build Vocabulary and Language Skills
   Exposure to new words in stories and books helps grow vocabulary and improve sentence structure naturally. Improving one’s vocabulary is difficult to do without continuously seeing new words in context and how to incorporate them in conversations.

3. Develop a Love for Reading
   Summer gives kids the freedom to choose fun and engaging books, which helps them associate reading with enjoyment, not just schoolwork! Encourage your reluctant reader to pick books that they may not be able to read about in class, such as ones about their favorite video games or TV characters.

📚 Excel Academy Staff Picks:

• The Magic Treehouse series by Mary Osborne (K-G2)

• Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan (G4-G6)

📘 Scholastic Book List for K-G2

📘 Scholastic Book List for G3-G5

📓 G6–G8 Students:

1. Strengthen Critical Thinking and Comprehension
   Reading longer and more complex texts helps students analyze plots, characters, and themes—skills they’ll need across various subjects, especially as they go up in grade level.

2. Foster Independence and Imagination
   Choosing their own books encourages ownership of learning and lets them explore different ideas or interests; have your student dive deeper into a new hobby or an old childhood fascination by picking up a new book.

3. Prepare for Heavier Academic Loads
   Reading keeps their brains engaged, easing the transition into more rigorous coursework in the fall. As each year gets more difficult, keeping your students in a positive, productive mindset is key to not falling behind!

📚 Excel Academy Staff Picks:

• The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

• The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton

📘 Scholastic Book List for G6-G8

📝 G9–G12 Students:

1. Build College and Career Readiness
   High schoolers often encounter challenging texts. Reading during summer improves comprehension and analytical thinking required for exams like the SAT or ACT.

2. Enhance Writing Skills
   Reading diverse genres improves writing style, argument construction, and vocabulary use. These communication skills will be of huge help during applications and job interviews.

3. Explore Interests and Potential Career Paths
   Biographies, non-fiction, or career-related books can help teens discover passions or areas for future study. Think about what your student may want to major in during college or what kinds of books may help them prepare if they’ve already got one in mind!

📚 Excel Academy Staff Picks:

• And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

• The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

• The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

📘 Scholastic Book List for G9-G12

📚 Help your student enjoy reading!

Have your students join fun challenges (like this one, hosted by Henderson Libraries) or come up with your own reward system to increase motivation! Tracking how many minutes they read throughout the summer can give your student a sense of progress and serve as a quantifiable way for them to see their productivity.

CCSD is also hosting their #ReadWithMeCCSD contest, where participants can send in photos of themselves reading in creative environments or with unique reading material. An Amazon gift card from CCSD may be just the motivator to get them to crack open their books!