Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge Accepted @Scholastic #SummerReading

This is a partnered post.

Now in its 9^th year, the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge is a free online reading program dedicated to stopping the “summer slide” by encouraging kids to read throughout the summer months when school is out. This year’s challenge theme is “Power Up & Read,” powered by ENERGIZER®. We are so excited to be part of the reading challenge and I made my kids make a goal of reading 18 books this summer. So far they have read two books each and considering they haven’t been on summer vacation for very long yet I’m really happy with their progress. I have to log those minutes now on the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge webpage. I just started logging them for Zoe.

Kids need to read this summer. They spent a whole year in school and learned quite a bit and to retain it they need to keep their minds active. Kids fall prey to the “summer slide,” the common loss of skills due to being out of school, when they do not read over the summer. Then it makes it hard on teachers and they work hard enough as it is. Research shows Teachers spend four to six weeks re-teaching materials to students because of the “summer slide”—the learning losses which can occur when school is not in session. (Alexander et. al, 2007)

Summer is the perfect time for a child to discover the power of choice. According to the Kids & Family Reading Report, 5^th edition, 91% of kids (ages 6-17) say that their favorite books are the ones they pick out themselves. I have to agree with the report because my son says he hates reading unless he picked out the book. Then he loves it.

How does the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge work?

Starting May 4, 2015 – September 4, 2015, kids can log their reading minutes (online and via mobile) as they read to break last year’s world record of 304,749,861 minutes.

You can sign-up their kids at www.scholastic.com/summer. It’s FREE!
Kids can also enter monthly sweepstakes to win fabulous prizes, and earn digital rewards when they complete weekly reading challenges.

This year kids can unlock 12 original short stories from favorite children’s authors and access never-before-seen videos from the authors! Each of the authors has written a unique short story using the same opening sentence, which is, “I glanced over my shoulder to make sure that no one had followed me into the shadowy library, then took a deep breath and opened the glowing book…”

The authors include Blue Balliett, Patrik Henry Bass, Varian Johnson, Gordon Korman, Michael Northtrop, Maggie Stiefvater and Jackson Pierce, Roland Smith, R.L. Stine, Tui T. Sutherland, Lauren Tarshis, Wendy Wan-Long Shang and Jude Watson.

Each story has a “read along” audio component, inviting kids of all ages and reading levels to enjoy these highly engaging stories.

They can play the new “innovation machine” game, an interactive creative writing game, and enter its contest to win prizes.
Kids can log minutes on-the-go to earn digital rewards and badges as they hit reading milestones.

I like that the parents site features new, daily tips for parents called “The Daily Digest.” Parents can enter weekly sweepstakes to win a “Power Up & Read Kit” and watch videos about summer reading activities to keep you “innovative” all summer long. The prize pack includes: Scholastic tote bag, water bottle, a copy of Reading Unbound by Jeffrey Wilhelm and Michael Smith, $10 gift certificate to Scholastic Store Online, Energizer® brand batteries, Scholastic books, and more. Parents can download free resources, including printables and booklists for kids of all ages.