It’s such an exciting milestone when a child learns to read. All the years spent learning letters, sounds, and phonics lead to this sweet moment when a child can read what’s in front of them for the first time. But that doesn’t mean that our time reading to them as parents needs to end! In fact, quite the opposite.
Some of the best advice about reading I received was that I shouldn’t stop reading to my children once they could read. And because I heeded that advice, reading together has become a sweet family pastime for us. Something that helps us slow down, enjoy time together and have wonderful conversations.
So many books we’ve read together have become part of our family’s story over the years. Last summer when we were cooped up in our house, we escaped through reading aloud book club books books like Swallows and Amazons and I would see the storylines come out in my children’s play – yes even the older ones.
We have laughed so much at Winnie the Pooh over the years and formed literary friendships with characters too many to name. Maybe most importantly, our reading aloud together has yielded fruitful conversations about important topics like kindness, justice, friendship and more.
Not only does reading aloud as a family help our family bond but research has shown that the benefits of reading to our children — even advanced readers — are many. It helps them to learn to value good books and stories, sparks their curiosity, and helps their intellectual, social and emotional development.
And while the books in our Summer Book Club were chosen because of their family-friendly, classic nature, we firmly believe that even the most advanced reader will find them entertaining and challenging – even the picture books!
Which brings me to another great piece of advice: don’t discount the picture books when it comes to older children. The picture books in our book club have vocabulary and language complexity that’s higher than some of the early chapter books out there. We believe a good mix of picture and chapter books works best for children who are already reading and you will see that in our book club.
We would love your family to join us this summer as we embark on an adventure through classic children’s literature! The Classic Children’s Summer Book Club is perfect for children ages 2-10, but even older siblings find it fun to participate in (and can get summer reading hours in while they’re at it!). After all, what’s more precious than a summer spent immersed in classic children’s literature and intentional time with family?
Click here to sign up!
What do you think?