Summer Reading...Had Me a Blast -- Lower School

Here we are at the beginning of July.  The summer seems to be already flying by.  I've barely begun my summer reading, but many of my students are fully engaged with theirs...Yay!

My school requires summer reading for all boys grades 1-12.  Each year we struggle with what we want it to look like.  We know what the research tells us about boys and reading, but that can often be at odds with what the core content areas require for summer reading.  This is more problematic as the boys get older and our MS and US librarians have devised clever ways to make everyone happy.

I'm going to take the next few posts to talk about what summer reading looks like in each division.  I'm starting today with the Lower School.

All lower school summer reading is accessed through the Lower School Summer Reading LibGuide.  Students are required to read a certain number of books based on their grade level, but no particular titles are required.  The LibGuide contains a variety of suggestions.  Students fill out a reader's log and return it to school in the fall. 

Rising 4th and 5th grade students' summer reading looks different.  They participate in a "Summer Reading Challenge".  They read books based on a variety of criteria, and write book reviews about the books.  There is competition, choice, and a social component involved with this program which are appealing to boys.

The good part of using online services for summer reading is that things are always changing, but the challenging part of using online services is that things are always changing...  Each year it looks slightly different. 

This year we are using BiblioNasium as a safe way for the boys to post their reviews.  It provides the social piece and allows the boys to read each others' reviews, but in a closed, controlled environment.  So far it's worked well, and the boys are off and reading!