As parents it is always wonderful to enjoy some summer sun. Getting the kids to the beach, in the pool or just out on a walk may be some of our main plans, but we can’t forget about the importance of reading this summer! Reading for fun is something kids do not get much of, so here are our best books for this summers reading fun for ages 2 through 10!
Ages 2-4
When I’m Feeling Red
This Children’s Book is a great tool for kids of all ages, but works best as a story time book for ages 2 to 4, because it uses Red, the T-Rex, as a model for how to properly handle anger and frustration. These two emotions are often very strong at this age. This is often due to the difficulty kids of this age have in functional communication. At this age, their little brains understand and absorb much more than we, as adults realize; however, their vocabularies and even pronunciation is not up to the challenge of describing their own minds. So, often children between two and four find themselves frustrated or even angry as they try to communicate with those around them, or try to comprehend the vocabulary directed at them.
Red shows kids healthy outlets for anger and frustration, such as going to his room for a break, breathing deep breaths, and even seeking comfort. There are many ways to feel better and let the anger go, and Red discovers many of them! Your child will be able to practice these options throughout his or her day and may even come up with their own preferred method of dealing with “RED” emotions.
Buster Brown Moves from Town to Town
Some kids move around a ton! Have you heard of the military? Well, as military spouses, Jessica and Kate have moved over 8 times in the last ten years! Each time, they have to have the talk with their kids. This book makes it just a little bit easier, as kids get to reflect on what it may mean to move; both the good and the bad. Different doesn’t have to be scary, which is what Buster Brown realizes in his experience moving from town to town.
People move every day, whether its just across town or all the way across the country, kids need to process the event. Friends will be different, schools will change; and if you are moving a great distance even the weather can change. These changes can cause feelings of anxiety in children. This book gives kids the real picture of the good and the bad, but mostly the good when it comes to moving. So, if you do happen to be moving soon, this book is just for you! If you are not moving, don’t worry, this book is STILL a great read for kids ages 2 to 4. With the colorful pictures of Buster Brown and his fun experiences moving with his family, kids will enjoy it again and again!
Ages 4-6
How to Catch a Unicorn
My little girl is obsessed with unicorns and this book quickly became her favorite bedtime story book. What I did not expect was for my son, who doesn’t really care one way or another about unicorns, to quickly fall in love with this book too. What captures the eyes of so many children in this book are the illustrations!
The text is perfect for early readers, simple and not too wordy, but the pictures can engage kids for much longer than the simple text. A picture is worth a thousand words and the illustrator has used up every single one. The images are fun and clever. Each page depicts a clever trap and an even cleverer unicorn who continues to evade capture. Kids will enjoy figuring out what the traps are and just where the unicorn is hiding!
The Magic Treehouse
For those early readers who are ready for their first adventures in a chapter book series, The Magic Treehouse is a great start! These books use simple text for the emerging reader which is perfect for showing kids how fun longer stories can be. Each chapter is only two to three pages, and there are pictures on many of these pages as well. The hero and heroin of the stories are siblings, Jack and Anny, who discover a magic treehouse not too far from their backyard. Each book takes them on magical adventures through time, each one very different than the last.
Ages 6-8
Dog Man
Graphic Novels have become more and more popular in the last decade, especially since teachers are finally starting to realize their ability to get uninterested kids to fall in love with reading. Lets face it, in today’s day and age, it is easier to get kids to enjoy watching tv, movies, or even audiobooks before getting them to love to read. There is just so much work involved! However, graphic novels act as a bridge, showing kids how awesome reading can be.
Dog Man is no different. These graphic novels are the length of a chapter book, but include comic like pictures to help kids comprehend the story and are simply fun to look at. The text is great for emerging readers or even kids who are still at the beginning stages of reading. Because each section of text has the pictures incorporated in the block, kids can build vocabulary by using context clues from the pictures. The next best thing about these books is its funny. These books feel like they were written by an eight year old, in a Good way! You can get your child to fall in love with a story he or she doesn’t like, so thank you creators of Dog Man! Boys and Girls everywhere laugh and giggle with delight at these silly situations!
The Dragon Masters
For the kids who love to read, we have The Dragon Masters series. These books are perfect for the ages of 6 to 8 if your kid is reading them on their own. I personally read these books to my five year old and he loves the stories, but his reading skills are not quite up to the challenge to read these on his own yet. The text in these books is perfect for the intermediate reader. One who can decode words they do not know yet, and can use context clues to understand what is going on.
This is a fun series that can hook kids early on. The end of each book is a cliff hanger, so your child will be itching for the next in the very long series! For parents who don’t mind buying many books, this is a must have read this summer! There are fun pictures on most pages that depict a fun scene in the story, and chapters are only a few pages long, so there are many places for “breaks” if needed, but many kids who pick this series up will continue to read from cover to cover! These books are fun, and action packed and very easily addictive!
Ages 8-10
The Last Kids on Earth
If you have Netflix you have probably already seen this new kids show, and maybe your child is already a fan. Once I saw that there were books that incorporated the very popular show I just had to have them! Each book is one series of the show, and there are more books then series on Netflix, meaning, if your kids are already a fan, they can find out what will happen next by READING! I used this trick on my own kid and it worked like a charm. He loves reading these books!
The Last Kids on Earth is a fun, kid friendly zombie apocalypse story that is written like a chapter book, but sports fun detailed pictures on most of the pages. These pictures help those less then enthused readers stay engaged. The text is great for readers between the ages of 8 and 10. Decoding skills will be needed by this age for most books, but the pictures help with context clues. While kids who love to read will still love this book (not to “babyish”) those who don’t like to read can also enjoy this book due to the pictures and the fact that its about Zombies.
Percy Jackson
Percy Jackson is a classic at this point, but still deserves and should always be on the list of books to read for kids. These books are written for middle school kids, but if you have an avid reader at home they may be ready for Percy Jackson. If you have been under a rock (or just too busy to read kids books), Percy Jackson is a twelve year old who finds out he is the son of the Sea God Poseidon and then goes on fun and dangerous quests in each book, eventually fulfilling an old prophecy by the end of the fifth book. In each book, Percy Jackson is faced with old mythological beings, both gods, goddesses, and monsters, where myths become reality.
Make sure your little reader knows how to use context clues for this book, as they introduce many historical and Greek terms. Once started on this series it is hard to put it down! The reading gets easier after the first book, as most of the difficult concepts to Greek mythology are introduced. When reading the next book in the series your child will already understand some of the Greek terms and mythology mentioned and therefore will have an easier time reading. Don’t forget you can always pair a book with the audio recording to increase comprehension!