Name: Thrive! NCHE Homeschool Conference
Start: 2025-05-22T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-05-24T23:59:59-05:00
Location: Winston-Salem, NC

Tagged: LIving Books, reading lists, summer reading

This topic has 9 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 11 months ago by AllG5.

Viewing 10 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)

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May 31, 2011 at 7:43 pm
Linabean
Participant
I was wondering if anyone gives their kids summer reading lists. Assuming that you take the summer off. We need a break from schooling and are planning on taking off at least a month in the summer but I am thinking of giving my kids (dd9 and ds6) a summer reading list. That would be a mix of story books, just for practice reading (ds6 more so), review some of what we have learned throughout the previous year in a fun way, character building books, or to learn about other things that we probably won’t get to in a “planned” coarse of study. Has anyone done this? Does anyone have ideas for books that are appropriate for these ages?
Oh, we will have finished module 2 of hist/geog/bible, apologia astronomy, studied Emily Dickinson’s poems (but did not find any living children’s books on her), artists Degas, Audubon, and ancient Greek art as well as the composers Bach and Tchaikovsky. We could use some work on the character issues of good attitudes and first time obediance as well.
Anyone??? : )
-Miranda
May 31, 2011 at 9:32 pm
Sonya Shafer
Moderator
studied Emily Dickinson’s poems (but did not find any living children’s books on her)
Did you try The Mouse of Amherst?
May 31, 2011 at 9:34 pm
Shawnab
Participant
HI Miranda,
I do have a summer reading “list” and/or basket for my kids, who are now ds 10 and dd 8. Little ones dd5 and ds 5 are still not reading independently.
Ds has been a voracious reader for what seems like years now. 🙂 And, I’ve done various things in the summer to choose books. I have chosen very high interest books for him…you know, the “just for fun” type. Like The Mysterious Benedict Society, Hardy Boys (he was on a kick for a while) and Redwall. I always want my kids independently reading books that not too difficult that they become a burden, and that is especially true in the summertime.
This summer, we are kind of “between” history Modules and so we’re continuing to read about the Renaissance/Reformation. Thus, we have some great history selections on the lists.
For my kids, if they read 10 books on the list, they earn a movie pass. They would read anyway, but the movie pass is a fun reward.
As far as book suggestions, I have many…but first, tell us a little more about your kids. What have they read that they loved? Historical? Mystery? Adventure? Animal stories? Humorous? At what level are they really comfortable reading?
I’m sure there will be plenty of great suggestions here!
May 31, 2011 at 10:15 pm
Linabean
Participant
Thank you, Sonya, for the book suggestion. I don’t know how I missed that in the planning stage last year! That would be perfect!
Shawnab, thank you for responding. My son is still a beginning reader, but is doing very well and will be ready to move on to reading more for himself soon. He is very much into science and technology and enjoys learning “facts”. He read a cowboy sam book during the year for fun with me and really enjoyed it. Our library doesn’t seem to have anymore, though. I am really trying to work on some “gentlmanly” manners with him, ie. Protecting those weaker than you, treating girls with respect, have a good attitude in the face of adversity, etc. He is very much a maths and sciences type of guy and enjoys things like mind puzzles.
My dd is finishing up 3rd grade this year and has started enjoying reading books about real people (canadian women at the moment, as we are canadian) as well as a lot of books and stories about the pioneer days. She is really enjoying going through the little house series for our family read aloud time. She is also currently working through the first “Mandie” book on her own. She just needs help with some of the words and is comprehending the storyline well. She is VERY creative and enjoys our picture/artist, composer, hymn and poetry studies the most out of anything else we do in our homeschool. She loves ballet and reading books about the classic ballets, ie. Nutcracker and Swan Lake. She is not very confidant in math and needs to keep using what she has learned or she has a tendancy to lose it. She also loves knowing and learning about animals.
Thank you for taking an interest. I hope I didn’t get to wordy. Or have to many spelling and typing mistakes, my glasses are broken right now and I am having some trouble seeing. Floating letters! :0
God Bless,
Miranda
May 31, 2011 at 10:23 pm
suzukimom
Participant
Try the book “Emily” by Bedard. It is a picture book about Emily Dickenson, written by a Canadian author.
May 31, 2011 at 10:25 pm
Linabean
Participant
Thank you suzukimom!
May 31, 2011 at 11:04 pm
Shawnab
Participant
I think its so wonderful how moms know their kids so well! Your ds sounds a lot like mine! And your dd a lot like my dd age 8. Very creative, feeling, artistic, etc.
Here are some ideas of books my ds enjoyed at a young reader:
Billy and Blaze series
The Bears on Hemlock Mountain (Dagleish)
The Matchlock Gun
Various titles by Clyde Robert Bulla (some are more “begining” than others)
And…don’t throw tomatoes…the Nate the Great Series. I know Nate the Great is not a “Great” book, but for a brainy-boy-beginning reader they were high interest, benign mysteries, with a good amount of humor. That kind of lead to him loving the Hardy Boys…which again is not fantastic literature quality, but great for skill building. I will say though, he has transitioned into reading a wide variety of literature now, though his love for mystery and adventure has not waned. Now, his favorites are Sherlock Holmes, Father Brown Mysteries, RL Stevenson, and right now he’s reading Swiss Family Robinson!
For you dd, my daughter is enjoying the Betsy-Tacy series, Understood Betsy (one of MY favorites!), EB White collection, and her absolute favorites are the Narnia books. She’s reading them all through a second time, since she “misses” the characters when the books are done.
HTH!
Shawna
June 1, 2011 at 8:40 pm
greenebalts
Participant
Understood Betsy is a must read in our humble opinion!

We do summer reading lists for our older (high school age) kids, but not so much for younger beginning readers. We are continuing family read-alouds throughout the summer. I’m currently reading aloud Gentle Ben. All kids, ranging from age 6 to nearly 18, are enjoying it.

Blessings,
Melissa
June 1, 2011 at 8:47 pm
Linabean
Participant
Thanks for the recomendations, ladies! I appreciate it!
June 2, 2011 at 10:57 pm
AllG5
Participant
I went to the curriculum guide and picked some of the literature books we did not get to during the year. Our library has a reading program with prizes so that is their motivation. My 12 ds is reading Do Hard Things, Tom Sawyer, and hopefully we will have time for Huckleberry Finn. My 10 ds is working on Swiss Family Robinson, that might take him all summer :0, then possibly Rascal. I will have 8 ds read Black Beauty with me and then let him choose some of his own.
I am assigning reading b/c if left to their own choices they would read nothing in one son’s case and only sports stories in the other. I am wanting to hopefully broaden their horizons without the other school work to bog them down.