The Spirit Summer Reading 2014

Right to the Point

The image below links to some summer reading recommendations. All book descriptions are geared to appeal towards kids. You'll also find links to video playlists and great author website content. Please feel free to share this post or just the file!

My Summer Reading Background

I created this resource for my former student self. While I’m sure summer reading assignments have the best of intentions, they caused me to read less. When the summer began, I wanted to put as much distance between myself and school as possible. By the time I got that needed distance, the work was too much of a reminder that the school year was closing in. In between, non required reading was out. Why would I choose to read something else when I could be doing the assigned work? To this day, I think my reasoning was solid. I’d like to say my parents could have done more but I know myself well enough to understand they saved their battles for the school year.

My ninth grade english teacher sat me and my parents down in the middle of the year. She thought I was bored and wanted to move me into honors classes. All I had to do was show her I was capable. Third term I did and after being moved, ended the year with straight A’s. As much as I resisted summer reading, nobody wants to walk into to a new class unprepared. So the week before school began, I dragged my mother to the book store to pick up a copy of Catcher in the Rye. After the old read a chapter from the beginning, read a few in the middle, read the end, I gave the comprehension questions a go. Come to find out, I didn’t quite capture the essence of what Salinger was going for. Oh, and Catcher wasn’t the required book. Apparently, I misread the assignment. 

Texted my buddy, Eric to make sure I was remembering correctly

We never really recovered from the rocky start and my career as an honor student was short lived. If you recognize my experience in your child or your students, don’t let the assigned summer reading discourage them from picking up a book. The enjoyment of reading will lead to more reading. Parents, you know your child best. Remove the burden by any means necessary. If getting your student to read isn’t a problem, I hope this list offers a variety of engaging choices. 

Now more than ever, summer is more than just vacation. The school year’s frantic pace has noticeably intensified during my time in the classroom. The time between school years should embrace independence. I hope this resource will help your student make the choice to read.