Summer Reading

The other evening I was browsing in the local Barnes and Noble trying to escape the brutal heat wave that had gripped the Northeast. There was quite a crowd of parents and middle school students at the summer reading tables armed with lists provided by the local high schools. Many of the usual suspects were present-The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin, The Old Man and The Sea, Night, The Diary of Ann Frank, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, and the requisite number of Shakespeare plays.

On a nearby shelf I noticed a series of books entitled “Flash Kids Books.” Since these were new to me I decided to investigate further. Flash Kids workbooks are are published by the Harcourt Company, a major publisher of educational material. This series of books provides study aids for school students and are a great way to reinforce school taught ideas throughout the summer. The books are coded by grade level and are primarily geared for elementary school students. There are separate books for mathematics, reading comprehension and even test preparation (since so many states have high stakes tests that are administered to students every year.)

According to the publisher, the Flash Kids program books are geared to current national teaching standards. The format of the books makes the learning (or reinforcement) fun for children. It is an effective stimulus for summer so that students will return to class in the fall without the usual loss of content knowledge that tends to occur during summer months.

 These workbooks may also be effective for classroom teachers to use during the first weeks of school to aid in re-introducing topics that were taught during the previous school year.

Another workbook series worth investigating is called Summer Skills (www.summerskills,com) this series includes workbooks in math, language arts, and even foreign languages- Spanish, French, and Mandarin Chinese. The series’ publisher recommends that students should spend 20 minutes a day, three days a week, for the summer to stay in shape for the fall. The Summer Skills  books sell for $20  each are only available from the publisher.

Make this a meaningful and productive summer for your students and your children!