Summer Reading Challenge for Kids

 First a little story. Stories are good, right? So hopefully you won’t mind, Dear Reader, if I tell you one.

I have this habit of reading the last page (or last several pages) of a book before I start reading at the beginning. (It’s my dark little secret.) I like to know how a book ends before I start reading.

It drives my husband bonkers. (Hee, hee, hee!)

He always harasses me about this teeny, tiny idiosyncrasy of mine. (I tell him to bug off. . .)

There’s only been one book that I haven’t read the ending first. And that is the book Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less by Jeffrey Archer. What an excellent book. I highly recommend that you read it.

My sister-in-law told me about the book. She knew about my dark secret. She told me that if I read the end first that that would ruin the whole book. So, I promised not to read the end first. I didn’t. And, I’m so glad that I didn’t! I love that book. I love the ending!

Fast forward to tonight. My husband loves Dove Chocolate. I was sitting in the family room minding my own business. He brought me two small foil-wrapped pieces of that chocolate.

They have sayings on the inside of the wrapper. As I unwrapped the first one, the saying was, “Read the last page first.”

I couldn’t believe my eyes! I am vindicated! (So appropriate that I got that, eh?)

If Dove Chocolate says it, it must be correct, right? Right!

Now. On to the regularly scheduled program.

School is out. Kids are thrilled. Some mothers aren’t. They are worried about their kids getting bored.

This is where you, Dear Reader, come in.

As grandmother to those sweet little darlings, give your grandkids a summer reading challenge.

This challenge will give the grandkids something to do so they aren’t bored, help them keep their reading skills up, and keep their mother from going crazy.

Everyone wins!

I’ve made a free printable of a summer reading challenge for you. Aren’t I nice? (I think so, and I’m not biased at all!)

Here’s how you use it.

Print it up and give a copy to each of your grandchildren. Challenge them to see if they can complete every single activity on the sheet.

The challenge has reading activities such as reading in your pajamas, reading on a blanket in the park, and reading while snuggling with a stuffed animal.

They can decide when and how often to do the activities.

When they complete one, they cross it off their sheet. When they have completed all of the activities, they turn the sheet into you to receive a prize.

The prize could be a book, dinner with you at a swanky restaurant (a.k.a Burger King or Wendy’s), a sleep over at your house with a special supper or breakfast, or going out to the movies with you.

If your grandchild is really gung ho and finishes the challenge way before the summer is over, you can make up your own challenge sheet. One that is more personalized for the grandchild.

Here’s to a happy, reading-filled summer!

P.S. It would be fun if YOU did the summer reading challenge too, Grandma! And, you might also want to consider reading Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less!