With the coming of summer comes summer reading! And Reading Rockets has lots of resources and ideas you can share to help caring adults encourage kids to learn, read, and have fun in the summer sun.

• A helpful how-to for summer learning providers for taking advantage of Start with a Book’s resources 
• Science-themed activity guides that combine great books with easy hands-on activities
• Practical suggestions for using reading time to build a child's reading fluency
• Tips for parents in English, Spanish, and nine other languages to support English language learners
• Start with a Book Mom, Carol Shen. Carol is a stay at home mom of two and a member of the Board of Directors of The Reading Connection. She's blogging for Reading Rockets about her kids' learning adventures using Start with a Book this summer.

The Our White House anthology is supported by a companion educational website, OurWhiteHouse.org, which expands the book content with additional stories, primary sources, articles, activities, and discussion questions related to book topics. The website also includes printable education resource guides on the OWH Plus page to help you make the most of the book's content in your classroom and library. 

• 2009-2010 National Endowment for the Humanities We the People “Picturing America” Bookshelf Award
• 2009 American Library Association Notable Children’s Book for All Ages
• 2009 National Council for Social Studies and the Children’s Book Council Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People
• 2009 International Reading Association Teachers’ Choices Booklist Selection
• Amazon.com Best Books of 2008 Top 10 Editors’ Pick for Middle Readers
• Parents’ Choice Foundation Recommended Book Award, Fall 2008
• School Library Journal Best Books of the Year 2008
• The Horn Book Fanfare, Best Books of 2008
• Publisher’s Weekly 2008 Best Books of the Year, Children’s Nonfiction
• Publishers Weekly 2008 Cuffie Award, Best Nonfiction Treatment of a Subject, Honorable Mention
• Scripps-Howard News Service Favorite Children's Book of 2008
• www.ourwhitehouse.org named a 2009 American Library Association “Great Websites for Kids”

Helping Young People Connect with Contemporary Events
Tonight President Obama will make his state of the union address to Congress. Will he find refuge in the White House movie theater sometime beforehand to practice his delivery of tonight's speech, just as his predecessor President George W. Bush liked to do? What policies and legislative goals will the president be promoting tonight? Is the state of the union address important? Need we watch?

In his state of the union address of 1974, President Richard Nixon refused to resign the presidency despite the rising tide of suspicion that was enveloping him...yet he did resign seven months later.

And in 1982 with the country in recession President Ronald Reagan called for a “New Federalism” in his state of the union address, advocating for less federal spending and more state initiatives to solve social and economic problems.

What might President Obama be proposing for Americans in tonight's speech?
Events such as the state of the union address provide a perfect opportunity to continue our dialog about American history and politics with our young people. Encourage young people to watch tonight's address. Watch it with them! When the speech is over, turn off the TV pundits and discuss the speech. What did they think about it? Do they agree with the president's proposals? Why or why not? Take the time to help young people make the connection to their own lives. Learn more about the constitutional requirements for the state of the union address in the New York Times article State of the Union.

An excellent resource to consult regarding the presidency, politics, and American history is the NCBLA’s art and literary anthology Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out. Our White House seeks to build on logical links between literacy, historical literacy, and civic engagement. Coordinating activities and discussion suggestions, as well as additional articles, are available on the book's supplemental website: ourwhitehouse.org.

On ourwhitehouse.org, learn from a political speech writer how a state of the union address differs from an inaugural address in "Writing Political Speeches: An Interview with Thomas LaFauci." 

I Will Read To My Kids --
If I Ever Find The Time!

All right, so you've heard that you should read aloud to your kids fifteen minutes everyday. You've heard from teachers and pediatricians and politicians and the so-called "educational experts" that it is the best thing you can do ensure your child's success in reading and school. But who are they trying to kid with this fifteen minutes a day deal? It takes a heck of a lot more time than fifteen minutes a day!

First, if you are going to read books, you've got to have books to read. And that means getting everyone dressed, then driving to the library through rain, sun, sleet, hail, or snow, because at ten to twenty dollars a pop you're probably not going to have a pile of kid's books on your shelf at home. And a trip to the library is going to take at least a half hour and then you have to return the books, and of course one book will be lost, and you will be late getting it back. Then you will be penalized with late fees, all of which takes even more time.

And, you have not one child, but three, all different ages, all different temperaments, all different interests. Do you read different books to each child individually? That adds up to 45 minutes a day. And how do you know what book to read to each one? Do you read to all three at once? What if your three year old gets up and walks away in the middle of the story? And what if the baby starts crying? And what if your eight year old doesn't want to read "baby books" any more? And what if you've been working all day and you're so bone tired that you can't even keep your eyelids open to read?

I know. I understand. I've been there, too, with three kids, two jobs, and a husband whose work requires him to travel extensively. So here's the bad news. The best thing you can do to help your child succeed in reading and in school is to read aloud to them, period, the end. Why? Because you, taking the time to read aloud to your children, especially when you are so very busy, shows them that you think words and reading and books are very important. Reading aloud to children enriches their vocabularies, models reading behaviors, expands their emotional expression, and introduces them to story, history, folklore, and culture, enlarging their world. They love you. When you take the time to read to your kids, their love for you spills over. It encompasses all that you do together, so they will automatically begin to love books and language, too. And kids who love books and language definitely have a leg up on everyone else when they start school.

Here's the good news. Forget the fifteen minutes a day thing. Think about reading time in terms of a week's length of time instead of a day. When my kids were little I worried about their eating habits. Were they getting representative foods from all five food groups everyday? No. Sometimes my oldest would only eat chicken nuggets, peas, and white bread slathered with peanut butter for days. Eventually, I stopped worrying about daily food intake and began to think of my childrens' nutrition in terms of a week's time. It was only then that I realized that within a week they ate from a variety of food groups and were getting all the nutritional requirements their bodies needed to grow.

Think of your children's brain growth in weekly terms, too. Think in terms of providing your kids with language enriching experiences. For example; if you don't have the time to read a book aloud, tell them a story while you do the dinner dishes. The story can be as simple as you recalling a childhood memory, like the time your cat Henry gave birth to kittens under your parents' bed. Or, borrow a few book and tape sets from the library and when you are tired, lie down on your bed with your kids and listen to the tape together. While, driving back and forth doing errands play alphabet and word games in the car, or listen to great songs on a tape or a CD and sing along with the lyrics. Have your children "read" you a well loved book that they have actually memorized. Then, when you have the chance during the week to read for more than fifteen minutes, do so. It will compensate for the days you couldn't find time to read.

Be honest with yourself. Is it really a great imposition to get to the library? Do you find the time to go to the mall? Do you find the time to rent videos or DVD's? Videos have to be returned, too. If you really don't have the time to go to the library, check out your library's services. Many libraries now have bookmobiles which bring the books to you. And for returns, libraries can often arrange book pick-ups or they can renew your books over the phone.

Resolve this year to read aloud more to your children. Talk with them. Discuss their day and yours. Tell them more stories, made-up and real. Sing them more songs. It is time spent that you will never regret.

© 2007 Mary Brigid Barrett

Robin Adelson, Outgoing Executive Director
of the CBC and Every Child a Reader,
Talks to Teen Reads

Take a moment and read the insightful interview with esteemed Executive Director Robin Adelson of the Children's Book Council and Every Child a Reader on TeenReads.com here.

Here is an excerpt:

Every Child a Reader is a charitable organization focusing on literacy. Its mission is to instill a lifelong love of reading in children. It’s not enough to learn how to read. For a child to truly reach their potential as a student and ultimately as a productive member of society, you need to look beyond just learning the basics of reading. And to get beyond the basics, you have to have an appreciation for reading. With all of the things competing for your leisure time, if reading is one of those choices that you'll consider as you grow up, it expands your horizons in ways that ultimately expand your potential.

Learn more about the Children's Book Council at CBCBooks.org and Every Child a Reader at ECARFoundation.org.

• Find out what the child or teen has read already. Ask them what authors they like to read.
• Discover the subjects and topics that interest them.
• Find out if they prefer fiction or nonfiction, fantasy or reality.
• Don't be afraid to ask your neighborhood children's librarian or children's books seller for suggestions and advice.
• Read your local newspaper's book section. Many newspapers and magazines feature book suggestions this time of year.
• Be consumer savvy. The books with biggest marketing budgets are not necessarily the best books for you child or teen. And conversely, a book you've never heard of may contain the story that changes your child’s or teen's life. Natacha says, "Just because a book jacket may look promising does not mean the story is going to live up to it. We all fall victim at one time or another to 'judging a book by its cover.'
• Take into consideration the content and age recommendation. I think great care needs to be taken, especially if a young reader is at a higher reading level. Even though the child can read the material the content is not always appropriate.
• No one is ever too old for a picture book!!
• Consider all possibilities: great literature and fun, entertaining books. Says Natacha, "Think of books in terms of chocolate mousse and a Hershey kiss. There are moments for both!"

• Reading Rockets' Holiday Buying Guide (Birth through Age 12)
• AdLit.org's Great Books for Teens (Listed by Theme)
• The NCBLA's In Search of Wonder Lists of Book Recommendations By Category (Birth through Young Adult) (Be sure to scroll down to "Lists of Book Recommendations by Category.)
• The Horn Book Fanfare, Best Books for 2014 (Birth through Young Adult)
•  Cooperative Children’s Book Center Book Choices 2014 (Birth through Young Adult)
• The New York Times Notable Children's Books of 2014
• Young Adult Library Services Association Best Fiction for Young Adults 2014
• American Library Association Youth Media Awards (Birth through Young Adult)

• In the Heart of it All – SCBWI: Northern Ohio’s 12th Annual Conference, September 19-20 at the Sheraton Cleveland Airport Hotel. The perfect place to learn more about writing and illustrating and meet some of the most knowledgeable professionals in the field of publishing who are eager to educate, inspire, and encourage attendees!
• Good is no longer Good Enough – Writing the Stand-out Picture Book/ Novel Workshop with Dandi Daley Mackall, October 18 at the Holiday Inn Cleveland South. Through presentations, writing exercises, Q&A and written critiques, the day's emphasis will be on striving for excellence when writing picture books, nonfiction picture books, novels and historical fiction novels. (There is currently a waiting list for this event.)
• November 15th Critique Meeting with Michelle Houts,November 15 at the Highland Library in Medina. Bring a manuscript to share or just listen and learn from others’ critiques.

Illustration (c) Steven Kellogg

1. FIVE FAMOUS AUTHORS!
   Sit back and hear firsthand the inspiring, wise, and often witty words of five of America's most talented authors: Katherine Paterson, Steven Kellogg, Nikki Grimes, Tanya Lee Stone, and Chris Crutcher!
   
2. COMMON CORE COMMENTARY!
   Are you wondering how you can possibly integrate Common Core into your classroom or library program in an inspired and magical way? Our expert Common Core commentators will demonstrate exactly how you can do that using books written by our five featured authors.
   
3. EXPERT PANEL DISCUSSION!
   Our panel of educators, librarians, and children's literature industry specialists will discuss classic, contemporary, and brand new books that can be utilized across all academic disciplines and grade levels to enhance students’ learning experiences. Are you questioning the goals of Common Core? Wondering how to help young people identify fact in fiction? Come hear what the experts have to say.
   
4. FREE BOOKS!
   Every registered attendee will receive a free hardcover copy of the NCBLA's award-winning anthology Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out at the end of the day, courtesy of Candlewick Press. A $30.00 value!
   
   PLUS, every registered attendee will have the opportunity to win one of our TEN themed book bags at the end of the day. Many of these giveaway books have been autographed by the authors!
5. AFFORDABLE PRICE!
   The event fee is just $35. Members of NEA, AFT, NCTE, and ALA pay only $25. Employees of the Cleveland Public Library, CLEVENET member libraries, and Cleveland Public Schools also pay only $25. Undergraduate and graduate university students pay $15.

• FREE educational support materials will be published online to provide creative ways you can integrate engaging and quality literature in your classroom or library using the Common Core Standards.
• Contact hour certificates will be provided.
• A special display of Steven Kellogg’s original illustrations will be available for you to browse, courtesy of the Mazza Museum in Findlay, Ohio. 
• On-site book sales and AUTOGRAPHING by all five of our featured authors! 

• Use the two weeks prior to school starting to let your child readjust to their new bedtime. Set their alarm each night and make sure your little one is up and at em' the next morning.
• Take time to go over your child's car pool or bus schedule as well. This way they will be aware of what time they need to be ready when the big day arrives.  In addition, you may want to go over routes and how long the ride to school will take.  Most importantly, talk to your child about car/bus safety!
• If your child is new to town, the oldest, or transitioning from one school to another, make sure he or she has the opportunity to tour the school a few days before school begins. Encourage your child to ask questions of you and anyone he or she meets at the school. Be aware that younger children, preteens, and teens will all have different fears and concerns. And, older kids may be too insecure to ask questions for fear of appearing stupid or un-cool. For example: young children may worry about paying for lunch the first time and where the lavatories are located in relationship to their classroom. Preteens and teens may be more worried about their lockers, lock combinations, and what they're going to wear the first day of school.
• Before any "back to school" clothing is purchased, make sure you and your child or teen know the school dress code. That knowledge will ease family tension and save you a great deal of time and trouble.
• From kindergarten on, encourage your children to dress in a way that is compatible with his or her personality. Let them know that being true to themselves is "way" better than being trendy; in fact, the kids who create trends never copy anyone else. Peer pressure builds as kids get older and celebrating individuality through clothing style is a great way to show your kids that they do not need the approval of popular kids to survive, and thrive, in school.
• The night before school have your child pick out a first day outfit. This will avoid adding unnecessary chaos to an already hectic event. Have them pack their backpack as well. Click here for tips on backpack safety: http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/positive/learning/backpack.html
• School textbooks are getting heavier and heavier. Make sure you child or preteen has a sturdy backpack that distributes the weight of books equally. You may want to invest in a roller backpack that has a luggage handle so that your child can pull his or her backpack instead of carrying it.
• If you plan on packing them a lunch ask them what they would like to eat on the first day of school. If you aren't fixing their lunch, be sure to give them lunch money and have them put it in a safe place.
• If your children will be participating in any extracurricular sports, they will need a physical. Schedule it as soon as possible, even before school starts.
• If your kids had required reading over the summer, you may want to have an informal discussion with them about their reading right before school starts. Ask them to remind you what books they read and why they liked or disliked them. Don't be satisfied with simplistic explanations; ask for details about characters, place, and plot. Ask them if and why they would recommend the book to other kids. Your informal book chat will jog their memories and help them if they are assigned a report on their summer reading.
• Share your own feelings and memories about your first day of school experiences: being the new kid in town; the first one in the family to ride a bus to school; or the forgetting your locker combination running between classes in middle school. When your kids share their worries or concerns, don't dismiss or trivialize them. Validate their concerns. Ask them if they have ideas on what they can do to alleviate their apprehensions. If they do not have ideas, brainstorm with them to come up with viable solutions and actions.
• In this era of "kidnap fears" it is hard not to be too overprotective of your children, but try. In most of America, kids can walk to school safely. They can ride the bus safely, too. Human skin is waterproof, and dressed for the occasion, kids can walk in the rain and snow unharmed. The classroom is not the only place where learning occurs. The journey to and from school provides your kids with another situation in which to learn. If your area is "traffic safe," adequately prepare your kids with safety tips and, at an age appropriate time, stop driving them to school door and let them explore. Their self-esteem will swell with their responsible independence.
• Make sure your child has a library card, knows his or her way around the library, and knows how to find the books he or she will need to complete assignments and read for pleasure during the school year.
• Get into the habit of going to the library once a week or once every two weeks, regardless of whether or not your child's school assignments require it. The best way you can help your children achieve in school is to encourage them to read and become life-long readers. The best place to get free books, magazines, computer access, entertaining stories, and important information is your neighborhood library.
• No matter how old or young your children, read through the school student handbook with them at the beginning of every year. You both need to know the school's goals, expectations, opportunities, and rules.
• Fill out any medical and emergency forms and return them to the school immediately. If your child has any special health or physical needs make sure you put those needs in writing and that the principal, your child's teacher, and the school nurse all have copies.
• Establish a safe place in the house where all school forms and notices can be deposited every day. Get your kids in the habit of taking all forms and notices out of their backpacks and putting them in that safe place as soon as they walk through your door. They need to learn from kindergarten on that they are responsible for making sure you receive all communications from their school. It may help to give each of your children, including your teens, a sturdy plastic folder that they can keep in their backpack to carry notices home safely.
• Rusty Browder, the librarian at Amos A. Lawrence School in Brookline, Mass., recommends that kids of all ages acquire great "backpack habits." She suggest that kids go through their backpacks everyday, organize papers and notebooks, give parents important notices and work, and throw out garbage of any kind! Older kids who have locker breaks between classes may want to organize their heavy textbooks in groups of morning and afternoon classes so that one group of books can be left in their lockers until needed.
• Read aloud to your children from their favorite books, every night if possible, if only for ten or fifteen minutes. And don't assume that once your child has become an independent reader that he or she no longer wants, or needs, to be read aloud to. Kids of all ages, and adults, love to hear a great story. And reading aloud increases your children's vocabulary, makes them laugh, expands their universe, and helps them to learn about human understanding and compassion. Besides- it's great fun!
• Try to find a special time each day to talk with your children about their day at school. Sometimes that moment takes place in the car driving between after-school activities. Sometimes it takes place on the phone from home to your work place. Sometimes it takes place at the table over dinner. Wherever and whenever it takes place, don't ask the question, "How was school today?" –– it is a certainty that you will get a one word answer. Ask: what was served in the cafeteria; did you have gym outside; how did your history presentation go? –– anything to initiate a conversation. Never underestimate your impact or importance to your kids. Your taking the time to take an interest in them and their day is not only important to their education, it is something they will remember and cherish the rest of their lives.
• Send them off with big kisses and a bunch of well wishes!

Illustration courtesy of FairObserver.com.

Pivovarchuk: Children’s books — or literature for young adults — have been the most frequently challenged throughout history. From Huckleberry Finn, The Catcher in the Rye, to the Harry Potter series that topped the list over the last decade, and now to Captain Underpants, which pushed the controversial Fifty Shades of Grey off the top spot in 2013. What it is about these books that makes parents so angry?

Barrett: I think sometimes, on a surface level, parents feel that exposure to certain books challenges the beliefs and values they are trying to instill in their children, and they feel threatened. As a parent and teacher, I totally understand those feelings, especially when talking about age appropriateness issues. Over the last three years, visiting schools and working with children, I have found a number of kids as young as third grade who read The Hunger Games books. No matter how intellectually precocious a third grader is, few, if any, third graders would have the experience level and the emotional maturity to deal with the violence level in those books.

But banning The Hunger Games is not the answer. I found, as a parent, the best way to handle a situation where your child is adamant about reading a book, which you are worried is inappropriate, is to read it aloud with your child, so you can comment on it; your child can share his or her reaction to what is read; and you can then have a discussion with your child, sharing your values, your feelings about what is read and, in turn, your child can share his or her concerns and ask you questions.

A dear friend, author Katherine Paterson, has often found her books on the most challenged children’s books list. One of those, The Bridge to Terabithia, is often challenged for a variety of reasons. Amongst challenger claims are that it contains offensive language, promotes secular humanism, new age religions, cults and witchcraft. But Katherine thinks that in some parents it ignites a much greater parental fear — the fear of your child dying. One of the main child characters in the book dies, and not from an illness or premeditated act, or adult abuse or error, but from a total accident where no one is at fault and no one is responsible. Katherine feels that the real reason the book is challenged is that parents want to feel they are in control, and have the ability to keep their children safe. But deep down, we all know that no matter how much we love our kids, no matter how we try to protect them, anything can happen at any time. The Bridge to Terabithia reveals the deepest, darkest fear we all have as parents: that we can care for our children, but we cannot control the universe — it can take them at any time.

Summer Reading Recommendations  from Authoritative Sources Abound

• To discover recommendations for fiction and nonfiction books for kids aged 0 through 9, visit Reading Rockets' Reading Adventure Packs for Families.
• For summer reading adventures for young people aged 9 through 18, visit AdLit.org's Summer Fun list. 
• For a list of books for kids of all ages, visit the Summer Reading From the Horn Book page, which categorizes dozens of recommended books.
• Visit the Cooperative Children's Book Center Bibliographies and Booklists page for book recommendations by age group.

•  Strengthen kids’ literacy, inquiry, and problem-solving skills with a combination of great books and the easy hands-on activities Start with a Book offers in these science-themed activity packs.
• Use Start with a Book themes to plan reading and learning adventures in your own community. Take advantage of the related books, activities and apps selected to extend the learning.
• Encourage kids to write about their learning adventures using this fun, downloadable Adventure Tracker. 
• Can’t get to the library? Create your own summer reading program and let kids log all of their summer reading with the Start with a Book Summer Book Tracker. 
• Sign up for Summer Reading Tips to Go and get more great ideas for reading, writing and hands-on summertime fun texted right to your phone, in English or Spanish.