Summer Reading Loss – Just Book It

Summer is in the air, officially arriving in just a couple of weeks. But that, unfortunately, is not all that awaits us on our collective doorstep.

Truth be told, most children experience some learning loss during lazy, confused days if they don’t participate in any kind of educational activity. Worse still, however, is that low-income children typically lose up to two months in reading performance over the long recess with devastating effect. In fact, by the end of fifth grade, these kids end up roughly 2.5 years behind their more affluent peers, making catching up nearly impossible.

And while 51% of parents with children in grades four through eight worry about the drop in summer reading, they seem to do little about it, according to a recent survey from Sylvan Learning. In fact, instead, they allow their children to spend normally…

• 30% of their free time playing outside;
• 17% of their free time playing video games;
• And 18% of his free time watching television.

Reading, unfortunately, reached a measly 12%, this when finishing just four or five books could stem the loss. As for academic enrichment programs, they represent only 7% of children’s free time.

Bottom line: Worry less; do more.

The proof, as they say, is in the pudding, or should I say standardized test results. You see, the scores are consistently higher each June than they are in September when schools reopen.

And it’s not just during June, July and August that time spent reading declines, and it’s not just low-income kids who suffer as a result. Just check out these results from the 2013 National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the nation’s report card:

• Only 35% of our 4th grade students performed at the proficient or advanced levels in reading.
• Only 36% of our 8th grade students performed at advanced levels in reading.
• Only 38% of our 12th grade students performed at proficient or advanced levels in reading.

Everyone else scored only at basic and below basic levels, and here it is what does all that mean:

• The Advanced level represents superior performance: a comprehensive and complex understanding of reading knowledge and skills at this grade.
• The proficient level represents strong performance: a proficient and adequate understanding of reading knowledge and skills at this grade.
• The basic level represents limited achievement: a partial and rudimentary understanding of reading knowledge and skills at this grade.
• Below basic level represents serious underachievement: poor or defective understanding of reading knowledge and skills at this grade.

In other words, our kids just aren’t up to the task, a direct result of not reading enough all year long. Explains Vicky Rideout, lead author of a recent Common Sense Media report, “Kids, Teens, and Reading”: “We’re seeing a really big drop in teen reading, and the pace of that drop is getting faster.” And, as evidenced, it’s not just teens who put books aside for other activities, as these findings prove:

1. 9-year-olds who read for pleasure one or more times per week dropped from 81% in 1984 to 76% in 2013.
2. About 33% of 13-year-olds reported reading for pleasure less than twice a year.
3. About 50% of 17-year-olds reported reading for pleasure less than twice a year.

These results are reportedly supported by government studies finding that, “since 1984, the percentage of 13-year-olds who are weekly readers has dropped from 70% to 53%, and the percentage of 17-year-olds who are weekly readers weekly rose from 64% to 40% The percentage of 17-year-olds who never or hardly ever read tripled during this period from 9% to 27%.

Ok, so that’s the bad news; now what to do about it:

1. Set time limits on screens of all kinds: computers, televisions, game consoles, cell phones and tablets.
2. Be seen reading at all times, serving as a role model for your children: books, magazines, newspapers. Remember: children read less because their parents read less today.
3. Take your child to the library at least twice a month to select books to read using their own library card.
4. Borrow or buy audiobooks, encouraging your child to read along.
5. Make books your favorite gift.
6. Read to your child regularly; yes, even older children love to be read to.
7. Start a book club for your child and his friends.
8. Make reading a nightly habit before bed.
9. Click here to sign your child up for the 2014 Scholastic Reading Challenge.

And in case you need any advice on choosing the right books for your child, click here and read together. Meanwhile, NPR, National Public Radio, is also here to help with book recommendations, offering the Top 100 Novels for Teens.

Get started today as the school year ends and summer heats up.