Making reading fun and interesting, especially during the summer months, can seem like a challenge for many parents. As much fun and important as it is to play outside and enjoy summer, it is also important to make sure their reading skills are still sharp come fall. According to NWEA, students lose nearly 20 percent of their school-year gains in reading if they don’t read over the summer. Luckily, you still have some time to get back in the swing of things, and in addition, help ease your child back into the school year by incorporating some reading time into your daily routine. Keep reading for our favorite ways to make reading fun, including our DIY Magic Wand Reading Pointer!
Secret Castle Bed Tent – Twin Size
There’s no better place to curl up with a good book than in one of our bed tents! Measuring in at 77″ x 38″ x 35,” this durable bed tent can accommodate a twin size mattress. It also includes double-stitched seams along stress points for reinforcement, color-coated poles and pole pockets for fast and easy assembly, and a sturdy carry bag for convenient travel and storage. Sweet dreams await you in the Secret Castle Bed Tent, your majesty!
Bed tents also make a wonderful bridge between sleeping in a crib to sleeping in a “big kid bed” as they provide a cozy, enclosed space with an exciting theme.
Featuring doors that can be tied back with radius-cut hook and loop fasteners as well as ultra-mesh walls that allow for ventilation while keeping bugs at bay, this tent is perfect for letting your princess or prince sleep comfortably in their Royal Court, or for having their own place to dive into their favorite books,
DIY Magic Wand Reading Pointer
What You Need
- Popsicle sticks
- Glittery paper
- Paint
- Paintbrushes
- Hot glue gun or glue sticks
- Scissors
How You Make It
- First, cut star shapes out of the glitter paper. A good tip is to use a cookie-cutter or other stencil to make the perfect star.
- Paint fun designs – whatever you want, really – on your popsicle sticks.
- Let your little one get creative here and do whatever they’d like. Heck, throw some glitter and pom-poms on there, too! They could also add their name here while decorating, or maybe even some stickers.
- Once the paint is all dry, glue gun your star, with the point facing upwards, onto the top of your popsicle stick
- Now you have a reading pointer! Keep them close by whenever you want to crack open a good book, and even double it as a bookmarker to keep it extra safe.
More Ways to Make Reading Fun
Reading pointers are extremely helpful for little ones who are just learning how to read. It can sometimes be hard for them to concentrate on a certain word among a sea of others, and it is also much easier for little ones to lose their place than it is for adults. Reading pointers help them stay on track and focus on the word at hand instead of getting overwhelmed with everything on the page. Having a DIY Magic Wand Reading Pointer is just an extra way of making reading fun instead of using their finger or a regular bookmarker.
Go to the Bookstore
One of the best ways you can get your child excited about reading is to take them to the bookstore. Letting them chose which books they want to read will help them get more excited about wanting to read it. You’ll also be able to get a good feel for the types of books they are into. If you’ve been reading books about Disney characters this whole time and they haven’t been too into it, maybe it’s because they actually want to read fantasy books – and you’d never know that unless they showed you!
Start a Series
Find a good series with a number of books in it. This will make your child excited about going on to the next one and encourage them to want to read more. Constantly reading books that are one-and-done can begin to be mundane to children – even they need a cliffhanger every now and then!
Talk About Them
Don’t let talking about a book end at reading time. Bring the characters to life throughout other parts of the day, such as asking what they think a certain character might do in a real-life situation. In addition, ask them for their opinion of the book after it is over. If they loved it, then find more books like it. If they didn’t love it, you’ll know what types of books to avoid. Children love to voice their feedback and opinion (as you know!), so let them feel like they are in control of the reading journey.
Use a Bed Tent
Having a dedicated space for reading is very important. Everyone loves cuddling up in a dedicated space with a good book, and that is no different for children. One great way you can set up a reading space is to pop up a bed tent when it’s reading time. If the book is about Antarctica, read it wrapped in a blanket. If it’s a book about Halloween, read it in the dark with a flashlight. If it is a book about school, get your little one’s backpack out and set the stage. The best part about reading in a bed tent is they can go straight to sleep once the book is done!
Let Us Know!
How do you like to make reading more fun with your children? Did you make the DIY Magic Wand Reading Pointer? Tell us all about how you’ve been reading with your children this summer in the comments below, or reach out to us on social media. Happy reading!