Happy First Day of Summer!  It’s finally arrived and no doubt you and your family have high expectations for the days ahead. The end of school signals a change in the family routine and as the song says, “the living is easy”. Like magic, blocks of time to relax and enjoy one another appear. Summer is the perfect time to share experiences and build memories.

In his famous book, Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, Stephen Covey encourages us to “Begin with the end in mind.” Wise parents will give thought to the hopes, dreams and goals they have for their family as summer begins. If your hope includes fostering a closer relationship with your kids, enhancing your children’s            self-esteem, spending quality time together, fostering a love of reading and enhancing reading comprehension, enjoying common experiences, increasing meaningful conversation and creating wonderful memories, the Summer Read-Aloud Challenge is for you.

Wait…don’t run away yet. This is not complicated project that will become just another task on your plate. The Summer Reading Challenge is simply a personal commitment to read aloud to your kids on a regular basis. YOU decide what that “regular basis” is for your family and I’ll support you by sharing the many perks of reading aloud, hints that will prepare you for success and great reading resources to keep you dedicated to the challenge. Additionally, I invite all of you to comment and share your ideas so we can all benefit from each others knowledge and experiences.

From now until the end of June, my blog posts will focus on motivation and preparation so that when July begins, regular read-alouds will easily become part of your family’s summer activities. See the “One Small Step” below to get you started.

  ONE SMALL STEP:  Come up with three special picture books you would  like to read or reread to your children and remember you are invited to share your idea with others by posting in the comments section.