When students go home for the summer, sometimes the excitement surrounding vacation trips and other plans might make them forget what they’ve learned in school all year. So, to beat the ‘summer brain drain,’ here are five summer reading challenges and activities – with prizes – that might give your kids the extra incentive to pick up a book and be transported to another world.
1. Assembly member Jo Anne Simon’s sponsored Summer Reading Challenge: Read for at least 15 minutes a day for a minimum of 40 days, and you can receive a NYS Excellence in Reading certificate.
2. Scholastic Read-a-Palooza Summer Reading Challenge: Create an Scholastic account online and enter your summer reading minutes. Kids can unlock digital rewards as they complete weekly reading challenges, and access book excerpts, videos and other summer-exclusive content. The challenge ends on September 6.
3. TD Bank’s Summer Reading Program: Kids in kindergarten through 5th grade can receive $10 if they read 10 books, which can be deposited into a new or existing TD Simple Savings account. The program ends on August 31.
4. Barnes & Noble’s Summer Reading Journal: Children in Grades 1 through 6 can earn a free book (from a provided B&N list) if they read any eight books and record their favorite parts and why in the journal. Bring your completed journal to a B&N store by August 31.
5. Brooklyn Public Library Summer Reading Challenge: Visit your local public library to learn more about the series of challenges you must complete. When the challenges are finished, ask a librarian for instructions on how to claim your voucher for two tickets for an upcoming event at Barclays Center during the 2019-2020 season.
Author
George Fiala has worked in radio, newspapers and direct marketing his whole life, except for when he was a vendor at Shea Stadium, pizza and cheesesteak maker in Lancaster, PA, and an occasional comic book dealer. He studied English and drinking in college, international relations at the New School, and in his spare time plays drums and fixes pinball machines.
