By Katrina Cassel

Along with outdoor play, trips, and other activities, reading can become an important part of summer. Since reading helps build vocabulary, lengthens attention span, and develops a sense of sequence and story, summer reading gives your child a jump start for the coming school year.

Here are some ways to encourage reading at your house this summer:

• Provide lots of interesting reading materials. Place them in strategic places around the house.

• Think back to what books were some of your favorites at your child's age. You'd be surprised at how popular many reads from decades past are still favorites on book store and library shelves!

• Tie in books with television shows. If your child sees a show about African Animals, go to library and find books about the same animals.

• Send your children to bed at their normal bedtimes but tell them they can stay up a half hour later if they want to read in bed.
• Take books along on trips to the doctor and dentist office, and to the beach.

• Let the child choose what they want to read. Children often choose to read books for fun that are much lower than their ability.

• Read a chapter of a book each night at supper. (See sidebar for some favorites).

• Rent videos of the books if available after you read them. Discuss how the movie was different from the book.

• Check your public library for summer reading programs. The Monroe County Library System and surrounding county locations offer a huge variety of events and activities for all ages, at various times to encourage this invaluable resource. Take your children to the library weekly and spend time looking at different books. Fostering the library experience will extend far beyond the summer months. Encourage your children to read a little bit of a book to see if they like it before they check it out, or read parts of books to them. Introduce children to books by popular authors. The librarian has a wealth of knowledge. Ask for recommendations.

• Find practical ways to use reading. Have your child read the grocery list to you at the store. Let him read a recipe while you cook. Hand your son the sports section of the paper so he can read about last night's game that he watched on television.

• Find books that support your children's current interests and hobbies.

• Listen to books on tape whenever you are going to be driving for 15 minutes or longer. Check out both the tapes and the book at the library so they can read it on their own after listening to it or while listening to it.

Katrina Cassel, M.Ed., lives with her husband, five of their children, and an assortment of pets in the Florida panhandle. Katrina is the author of five books including: Celebrate Creation (Shining Star), The Junior High Survival Guide (Concordia Publishing House), The Christian Girl's Guide to Being Your Best (Legacy Press), and The Christian Girl's Guide to the Bible (Legacy Press, July 03). Coming soon: The Christian Girl's Guide to Knowing Yourself: A Quiz Book for Girls, Just for Me: The Bible, Just for Me: Friends (Legacy Press).