Like many families navigating this difficult time, we have our children’s well-being and academics on our minds. Have you spent the past 18 months organizing, planning and stressing about your child’s learning? Are you wondering what one thing you can do that is proven to help your child the most? Well, reading is the answer!
The disruption in learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to real learning losses. According to a recent study, students across the board lost percentile points in reading and math during the 2020-2021 school year. While it sounds grim, we know that reading is one of the best things children can do to maintain learning and expand their skills and knowledge. And, with the right books and activities, reading can be both educational and fun.
Reading is Fundamental (RIF) recognizes this and has developed a new initiative—Rally to Read 100—for the 2021-2022 school year. Rally to Read 100 offers six months of engaging reading themes, read-alouds from notable authors and illustrators, and an array of reading activities and resources to motivate and encourage frequent reading. The initiative also challenges elementary classrooms to read one hundred books by Read Across America Day, March 2, 2022.
You can help your child and their classroom rally to read by supporting their reading at home. Here are seven tips to help you and your child engage more deeply with reading at home.
1. Work towards a goal.
The Rally to Read 100 goal is right there in its title: 100 books read per classroom! The books your child reads at home count toward that tally. You can even take the pledge as a family! You may also want to work with your child to set a personal goal for them. Maybe it’s a certain number of books, a certain amount of time each day, or even reading every book by a particularly prolific author. Get creative and then get reading!
2. Track it.
Keep track of the books your child reads using a reading log. The log will help you track progress and will also keep the stories top of mind so you can continue to discuss them, make comparisons, and remember favorites.
3. Integrate quality video.
Yep, we said it: video. Rally to Read will feature a different read-aloud by notable authors and illustrators every month through February 2022. These high-quality, personal events give children a chance to connect with the writers and illustrators who bring their own stories to life. Plus, the site will offer a number of additional supporting read-aloud videos for every month’s theme.
4. Dive deep into themes.
Sometimes children fixate on a particular theme or topic for a period of time. Dinosaurs, anyone? Lean into that by allowing your child to dive into the themes that interest them. Use the Rally to Read 100 monthly themes to get some ideas and related activities, puzzles, and more if you and your child are stumped.
5. Use curated lists.
Browsing the library shelves might be a challenge right now, but you can find great suggestions by using booklists curated by educators and organizations who have done the legwork for you. Rally to Read 100 has a book list for every monthly theme. You’ll find 10 great, diverse books for young readers of all ages on each list.
6. Include puzzles and games.
More than just a play break, puzzles and games related to the things children are reading about are a great way to build knowledge and understanding. The monthly themed resources in Rally to Read 100 include memory games, crossword puzzles, word searches, and coloring sheets. And RIF has many more free, title-related puzzles and activities on this page.
7. Celebrate!
The Rally to Read 100 free, downloadable certificate is a great way to celebrate reaching a reading goal with your child. You can also plan a special reading-related party or activity. Consider cookies shaped or decorated like books, a special movie night featuring a movie adapted from a book, or some other celebration inspired by the amazing stories you will have read.
Get more resources at RallyToRead.org. Happy reading!
At Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), the nation’s oldest children’s literacy non-profit, is committed to a literate America by inspiring a passion for reading among all children, providing quality content to make an impact and engaging communities in the solution to give every child the fundamentals for success.
