2008 Summer Reading Programs & More

It’s that time of year again; Summer reading time!

Once again there are several resources available to help encourage children to read over the summer, and to reward those who are already avid readers.

National Summer Reading Programs

• Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program 2008
  

  Prize(s): Receive a FREE book from Barnes & Noble!
  Who: Grades 1-6
  Cost: Free
  When: 5/29/08 – 9/2/08
  Deadline: 9/2/08
  
  Details:

  1. Read any 8 books of your own choosing
  2. Use your Summer Reading Journal to tell your favorite part of each book.
  3. Bring completed Reading Journal, with parent’s signature, to a Barnes & Noble store between May 29th and Sept. 2nd to receive a coupon for a FREE book.

• 10th Annual Homeschooling Summer Reading Club

  Prize(s): Receive a certificate, stickers and a prize in the mail by September 30, 2008!
  Who: Grades K-12 (Homeschooled)
  Cost: $1.00
  Deadline: Postmarked by August 31, 2008

  Details:

  1. Sign your children up.
  2. Print out Reading List Form.
  3. Have children read books at their reading level.
  4. List books on form, and total pages read.
  5. When the total number of pages reach 500, mail the list along with a $1.00 stamp to the address provided on the Reading List Form (one per student).

• Feed Your Brain

  Cici’s Pizza Restaurant & Half Price Books are teaming up to bring you the “Feed Your Brain” summer reading program.

  Prize(s): shopping card at Half-Price books or free kids’ buffet meal at CiCi’s restaurant
  Who: Children 10 and under
  Cost: Free
  When: 6/1/08 – 8/2/08

  Details:

  Spend at least 15 minutes a day, 5 days per week, reading a book. For every week completed, children can earn a $3 shopping card at Half-Price books or a free kids’ buffet meal at CiCi’s (with the purchase of an adult entree).

• Scholastic’s Summer Buzz – Read & Dream

  Prize(s): Disney Dream Vacation
  Who: Grades PreK–8
  Cost: Free
  When: 4/15/08 – 9/1/08

  Details:

  Reading this summer could lead to a Walt Disney World® vacation dream come true from Scholastic! Kids in grades PreK–8 can read and log 4 or more books as part of Scholastic Summer Reading Buzz from April 15th through September 1st, for a chance to win a very happy ending on a Disney dream vacation.

  Complete the form, including your and your parent’s email address.
  Scholastic will notify the parent via email if their child is selected.
  Lucky winners will be randomly selected and announced on or about September 30, 2008.

• Pizza Hut’s Brain Food Summer Reading Fun

  Who: Students who were in grades K-6 during the 2007-08 school year
  Postmark Deadline: 8/15/08
  Prize(s):

  • Nintendo DS Lite with Big Brain Academy game
  • The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black (Boxed Set, Book 1-5)
  • The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black (Audio CD, Unabridged, Book 1-5)
  • A $25 Pizza Hut® Gift Card
  • Nine runner-up winners will receive:
  • A $10 Pizza Hut Gift Card

  Details:

  Kids who read at least five books between June 13-August 15, 2008 will have a chance to win some fantastic prizes and will be on track with reading when school starts!
  

  • Print the Brain Food flyer.
  • Send in the completed form including a short paragraph on the back listing which book was your favorite and why.

• Build-A-Bear – Be Pawsome with Reading!

  Prize(s): Pawsome “Beary Limited edition Collectibear Pin”
  Who: Ages 5+ (Alternate gift available for children under 5)
  When: 6/1/08 – 8/31

  Details:

  1. Complete the activities in this booklet.
  2. Bring it back to a Build-a-Bear Workshop store.
  3. Get a Pawsome “Beary Limited edition Collectibear Pin” and a “Beary special offer”

• Education World Summer Reading

  Education World’s summer reading page includes reading lists and “book-tivities” reading enrichment activities.

Host Your Own

• Host a Summer Reading Olympics!
  

  What: RIF has adopted the motto “Swifter, Higher, Stronger” from the 2008 Summer Olympics taking place in Beijing, China this August.

  Their suggestion? – Host a Summer Reading Olympics for your family, neighborhood, or local youth group!

  1. Step 1: Meet together and determine the rules, events, and sports-themed prizes (baseball game, pool party, etc.) for your Reading Olympics. The events could range from “Most Books Read” to “Most Minutes Read;” from “Most Improved Reader” to “Most Adventurous Reader.”
  2. Step 2: Have children log the books and minutes they’ve read in an online “Reading Log,” which is available for free on RIF’s Reading Planet Club. Sign up or log in to the Club.
  3. Step 3: At the end of the competition, hold a medal ceremony and present gold, silver, and bronze handmade medallions to the winners.Be sure to visit the RIF site to download your free olympic-related activities, books, and more!

Regional (Florida-based) Summer Reading Programs

• Commerce Bank Summer Reading Program

  Simply read 10 books over the summer and Commerce Bank will deposit $10 into your new or existing Young Savers Account.

  Download the Summer Reading Brochure, complete it and Get $10 when you bring it back to your local Commerce store.

  Valid through September 30, 2008

• Florida Libraries

  Find local libraries in Florida participating in summer reading programs.

  • Links to Florida’s Librairies

    http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/fgils/fl_lib.html

  • Just Read Families

    http://www.justreadfamilies.org/

Not Just For Summer

• BookAdventure.org

  Book Adventure is a FREE reading motivation program for children in grades K-8. Children create their own book lists from over 7,000 recommended titles, take multiple choice quizzes on the books they’ve read, and earn points and prizes for their literary successes. Book Adventure was created by and is maintained by Sylvan Learning.

• The Old Spaghetti Factory

  The Old Spaghetti Factory is offering free spaghetti dinners to kids who read five books.
  Click here for more info.

Current Bookstore Coupons & Deals!

• Books-a-Million

  1. Book Clearance Sale – Save up to 80%!
     Great selection, including 90¢ books for kids!
  2. FREE SHIPPING on orders of $25 or more at Booksamillion.com
     

• BooksCloseouts.com

  1. Buy NEW BOOKS at 50-90% off at BookCloseOuts.com.
     They have bargain books for children as well!
     

• Alibris

  1. FREE Shipping on orders of $49 or more! Eligible books are marked with a “Super Value Shipping truck”.