Chomping, toothy, and not to trifle with. Sharks have always been a fascinating creature to humans. Take Shark Week‘s popularity for example. So let’s celebrate Shark Week in true RIF fashion—with these “Jawsome” reads!

	National Geographic Kids 5,000 Awesome Facts About Everything is filled with information and facts that will get your kid’s head spinning with delight.
	Still thirsty for more fact-filled Shark books to sink your teeth into? With the award-winning Surprising Sharks you’ll find out why swell sharks blow up like a party balloon, what lantern sharks use their built-in lights for and more!
	Dun dun… dun dun….dun dun… Want a good shark scare? Sea Monsters will be sure to delight and startle so open it today…if you dare!
	Looking for something for the youngest pups to enjoy that won’t give them nightmares, then read Pierre the Penguin and enjoy our activity guides that have been developed by literacy experts at RIF.
	Ping-pong, pie-eating and even burping! Don’t miss the award-winning Shark vs. Train where a wacky showdown between two unstoppable forces takes kids for a wild ride. Add even more adventure with these activities.

You’ll be sure to take your kids reading into the deep end with these awesome reads.

It’s a slippery slope. “Summer Slide” is what we use to describe learning loss for children over the summer – a loss disproportionately affecting underserved children. Researchers put it at two months (if not more) of learning loss. And the effect is cumulative, causing a significant achievement gap between low and middle-income children down the line.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. There’s a solution and RIF is hard at work finding the lowest cost, most scalable solution for the children we serve.

Under the grant we received through the Department of Education’s Innovative Approaches to Literacy program, RIF is giving 20,000 children in 145 schools and 33 school districts tools to help stem – and maybe even reverse – some of the learning loss that they face each summer. And it all starts with books.

Before they leave, students involved in the program will pick out five of their very own books to call their own. They’ll come back and pick up three more. Throughout the summer, their parents will have tools to resources at school and activities to keep the books fresh and engaging for kids.

The project should yield both qualitative and quantitative research, so we’ll have an in-depth analysis in the fall about the effect on the kids’ learning gains.

In addition, we’re giving each of the classrooms in the 145 schools – and every library or media center in the school – their very own Multicultural Book Collection, along with activities for teachers, parents, and RIF coordinators to keep kids learning throughout these critical summer months.

But you don’t have to wait for the results. We know from research already done that simply reading with the children in your life – and making sure they have books at their fingertips – is a key way to help children retain learning.

Want ideas on how to keep the reading going at home? Here are some simple tips:

• Visit. Head to the library and sign your kid up for a library card if they don’t already have one. In addition to a wide selection of books to borrow, many libraries have free, child-friendly summer reading programs. Going to a baseball game? Read a book about baseball before you head off to that double-header.
• Lead. Kids look up to you, so lead by example. Read the newspaper at breakfast, pick up a magazine at the doctor’s office, and stuff a paperback in your beach bag. If kids see the adults around them reading often, they will understand that all types of reading can be an important part of their summer days. Storybooks aren’t the only thing that kids can read. Be prepared and keep all kinds of reading material on hand that might spark the interest of a young reader.
• Talk. Talking with your kids about what you have read also lets them know that reading is an important part of your life. Tell them why you liked a book, what you learned from it, or how it helped you—soon they might start doing the same. Going camping? Have your kids tell stories to their friends.
• Relax. Reading is supposed to be fun. So relax. Don’t set daily minute requirements or determine the number of pages they should read. Instead, make sure they pick up books that appeal to them and help find ways for them to choose to read on their own.

For more summer fun, use our summer reading activity sheet.

Photo Source: read4thefunofit 

Earth Day is a wonderful opportunity to pass along important values and set an example for little ones in your life.

So how do you teach kids about Mother Earth and what they can do to help her?  Start with a book.

We’ve got your nature lovers covered with a selection from our topical Multicultural Book Collection. “We’re Roaming in the Rainforest,” “10 Things I Can Do to Help My World” and “National Geographic: Little Kids First Big Book of Animals” are all great green books with exciting activity ideas to keep kids interested and involved.

Need more Earth Day ideas? Check out our Pinterest Earth Day Activities board to get some “pinspiration.”

This year’s week to unplug – April 29 to May 5 – is the perfect opportunity to put down the remote and pick up a book.

Kids are naturally creative. But if you have a child and are worried they’ll not make it a day, here are some ideas:

• Have kids act out their favorite books – or movies – to an audience of parents
• Grab some old sheets and build reading forts
• Set them up with materials to write and illustrate their own books
• Get outside!
• Take advantage of free resources for kids in your community – story time at the library?

These authors and illustrators agree that this week is important. Watch their inspirational message about why they think your kid should unplug and read.

Still not sure they’ll make it a full week? Here are some more ideas to get your kid moving.

Photo Source: speedye 

Rainbows. Shamrocks. Green Eggs and Ham.

Ahh, memories of St. Patrick’s Day as a child. My mom used to make me green eggs (scrambled) and ham for breakfast. We’d read the classic Dr. Seuss tale together.

In the backyard, I’d look for lucky four-leaf clovers and search the sky for rainbows, in hopes of chasing down a pot of gold.

Our neighbor would even create a treasure hunt for the kids, usually involving chocolate coins as a reward for deciphering poetic clues.

From writing limericks to learning Irish songs (Molly Malone, anybody? ), our St. Patrick’s Day celebrations were packed with activities – and almost all of them involved reading.

Anybody have plans for a reading-filled holiday this weekend?

Need more ideas? Try some ideas from our free spring activity guide.

Photo Source: Dana Deaton

Bugs, flowers and puddles.

They’re definitely signs of spring, but they’re also a great way to get a child more engaged in reading.

Use our free activity guide for ideas on how to make spring a time of growth for your reluctant reader.

Have other ideas? Post them in the comments section to share with others.

And don’t forget to download our March activity calendars for ages birth to 5 years (in English and Spanish) as well as 6 to 15 years (in English and Spanish) for more seasonal fun.

The kids at Savoy Elementary are doing great — despite several interruptions by one spotlight-hogging Moose.  

Moose was joined by Caldecott-winning illustrator Paul O. Zelinsky, who read and drew for the children from his hit “Z is for Moose,” written by Kelly Bingham.

The event was made possible thanks to a partnership between Reading Is Fundamental and the Junior League of Washington. After the reading, the children all got to choose their own, free book to take home before the holidays.

In fact, thanks to the partnership, more than 6,500 children at 20 other D.C. Public Schools will be receiving books this December. They’ll also get special activity pages to take home.

Each of the schools will also receive RIF’s Multicultural Book Collection, featuring “Z is for Moose” and 39 other titles with Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Math themes.

Educators and parents can download free activity pages — developed in line with Common Core Standards  — for each title to help extend the learning experience. By the end of the school year, the children at Savoy will each have five new books of their own.

Through JLW’s Resolution Read program, 100,000 books will be distributed to children in Washington, D.C., honoring the organization’s 100th anniversary.

For more a behind-the-scenes look at the Savoy event, check out RIF’s photo album on Flickr.