Every year, Barnes and Noble hosts a summer reading program for elementary students, and the 2011 program starts on May 24, 2011. Students who are in 1st through 6th grade can participate in the free program, and the reward for reading 8 books is a free book. There are resources for parents and teachers to use over the summer and into the school year with young readers.
Imagination's Destination: The 2011 Summer Reading Program
There are some changes to this year's reading reward program. In the past, children could turn in two reading sheets and get two free books at the end of the summer. The 2011 program will only let students use one reading sheet. Also, the program is not connected to a book series. In 2009 and 2010, the summer programs wove Rick Riordan and his Percy Jackson books (2009) and 39 Clues (2010) into the into the reading journal and supplemental activities. Rick Riordan also visited some Barnes and Noble stores. This year, the Imagination Destination theme does not have a specific author attached to the reading resources.
Kids can read any 8 books of their choosing and list them on the summer journal. Parents can print the summer reading log at home or pick one up in the children's section of Barnes and Noble bookstores. It does not matter if books are on grade level or reading level; kids can read above their reading levels. Unlike Accelerated Reader, there is not a set list of books that students can choose from or tests to take; students just write down the book, the author, and a statement about the book in their journals. When they turn the journals in at Barnes and Noble,they can choose a free book from the list on their Imagination's Destination reading sheets.
Enrichment Activities in the Imagination's Destination Summer Reading Program
In addition to the main activity of reading, Barnes and Noble offers some activities that can provide enrichment to gifted readers. The Imagination's Destination Parent Activity Kit has four worksheets. There are a few higher-level thinking questions such as identifying writing styles, differentiating between fiction and non-fiction, and comparing characters to real people. The activities in the Parent Activity Kit are not turned in to Barnes and Noble.
The Imagination's Destination Educator's Kit has the same activities for kids that the parent resources have, but there is a page with bonus projects that could be done in the classroom. For example, one activity is "Mapping Your Story," which is a free-write, free-draw activity where kids map out connections between stories and their lives. The bonus activity is to make an About Me collage, which could be a fun end-of-school activity. The Educator's Kit includes the reading logs, so they can be copied and handed out to students.
The Barnes and Noble Summer Reading Program seems a little less intensive this year than in previous years, but the free books they offer are diverse, popular titles. This is the first time that the program has offered the prize winning Nook ebook reader. The reading log must be turned in by September 6, 2011. In previous years, the free books were only available until they ran out, so kids may have more choices if they turn the book lists in earlier in the summer.
Sources
Barnes and Noble emailed the announcement of the 2011 summer reading program and program dates in "Barnes & Noble Launches 15th Annual Summer Reading Program – Imagination's Destination" on May 24, 2011.
Alex Sharp - Alex Sharp is a teacher who has been keeping Suite101 readers up to date with the latest in audio- and e-book gadgetry since 2008.
