Power Up & Read: Summer Reading Challenge 2015 #SummerReading

This Summer Reading post is sponsored by Scholastic, but all thoughts are my own.

This past week has been HOT. It feels like summer is here already, even though we still have 4 1/2 weeks of school left before summer vacation officially begins. I’ve been a mom of kids in school long enough, though, to know that this next month is going to FLY by, and pretty soon we’ll be in the middle of swim meets and sunscreen, no alarms in the morning, and flip flops and shorts.

This summer is going to be another adventurous one for us. We had such a great time on our cross-country road trip last year that we’ve decided to do it all over again this July. Our route will be different, taking us to places like Kentucky and New Orleans and the Grand Canyon, and we won’t be hauling the contents of our oldest daughter’s college dorm in the back, either.

Since I don’t have quite as much pressure this time around (getting my oldest daughter ready to head off to college across the country was a pretty big deal!) I’m excited to be able to focus a little more on the fun and adventures we can have on our Epic Family Road Trip, Part Deux.

One of the main additions to this year’s road trip is going to be a ton of books (both physical and digital) because we have an exciting little family challenge. I’ve challenged the family to read a collective 5000 pages before the summer is over. If you just count the 6 of us that will be on the road trip, that’s about 833 pages per person.

We can totally do that!

Our family goal is inspired by the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge – a free online reading program for children. Anyone can join the challenge (and I hope you will!) and work towards setting a new reading world record for Summer 2015!

Last fall I wrote a post about how to get kids excited about reading, because – to my surprise – not every child is born with a love of reading like I was (or was I just trained that way? I’ll never know!). One of the tips I mentioned was keeping a reading log, and this summer, we’re excited to use free printable reading logs and other resources (like reading lists and more) from Scholastic.

One tip that I failed to mention when I wrote the post back in September was to always keep a book handy, especially when leaving the house. My boys will not get in the car without having a book in hand, and that makes me so happy! You never know when you’ll have a few extra minutes to “kill” – and having a book to read is the perfect way to not let a few extra minutes go to waste.

Road trips are an even MORE perfect time for bringing books along, since there’s only so much to be done when driving for hours and hours on end (provided you’re not the one doing the driving…). This year, I’m going to pack a few audio books as well and enjoy a few books as a family – driver included.

Scholastic and Energizer Challenge Kids to “Power Up & Read” This Summer!

This year’s Summer Reading Challenge theme is “Power Up & Read,” which not only encourages kids to read all summer long, but it also gives kids the chance to unlock 12 original short stories by bestselling children’s authors as they reach reading milestones.

This year, Scholastic has partnered with ENERGIZER® to “power up” the Summer Reading Challenge, and they’re encouraging families to find new and unique ways to discover the power and joy of reading. Parents can sign up kids NOW through September 4, 2015.

How to Inspire Kids to “Power Up & Read”

Scholastic is kicking off the Summer Reading Challenge with parenting expert, Maggie McGuire (VP of Scholastic Parents Channel – Scholastic.com), who has provided tips and book choices for all ages. Here are a few of the types of tips from Maggie:

Find books that makes kids laugh
Introduce kids to STEM and science through reading
Ways to get crafty with your kid’s favorite summer reads
Tips for reading-on-the-go during summer vacation
Rainy day reading activities

Since we’ll be on-the-go this summer, I was happy to find several travel/road trip reading tips from Scholastic. These will come in really handy as our family reads across the country!

“On-the-Go” Summer Reading Resources from Scholastic Parents:

Enter the Energizer® Instant Win Game

As you and your kids get ready to “Power up & read this summer, be sure to enter the Energizer® Instant Win Game, which is going on now! As of May 4, 2015, parents can buy any specially marked pack of Energizer® brand batteries to scratch for a chance to win one of thousands of prizes that will power discovery and learning.

Prizes include a family trip to New York City, a Scholastic Study Corner Makeover, a tablet with Scholastic apps, a library of Scholastic books and more! Everyone who plays can also download free digital stories for their family. Get details and enter here!

So how is your family going to “power up and read” this summer? What are your plans, and what books are on your lists?

Connect with Scholastic and Energizer®:

Sign up for the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge
Find more Scholastic Resources to keep your kids reading all summer long!
Learn more about the Energizer® Instant Win Game
Follow @Scholastic on Twitter
Like the Energizer® Bunny on Facebook

About Lolli

Lolli has written 3740 post in this blog.

I became a mom in 1996, and in 2005 I had my fifth. Yes, 5 kids. In 2007, this blog was born (my 6th baby that will never grow up) and I've been sharing recipes, photography tricks, parenting tips, and everything in between. (Formerly Better in Bulk)