On a hot summer night, the power goes out. No screens—what’s a family to do? Stargaze, eat ice cream, and enjoy being together.
Explore
Read and Succeed
Use these family reading tools to discuss books with your child.
Family Support Video
Your encouragement and support is key to helping your child be a more confident reader. Watch the video for tipos on supporting your young reader!
Take the Family Quiz
Take the quiz and get tips personalized to your life!
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1. How does reading currently feel in your family?
Your Family is Ready to Gear Up
Your family is juggling a lot. Though it can be stressful to find time for it all, you’re making it work. Your family is ready for an organized reading journey! Here’s how your family can gear up.
Tips
- Plan the habit. Try taking a few minutes tonight to plan in advance for how you will slot reading time into your schedule.
- Include a book in your child’s bedtime routine. Read aloud to your child, or remind them to read a few pages of their book before bed.
- Schedule a library visit in advance for when you’re already out and about. (PS: Many libraries no longer charge fines for overdue books.)
- If you take a train or bus with your child, or wait at a laundromat, bring a book as a fun distraction.
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Prioritize choice. Empower your child to choose their own
books, which is proven to increase reading motivation. Ideas:
- Have your child browse the library shelves and/or share their interests with a librarian.
- Children also enjoy rereading old favorites, which builds comfort, understanding, and vocabulary.
Your Family is Ready to Power Up
Your family are adventurous readers! You read all sorts of stories and texts. This is a great way for your child or children to build background knowledge and vocabulary, so they can continue to succeed as they grow. Here’s how your family can power up.
Tips
- Grow vocabulary. Try modeling for your children the habit of looking up unfamiliar words in the dictionary.
- Read together. Your child benefits from independent reading as well as reading with you. Take turns reading to each other, and discuss books.
- Level up. Encourage your child to complete a “reading challenge” in which they try to meet a goal, such as a number of books read or a checklist of a variety of types of books. You can find reading challenge options online or at your library or school.
Your Family is Ready to Level Up
Your family is ready to thrive as readers. Learning to read takes time. Your support makes a real difference in your child’s reading journey! Here’s how your family can level up.
Tips
- Be positive. Celebrate every step forward your child makes.
- Read together. Take turns reading to each other. Make it cozy and fun—snuggle under the covers or make a blanket fort.
- Support. Talk honestly with your child about reading struggles and why it’s worth continuing. Ask them to brainstorm the benefits.
- Empower. Let your child choose their own books and see you doing the same.
- Practice phonics. Ask your child's teacher how you can support specific reading skills at home.
Family Book Talk
Use the Ask and Share questions to discuss these books with your child.
Self-Awareness
Blackout
My Family Adventure
Sofia is a fantastic problem-solver. With her family’s help, she figures out how to find alost pet and make her abuela’s birthday extra special.
Super Narwhal and Jelly Jolt
Narwhal decides to become a superhero, but what will his superpower be? His friends, Jelly and Star—and even his frenemy, Crab—help him figure it out.
Mommy’s Hometown
When a boy visits his mother’s hometown in Korea, many things have changed, but the river she played in is still the same as in her stories.
Look Up With Me
Real-life astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson fell in love with the stars as a child. Now he shares his passion for outer space with the whole world!
Family Book Talk
Use the Ask and Share questions to discuss these books with your child.
Challenges and Solutions
Don't Throw It to Mo!
Mo loves football, but he rarely gets to play. One day, the coach makes a surprise plan involving Mo. And Mo catches the winning pass for his team!
Exclamation Mark
An exclamation mark feels sad that he doesn’t fit. One day, he realizes that his purpose is making big, exclamatory statements, and he gains new confidence and joy.
The Doctor With an Eye for Eyes
Dr. Patricia Bath dedicated her life to treating blindness. This biography highlights her perseverance, and her invention that helps people across the world improve their eyesight.
Gustavo, the Shy Ghost
Gustavo wants to make a friend, but he’s shy. When he holds a special concert to share his favorite hobby with others, he learns that bravery pays off!
Mango, Abuela, and Me
Mia’s abuela (grandmother) comes to live with her but doesn’t speak English. With the help of a parrot, they learn each other’s languages and develop a deeper relationship.
Family Book Talk
Use the Ask and Share questions to discuss these books with your child.
Exploring With STEM
Make Way for Butterfly
Butterfly’s on a mission to become a VIP—a Very Important Pollinator. They just need to become fuzzier, buzzier, stripier, stickier, and sting-ier. Or do they?!
Jabari Tries
Jabari’s got plans to build a machine that flies. Will it be easy? Jabari’s going to need problem-solving, perseverance, and partnership to get it done!
I Want to Be an Engineer
Visit all of the engineers working together at the construction site! Who knew there were so many ways to be an engineer!?
Layla and the Bots: Happy Paws
Happy Days Amusement Park is set to close. Can Layla and her robots save the park with a “huge and wild idea”—inventing rides for dogs?
Rock Man vs. Weather Man
Come along for the ride as Rock Man and Weather Man face off in a rock-cycle battle royale! Can Rock Man withstand the heat?
Family Reading Tips
Here are some easy, powerful ways to support your child with their reading!
Ask Questions About the Book
- Start conversations by asking open-ended questions rather than questions that have yes or no answers.
- Ask, “How would you feel if you were the main character in this situation, and why?”
- Take turns sharing your thoughts and ideas, too.
- It is important for readers to visualize what they are reading.
- While reading, ask your child to close their eyes and imagine what is happening.
- Ask them to describe what they “see.” After reading, invite your child to draw what they saw!
- Children should be able to give examples from the book to answer a question or to explain an opinion. As you read together:
- Ask your child to describe what a particular character is like.
- Then, ask them to point to specific examples in the book.
Build Skills at Home
- Make books easy to reach and reread at home. Rereading books:
- helps children to understand a book more deeply
- increases vocabulary, and
- adds comfort and ease to reading.
- Try to build in 20 minutes of reading with your child each day. Find a comfy spot, and enjoy this time together!
- Encourage your child to bring along a book anytime! Short moments between running errands or traveling from place to place can add up to a lot of reading.
Encourage and Connect
- When children can see themselves in a story, they connect more deeply to it.
- Look for positive qualities (like bravery and teamwork) while reading or discussing books with your child.
- Remind them of times where they—or you—showed the same qualities.
- When your child is reading:
- Ask questions about their book so they know you are interested.
- Celebrate their efforts! Offer a quick high five or join them in a celebratory dance at the end of a book.
- When reading is challenging for your child:
- Share your own struggles. Talk about a time when you faced challenges.
- Let them know that mistakes are okay, and that this is how we learn.
- Build their confidence by talking about what they have already learned.
- Offer a trip to the library to find books that interest them
Reading Milestones
- If you want more information on how to support your child as a reader, reach out to their teacher. You can ask:
- Is my child reading on grade level?
- What books would be a good fit for my child?
- Is there anything specific we should be working on at home?
- Second-grade readers are learning to figure out the meaning of a difficult sentence or paragraph by rereading it or asking questions. Have your child read aloud to you. This encourages them to practice these skills while also showing you their progress.