It’s still valuable to read to children even when they’re independent readers: it shows them that books are worth an adult’s attention, and that it can be a fun, shared activity.
- Audiobooks are fantastic, especially on car journeys.
- Encourage children to join the Summer Reading Challenge or the Winter Reading Challenge at the library.
- When you’re reading together, stop on a cliffhanger so that they want to read on! Give them a slightly later bedtime to finish a chapter if they are reading solo.
Information about The Summer Reading Challenge, run by The Reading Agency.
Monthly Inspiration from BookTrust on what to read for this age group:
And Now We Run
by Nicola Penfold
Jelly is dreading the school trip. What should have been the highlight of Year Seven – a week in Yorkshire spent canoeing, caving and abseiling – has turned into a nightmare since BFF Mikala turned against her.
Lincoln is on the same trip but is looking forward to it. Although he doesn’t fit in, he has happy memories of the area and would be having fun if it would just stop raining. When the extreme weather causes catastrophic flooding, both Jelly and Lincoln get separated from their group and left behind when the others are evacuated. This exciting adventure has many moments of jeopardy which require all the courage and resourcefulness Jelly and Lincoln can muster if they are to save themselves.
