How to Use 100 Days of Summer Reading

[MBentley]

I came to MP just this school year. I tried to save money by getting the package elsewhere and that has burned more - more than once! I don't need to learn that lesson twice!

Anyways, I started my 1st grader on his literature in the summer of last year. He's nearly completed all of it, even if we haven't finished the other subjects. I'm trying to figure out if I should just push ahead with 2nd grade literature or allow him the maturity time of a few more months. The writing is much more intensive in the study guides and having another 3-4 months may be a good thing to do.

Looking at the other options, there is this book for 100 days of Summer Reading. The sample provided is nothing but a blank page and I can't really get a sense what this book is all about. I don't know what the exercises look like, what the reading expectation is, or what degree of questions are asked. I don't see a teacher guide for it either or any guidance as how to administer this book.

The other option is the early readers series. Those look cute, but do they have any kind of workbook to go with them? I really don't want to lose that "workbook" guide practice that we've worked so hard to build. I love the study guides. The deep-dive really makes a huge difference for my boys.

Or is my earlier idea the best - just push ahead with 2nd grade literature? It may give us some leeway time because he's going to be doing some 3rd grade work with his brother (LC and Bible and Math) and with that extra load, maybe this would give us some time cushion.

This is random, but I tried to do the Little House Christmas books this year and unfortunately, my boys didn't have a lot of connection to the characters. Literally, they seemed to be waiting for me to finish reading without any real impact. I didn't either, for that matter as I had never read the stories. Now that I'm in the middle of Little House in the Big Woods with my current 2nd grader, I am building a "rapport" with this series and I am re-sorting the Christmas reading so that my oldest will read these Christmas stories after the first Little House In the Big Woods. We may be reading them in the middle of July, but I would rather he care about these characters and the developments in their lives, even if our seasons are out of order. Like I said. Random.

[enbateau]

You're not the only one who has NEVER read Little House books until MP. My daughter sort of liked the picture books from MP1, but once we started doing the guide, that's when the fascination took off. All of the supplemental/bonus activities sent us on countless library and YouTube hunts for early American lifestyles. A great book we came across was Diary of an Early American Boy by Eric Sloane. We have read this with relish! You can get it on thriftbooks. MP now recommends Eric Sloane's ABC Book of Early Americana. It is great as well, but for your boys, I recommend the former.

I've looked through 100 Days of Reading and I'm pretty sure it's cute booklet designed for kids to write something like one main idea or topic sentence about each of the 100 books they read over summer. It's probably great preparation for next year.

Let me put in my 2 cents for summer. Do it. Take it. You're not playing catch up. Everyone is in the core for fall that you want them to be. Enjoy it. I'm spent. We had some catch up to do last summer, but now I am taking a full 3.5 months off. When I say off, I mean we will still do 10 min of math a day and 15 min of mixed recitation. I have a compilation of Latin, scripture and general recitation from MP2 to review all summer, particularly the ones that will help us with CS1 and LC. I'm also going to read the novel read alouds to my kids in the evening before bed.

Other than that, we'll be at the pool nearly daily. We have 3 memberships to the zoo, gardens and a science discovery museum that we'll rotate through. We also plan to travel, see historical sites and hit up some new art museums. You may not know this, but even that level of unscheduled summer is disappearing.

[Sugarbelle]

I don't know anything about 100 Days of Summer Reading, but I have a feeling your boys will grow to want more of the Little House books as you continue to read them. I've read them over the years and my 5th grade son wants me to keep reading them. We are currently in the fifth book. I asked him if he wanted me to read something else and he gave me a definitive, "NO".

[Michael]

Looking at the other options, there is this book for 100 days of Summer Reading. ... I can't really get a sense what this book is all about. I don't know what the exercises look like, what the reading expectation is, or what degree of questions are asked. I don't see a teacher guide for it either or any guidance as how to administer this book.

I've looked through 100 Days of Reading and I'm pretty sure it's cute booklet designed for kids to write something like one main idea or topic sentence about each of the 100 books they read over summer. It's probably great preparation for next year.

Good afternoon,

Yes, 100 Days of Summer Reading is essentially a themed composition & sketchbook, with lines to write and spaces to draw. There is a page for each of the 100 days, and what the student writes will vary depending on his age. For example, a Kindergartner may just copy the book's title and author. (The books they read can usually be completed in one day.) A first- or second-grade child, whose chapter books may take multiple days, could write a sentence or two about what happened in the pages they read that day. Other suggestions and additional directions are included in a half-page "How to Use This Book" section. at the beginning of each book. Does that help? If not, please follow-up with additional questions!

[MBentley]

But what or where are the books that this is referencing? What chapter books? Is there a list for this for each grade?

[enbateau]

You can search this forum for Martin Cothran's reading list/book list. I've downloaded it before with appropriate suggested grade levels. There definitely weren't 100 per grade. Tanya mentioned in a previous post on the book (which got rave reviews) that the K version has a suggested reading list, but Books II-III do not (as tastes obviously vary).

[Heathersaysyeah]

I found the book list links on the main site under the Contact Us tab, Knowledge Base, then scroll down to the bottom.

[Michael]

But what or where are the books that this is referencing? What chapter books? Is there a list for this for each grade?

Good afternoon Melissa,

100 Days of Summer Reading Book One does include a list of book in the appendix. For Books Two and Three (1st and 2nd grade) we do not provide a specific list within the book so you can choose from family favorites or use a list such as the Highlands Latin School Supplemental Reading Lists.