12 Months OF Family Fun
For kids who struggle with reading, how can parents encourage them? Williamson: Many of our libraries have children reading to dogs programs. At our Midwest City library, we had a child who had a stutter and was really self-conscious about reading out loud, but the dogs are nonjudgmental. He came to the program every other week for almost two years. I ran into his mom who told me they didn’t need to come anymore because his reading had improved so much he’d increased his reading level at school, improved his self-confidence and gotten involved in other after-school activities. People also forget that audio books are really great resources. It uses the same parts of your brain as when you are reading. It’s not like you are cheating! And it’s a good way for families to share books together, in the car or at home while cooking dinner. The library has apps where you can download ebooks and audio books.
How can books be a good way to inspire conversation, especially among harder-to-reach teens? Sauer: When my daughter was in seventh grade she was really busy with other things and I was sad she wasn’t showing a love of reading like she previously had. I knew I just had to find the right book for her, so I gave her The Hunger Games and told her just to read the first chapter. She was back to being hooked on reading! She wanted to read the others, then other books like it. Her friends saw her reading them and she shared the books with them. If you’re reading the same book, too, later on you get to talk about it. It’s just like when you’re watching a TV series separately and you have that built-in conversation piece. For our authors’ favorite books for little ones, elementary kids and tweens and teens, visit metrofamilymagazine.com/lets-read.
Oklahoma City Venture Pass
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ONE OF AUTHOR TAMMI SAUER’S FAVORITE PARTS OF HER JOB IS VISITING SCHOOLS TO READ TO KIDS.
*Available with Venture Prime-Pass.
Save the Date for Read Across Oklahoma! April 7, Oklahoma City Zoo & Botanical Garden Read Across Oklahoma is held each year to celebrate literacy and encourage reading, thanks to a collaboration between the Oklahoma Department of Libraries and the OKC Zoo. This year’s theme, Wordy Wise, is inspired by Tammi Sauer’s book Wordy Birdy , and Sauer will be on hand to read the tale of a very chatty bird who learns the importance of listening and discovers that good friends stick with you through thick and thin. The event will feature special activity stations and performances throughout the zoo, and the first 1,000 children through the gate will receive a free book. Read Across Oklahoma is free with zoo admission.
As low as $59.95
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Details online at www.myventurepass.com Venues & offers subject to change. FUNDRAISING OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE
METROFAMILYMAGAZINE.COM / MARCH 2020 9
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