Connecting Our Readers All Summer Long With Mackin's New "I Want To Read" Website!

We look out our windows and many of us see snow, ice, chilly air, and all that the winter brings us.  

But that doesn't mean that the end of the school year is closer than we think.  

With that comes one of my favorite times of the year.....Summer.  I love it because I get to spend lots of time with Hagan and my family.  I also love it because along with the summer comes....

Summer Reading!  

There is no better way to connect with your school community and all of the wonderful children in your libraries and classrooms during the summer.   It is the perfect way to keep your reading and writing skills sharp while having fun imagining, exploring, and dreaming through books.

I am especially excited about this summer as Mackin has created a brand new place for summer reading called....

 I Want To Read.  

I Want To Read is a place where kids and parents can read and engage with several books assigned to their grade level, K through 5th grade.

To get started, they can go to the I Want To Read website and choose their grade level.

They then choose a book they want to read within their grade level.

I choose the Kindergarten Summer Book List.....

and Goodnight, Gorilla.  

I love how they can get a few other suggestions for new books to read under each title.  This will encourage more and more reading too. 

After they have read the book by themselves or with someone else they can rate and review that specific title.  

They start by telling who they are.....just a first name and school. 

Next they think about how they feel about the book and give it a rating by clicking on that star. 

Lastly, they create their own review by dragging 3-10 words into the box.

I love this feature!  It will be so easy for any child to review a book whatever their age.

After they have all three steps complete, they submit the rating and review by the red button at the bottom.

Their rating and review will come up on the website with the other students who have visited that book too.  

This will be really fun and meaningful for our youngest readers.

To continue with other reading and writing experiences throughout the summer, the adorable Summer Reading Journal can be...

downloaded from the site.

There are so many ways for them to connect with reading and writing.

 And the Reading Log will challenge them to read as many books as they can throughout the summer.

Each book also contains an Activity Guide that can be downloaded easily as well.  

These activities to Discuss, Create, Imagine, and Explore are wonderful extensions to extend learning.

As you think towards summer too, check out the I Want To Read website and share it with your students and children too.