Iowa parents need to lure their kids into hitting the books this summer, not necessarily for schoolwork, but for fun. Lucille Lettow, youth collection librarian at the University of Northern Iowa, says plenty of “life experiences” happen during the summer which are important to reading.She says kids relate to books better if they’ve had some of the same experiences.Lettow says it’s easier for parents to talk with their children about what the kids have read if a reading record or book log is kept.While reading is a valuable and enjoyable pastime, Lettow says some children may need a little more encouragement, or a bribe, to sit down with a book for an hour. She says you could set up an account in which the child earns money each time they read a book. They can later use the money they’ve earned to buy a new book.She encourages Iowans to use the nearest public library as it can open new doors and opportunities for children — and it will likely also have a summer reading program for the kids.
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