Carson High, CMS and EVMS middle schools’ offer Summer Reading Challenge

CARSON CITY — With the close of another successful school year, the last thing educators want to happen is for students to lose those skills and knowledge over the summer.

To help, Carson High School, Carson Middle School and Eagle Valley Middle School will host a Summer Reading Challenge, where students and staff are encouraged and incentivized to read between June 1 and August 15, 2023.

The focus isn't a full-fledged competition between the schools but rather encourages learners to spend some time reading this summer. To participate, middle school students are encouraged to use bookmarks (pictured here and available at all three libraries and at the front offices of the schools) to track how many pages they read and earn one prize drawing entry per 1,000 pages read. Link to the CHS' version of the bookmark (almost identical).

Details about the summer reading challenge:

— The challenge runs June 1 - August 15.

— Students track how many pages they read and earn one prize drawing entry per 1,000 pages read.

— In addition, students earn entries for:

— Reading a book about someone different than them
— Reading a book recommended by a friend
— Reading a nonfiction book
— Read a book they own, but haven't read yet
— Reading a book in a genre they don't normally read
— Participating in the public library's summer reading program

"Literacy skills are paramount for kids to grow both academically and emotionally and the research has shown us, time and time again, that reading over the summer helps students in the following school year,” said Carson Middle School Librarian Mirjam Caster. “This is even more important given the recent research around how school disruptions, caused by the pandemic, have millions of children playing catch up, and because children’s participation in competing priorities only grows as they age."

The goal of this summer reading challenge is to encourage students to read over the summer, thus strengthening their reading skills rather than having them experience the "summer slide," she continued.

Students are encouraged to check out books from the Carson City Public Library as well as from the online school catalog and SORA. The CMS library is also open on June 12, 8-11 a.m. and Aug. 1, 12-3 p.m. All current CMS students as well as incoming sixth graders are welcome to come check out books for their summer reading.

All reading counts: audiobooks (students simply record # of pages per book), graphic novels, manga, comics, etc.

The bookmarks have been handed out to current students and to incoming sixth graders. Summer reading challenge bookmarks will be turned in to the librarians at the start of school in the fall.

There will be rewards for the top readers in each grade level as well as a prize drawing. Prizes include certificates for Defy Trampoline Park, gift cards, free entry to the Carson City pool and much more.

The elementary schools are also encouraging students to read over the summer with a variety of literary activities.

Summer reading has many benefits:

— Improving Reading Skills: Phonics, Fluency, Spelling, Comprehension, Vocabulary
— Improving Self-Esteem
— Neutralizing Summer Learning Loss
— Improving Comprehension
— Improving Memory Skills
— Building background knowledge
— Inspiring a love of reading
— Encouraging reading as a lifelong habit

Summer is also a time for students to choose books they enjoy reading and read for fun without the expectation of completing assignments or worrying about grades.

Here are some suggestions for including your entire family in the summer reading fun:

— Choose a book for a family book club with everyone committing to reading and talking about the book over the summer

— Set aside time to all sit down and read together

— Offer to read out loud to your child

— Choose audiobooks to listen to in the car together

— Go to the library and/or the bookstore as a family