Reading app takes page from teachers’ book
This week school is out and summer is in. But while kids are enjoying beach days and bike rides, it’s important that they continue reading to stave off the summer learning loss that could wipe out as much as three months of what they’ve learned during the school year.
The new Summer Smart Reading Challenge builds excitement about reading and helps prevent summer learning loss. Created as a partnership between the technology startup Readocity and the nonprofit organization Mass Literacy, the challenge harnesses the latest tech and awardwinning books to keep kids reading all summer long.
The challenge is free and open to all students entering grades K-12. Parents sign up online and download the free Readocity app to participate. The app allows families to set reading goals, track progress and access award-winning book recommendations.
Plus, the child who reads the most will be named the Summer Smart Reading Champion and will be featured in the Boston Herald. All students who meet their goals will be listed as Summer Reading Stars.
Littleton resident Queen Allotey-Pappoe used Readocity with her son, Shmuel, last summer to help her find books that matched her son’s interests.
“One of the things that we really loved was that it could recommend ageappropriate material for some of the books that we had never heard of before,” she said.
Allotey-Pappoe also said the app got her son reading more.
“Having a goal of reading and having an app that helps with that, I feel that it also helped to put more reading into that summer than we would have otherwise done.”
And reading more is exactly what Mass Literacy and Readocity hope kids will do through this challenge.
Vidya Joshi, founder and CEO of Readocity, said it’s critical for kids to read during the summer.
“We have enough research to show that the single activity of reading helps our brain develop in multiple areas such as concentration, problem solving, communication and vocabulary” Joshi said. “Ten weeks of summer vacation without reading is a long time to deprive young brains of these benefits.”
The challenge runs through Aug. 31. For an optional $5 donation to Mass Literacy, families will be upgraded from receiving automated book recommendations to hand-picked recommendations made by Readocity experts. Sign up today at readocity.com/ summersmart.