While teens have a million excuses for not reading in the summer, a fun way to get your teenage child to read is to mutually choose a book to read together. When mom or dad reads the same book and can talk about the book with their teen, interest is often much greater in reading. Discuss the kinds of genre you both enjoy and then take a trip together to the book store to find a book that you both would enjoy reading and discussing. Develop a time line for reading the chapters and then set specific times to meet to discuss the book together over a cool summer beverage of choice. Take turns highlighting passages you liked or descriptions in the book that you found particularity interesting or vivid. Be sure to share your predictions and “I wonder” questions with your teen as well as you discuss the plot and action of the book. You both will enjoy the book a lot more and you just may learn more about one another in the process.
