Read-o-mania

We stopped by the public library yesterday and signed up for Summer Read. Both kids were given a Summer Reading Club Reading Log, which is a large sheet of paper with shelves full of books drawn all over it. For every 20 minutes they read or are read to, they are to color in a book on the shelf. They get little prizes at 280 minutes, 700 minutes and 1,300 minutes.

Ever since we left the library they've been reading maniacs (and yes, it started as soon as they got in the car on the way home).

KidV1 has been reading a fictional story about the cotton mills, Trouble at the Mill, which she reviewed for me by announcing, "Mommy, you can't be mad at me about reading drivel when I'm reading this because I've learned more about the mills reading this than I ever did in (SOTW) history ... I think in history I was trying to not pay attention." I got an unsolicited review of not only the book in hand, but SOTW. Hmm.

Mr.V has been reading Racso and the Rats of NIMH as the evening read aloud, so THAT COUNTS. Woohoo.

Morning read aloud has been Eight Cousins. Alas, this didn't last 20 minutes, so I also threw in a chapter from Tales of Tiptoes Lightly . I had meant to read this to KidV2 a few months ago, but it was a victim of The Move -- I couldn't find it. The other day I was looking for another book and found it in my nightstand. Why did I put it there? Gees, no wonder I couldn't find it. So, I stuck it next to its companions by the same author.

Of course, a chapter of Tiptoes Lightly only takes a minute, so we needed still more. I picked up Kevin Crossley-Holland's The Norse Myths . KidV1 had been asking to read some Norse mythology. I associate them with snow, and sort of wanted to wait until winter to read them, but I think she might be onto something here -- we entered a world of "rivers turned into ice", and it was sort of nice to look up from the book and realize that it's actually sunny and hot. We had quite a discussion about the phrase "an unending dismal hagger", as we didn't know what "hagger" meant, but puzzled it out from the context (I tipped them off to "rime" as I read it, so that helped with "hagger").

KidV2's solo reading has been simple picture books, as that's all she can manage. I did read a Junie B. Jones book to her. Coincidentally, there's yet another thread in the MDC Homeschool forums about how awful Junie B. Jones books are. I think they're a hoot. And if we sandwich them in between Alcott and Norse Myths, they're sort of like that bit of junk food you slip in every so often in the midst of your organic, balanced diet. Phooey on the nay-sayers.

I had intentions of noting all the books we've read over the past 24 hours. Really, I can't remember. Suffice to say that KidV1 has almost reached the 280 minute mark already. I suspect that if I went upstairs right now I'd find an unmade bed and clothes thrown all over her room, but she HAS managed to eat, sleep, bathe, and wash the breakfast dishes.

I wonder if it will occur to her that reading the RightStart Geometry book counts as READING.