For over a hundred years, the long Summer break has been much-debated part of the academic year. We know a lot of you have been juggling the summer vacation already for weeks but every school has closed now for the summer break with final UK schools closing on Friday 22nd July.

And my, what a break it is. There are tons of myths around the reasoning for the long break. One popular idea is that school children have a long summer holiday so that they could help work the fields over the summer but the current system was developed at a time when English farms were increasingly mechanised and having children helping with the harvest would not have been necessary for the majority. And of course, this timing wouldn't have been much use help bringing in the harvest in Autumn! 

Whatever the reason, the children have these six weeks off and we know the juggle is real. There is often much contention surrounding the school holidays, even though they are a staple of school kids around the world. 

To further fuel the challenges of the parental juggle, it has been reported that children lose up to 40% of the gains they have made over the school year while on summer break, according to a 2020 study.

The ‘summer slide’, or ‘summer learning loss’, reversing some of the progress students have made over the year, is a well-known effect of the summer break.

Whatever you have planned, enjoy your precious time together but remember there are tons of things to keep them off those screens, and in particular plenty of books to allow them to escape into another world.

Here are a few ideas:

Visit your local library

Bursting with brilliant books and captivating stories, they're free (hurrah) and with tons of options including physical books, audiobooks, ebooks and events now back on the agenda too, it's a great way to get kids excited about reading.

Go to the Gov website to check out your local library and find out about their facilities.

Visit your local bookstore

Our local bookshops have been closed for much of this year and it's been really tough for them. If you can, pop into your local shop and browse 'til your heart's content. If the kids find it overwhelming choosing books with SO much to choose from, don't forget LoveReading4Kids is here for exactly that.

Search for your next favourite book first before you go. At LoveReading4Kids it's our job to read and review to help curate a fabulous list of book recommendations for every age range. We do it week in week out all year round, and it's our absolute pleasure. You can search by age range and by genre and whether fiction is their bag or they love non-fiction, there is something for absolutely everyone. We always say a reluctant reader is a child who hasn't found the right book for them yet!

Try before you buy (or rent)

In addition, you can read extracts so that you can try before you buy (or rent) and from there you can save the books to the child's wishlist so that you'll be fully prepared for your next visit to the library or the bookshop.

Or for birthday and Christmas present suggestions! This wishlist can be shared with family and friends at the click of a button.

Summer Reading Recommendations

We have beach reads, back garden reads and brilliant bedtime reads as part of our Summer Reading Recommendations. We've lots of fascinating non-fiction titles to keep your young ones interested...and kids always love an activity book...perfect to keep them occupied on a long journey.

Visit our Kids Zone

Head over to our Kids Zone, an area just for them, with tons of bookish content. With videos to watch, activities to download and quizzes to take part in, dive in and further foster that love of reading with these fun activities.

Books to Motivate Reading

Here at LoveReading4Kids, we want to ensure that every child, however sceptical or unconfident he or she is, is given the chance to become a voracious reader. From action-packed adventures to laugh-out-loud comedies, we have a specially chosen page-turners to help tempt even the most reluctant reader in.

Get Creative

In fact if they love writing too, they really should check out our Get Creative series. Tons of great ideas for keeping kids inspired - we particularly love the Boredom-busting Five-minute Frenzies activity - a sure-fire winner and part of our Five Flash Fiction Activities feature. Get that pencil at the ready and get creating!

Have a fabulous Summer, and fingers crossed the weather is kind to us all.