September Stories - It's 'Read A New Book Month'!

Did you know September is 'Read a New Book Month'? It is an ideal opportunity to curl up on the sofa with a good book as the nights start to get darker earlier. To me, read a new book doesn't necessarily mean jumping online to order the latest and greatest title or even hot-footing it down to the local bookstore, although these are also very good options! So how could you join in to mark the occasion?

The local library is a favourite haunt of my kids. With the rise in popularity of the musical 'Hamilton', my youngest daughter has developed a slight obsession with the Schuyler sisters and all things Americal Revolution. Not missing an opportunity to encourage reading, the last few visits to the library have meant we now have a mini-history buff in the making in our house. The librarian is even ordering in books from across the county for her to borrow. Now, that is keen! Making use of the digital resources available to her with a tutor mother, she has also devoured most of the American history books on the excellent www.kidsa-z.com site!

On 18th September it was Read an Ebook Day. This idea really appeals to me. I am an avid fan of my Kindle. It is my instant library in one easy-to-carry device. It goes with me to the beach, in the car to read in spare moments waiting as 'Mum's Taxi' and by my bed at night. Precious moments are stolen to read in peace whenever the opportunity arises. This is where I can read trashy novels without anyone ever finding out, which makes a very welcome break from all of the academic reading I do in my coursework.

So, how can we encourage our kids to read more in September? In addition to the marvellous local libraries we are fortunate to have, there are many really good free books online for children to access. I put together a collection of my favourite free sites in another blog post. To explore them, click here.

Read a New Book month also gives us the perfect excuse to explore new authors or genres. Why not explore something that you might normally not choose? Is there an author that might appeal to you but you've never read any of their work? Perhaps there is a certain genre that you never choose to read. If you normally read crime fiction, perhaps you might try dipping into something totally different, like romantic novels! Make it your family's mission to pick up a book or two this month and fall in love with reading again!

And, by the way, if your child needs help with reading, Emerald Education Centre can help!

Emerald Education Centre offers online tuition and in-person lessons at our centre in Bundoran, Donegal. For more information about how we can help YOUR child, please do get in touch with Elaine Lingard at elaine@emeraldeducationcentrebundoran.com, check out our Facebook page or visit our website.