The U.S. Department of Education took to social media to promote summer reading. Its #ReadWhereYouAre campaign is encouraging people to share photos of themselves while reading.
Ed Week reported that the Education Department's #ReadWhereYouAre campaign is an annual call to action that wants young people to do more reading outside of school. The project is under President Obama's two-year-old My Brother's Keeper initiative, which aims to improve educational and career opportunities for young men of color.
"On the bus, on the train, at the park, on your couch," the U.S. Department of Education tweeted, "On 8/5 show the world your fave reading spot! #ReadWhereYouAre"
The official website of the campaign cited research that revealed how summer learning loss hurts low-income students. Apparently, by eighth grade, the lost learning time takes up to two-thirds of the achievement gap between low-income students and their more well-to-do peers.
"It's #ReadWhereYouAre day!" Education Department press secretary Dorie Turner Nolt posted on Twitter. "Get a book, and get to reading!"
There were a lot of people who supported the campaign by posting their photos. Education secretary John King also tweeted a picture of himself while reading a book.
"A quiet moment to do what I love to do," he wrote. "Current read: Jackie Woodson's 'Brown Girl Dreaming.'"
NPR shared tips on how parents can encourage their kids to read in summer. University of Virginia psychology professor Daniel Willingham advised against using money as incentive for children to read since it will only give them the impression that reading is done only to access the reward.
While there are a lot of concerns over comics and graphics novels, they may be a useful tool in sparking the love of reading in young children. The same goes for fairy tales, which may help girls develop a habit of reading, eventually letting them move on to deeper materials.
Willingham also advised parents to put books in places where there is not much to do such as the bathroom. Another would be to restrict his or her time doing other things, such as TV time, and making more books available.
