I'm pleased to be partnering with Family Christian for this summer reading post. While the post is sponsored, the opinions expressed here are my own. 

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What can one do in 20 minutes?  

With a little help from Pinterest, you can make any number of meals in 20 minutes or less.

A person can usually talk herself into a 20-minute workout most days.

From way out here in the country, I can drive to town in about 20 minutes.

There can be a lot of productivity packed into twenty minutes.

In late May, my seven-year old daughter came home from school and made a declaration:

“I won’t be doing the summer slide.”

Now, she informed me that this “summer slide” happens when a perfectly good student takes off for the summer and doesn’t do a single educational thing for three whole months. Then, when they return to school in the fall, their skills have done some sliding... in the wrong direction.

Upon hearing the definition of this term, I agreed wholeheartedly with my daughter. There’d be no summer slide for her.

So together we determined that this summer we’d put her time to good use. In addition to going through school workbooks, practicing her math and handwriting skills, she’d read for 20 minutes every single day.

With only a few exceptions, she’s done it. She's taken books with her in the car. We read together. She reads silently, with mom looking over her shoulder to make sure the pages aren’t turning too fast. She’s made several bookmarks to use as she reads her very first chapter books.

As I help my young reader along, I’m thankful for resources like Family Christian. She’s past the baby books. Not quite ready for many of the chapter books. They’ve had many books right at her level.

We’ve been cruising along with these “I Can Read!” books for a while. I didn’t even realize Family Christian carried them until I started looking for books simple enough for my young one to read on her own. 

My daughter also liked these new comic books from Veggie Tales. We read these together because they had quite a few words but she felt a big sense of accomplishment that she was able to read a comic book that size.

I’m thankful she can read familiar Bible stories on her own now. This offers another way for her to hide God’s Word in her heart, that she might not sin against Him (Psalm 119:11).

Sometimes we read just for fun as well. Again, Family Christian provides. Books on animals. “I Can Read!” books about cars and princesses. Even my childhood friend Amelia Bedelia!

Finally, we’ve got our eye on a new series about a little boy named Freddie Cottonmouth. Hidden in the pages of each book are themes of sacrifice and redemption. They get excellent reviews. These books are recommended for children ages 8-12 and I can’t wait to read them together later this summer.

Come to think of it, here's another thing we can do with 20 minutes of our time. Browse the shelves at our local Family Christian, finding another book for my daughter to enjoy.

Linking up with Literacy Musing Monday over at Circling the Story.