Hello “fall” and ….back to school time! Summer is coming to an end and autumn is around the corner. Most of our kiddos are back to school, preschool, and some sort of routine. When I was teaching (now retired), I loved this routine. I liked setting up my classroom, organizing materials, reviewing curriculum, and the chance to start anew again each school year.

As parents, this routine can be nice but it can also bring more business. The topic is obvious…. in the midst of all of these schedules, it’s important for us to build time for and to encourage reading.

Yes, content is key. We have to seek and read content for our littles that will build their faith and establish their proper identity. And, as we Book Time with Our Kids, we can intentionally use a tone that implies reading time is special. Instead of “Hurry and clean up because you still have to read tonight!” we can model the right perspective and use words like, “Let’s finish cleaning up well so that we can have time to read the next part of the book together! I can’t wait to find out what he decides!” Such a difference, right?

We can select helpful books about going back to school and all that this event brings. We can also read stories about how to be a good friend, how to share, and how to practice good manners. We can read stories about chores and how we will all need to pitch in a bit more, now that our schedules may be busier.

We can also read books about adventures while riding the school bus or proper behavior on the bus….that’s a whole topic in itself!

Last year, I came across the book The Yellow Bus by Loren Long: “Get ready for back-to-school season and hop on board The Yellow Bus, Loren Long’s #1 New York Times bestselling modern classic about a forgotten school bus that finds happiness and purpose in the most unexpected places–and the journey along the way” (amazon.com).  I ordered two copies immediately and have been giving it as a gift ever since. It’s a sweet story about change in purpose, being needed, and finding JOY in that. This story definitely has a “Giving Tree” vibe! Personification is used as the bus is repurposed again and again in creative ways that reveal life lessons for all ages. It’s one of those stories that kids will love for their reasons and adults will like for even deeper reasons.

Let’s consider the season as we select books to read with our children. Let’s use a tone that implies we GET TO read together each evening, not that we HAVE TO read together. As we get back to school, let’s make sure to get “back to books” and make reading together a special and anticipated time with our favorite littles.

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