Let's make this a summer with a family focus on reading. One of the important reasons to keep kids in a reading routine is to help halt the backslide that kids typically have when they're "vacationing" from school-time learning. Setting aside some time each day for reading activities helps a child to keep reading skills active. In addition to reading with your child in various ways, such as taking turns reading out loud, or quiet time with the television off and the whole family sitting together with individual books to read, there are other activities to help a child to closely focus on and understand story elements, and to communicate them. Here are some suggested activities to try.   *  Create a board game with questions    about a story *  Make a book jacket illustrating the    characters and plot of the book *  Make a poster or picture of an    important scene or a favorite part *  Make a book mark showing a character    from the story *  Write a letter to your favorite    character *  Create a map that show where the    characters live *  Act out a puppet show *  Be a TV news reporter live from the    scene *  Create a commercial to sell the book   *  Read along with a book on tape *  Create your own book on tape *  Create puppets that resemble    characters *  Put on a puppet show *  Write a journal or diary as if you    were the character *  Write a summary of the book *  Draw a timeline of events in a book *  Make your own quiz for the book *  Write a different ending for a book *  Read the book and then watch the    movie *  Volunteer to read to a child or    elderly person *  Read recipes and then cook *  Make an alphabet poster     Back