Rising K-4 Summer Learning
Optional Summer Work
For families looking for ways to keep their students engaged with crayons and paper this year, Athens Academy suggests the following optional workbook:
Summer Big Fun Workbook Preschool Readiness (Highlights Summer Learning) Practicing consistently every week of the summer will help students reinforce their fine motor skills while keeping academic skills fresh. |
Summer Reading Note from the PS Librarian,
Ms. Sarah Jenkins
I hope everyone is excited for a summer full of reading! Our school provides suggested book titles for every grade to encourage summer reading. During the year, I cultivate a list of my favorite finds from the previous year that are best suited to each age level in Preschool. The lists feature books that are diverse in both style and content, so hopefully you will find something that will connect with your student. You are not required to read the books on this list - the most important thing is that students read all summer and are enjoying it. Rereading favorites is also encouraged! We recommend your student tries to read 20 books over the summer. Additional book suggestions can be found in either the K3 or P1 lists on the summer learning website.
Recommended Titles
100 Mighty Dragons All Named Broccoli by David LaRochelle
High on a mountain live 100 mighty dragons all named Broccoli. When a tremendous wind blows half the dragons away, ten others sail off to become professional surfers in Hawaii. The oldest and youngest dragons take a train to New York City to start their own heavy metal band. And a mysterious wizard turns four more into a unicorn, a werewolf, a zombie, and a tiny pink poodle. Now how many dragons are left? Young readers will delight in following each and every dragon as they leave their home for marvelous adventures, until there is but one dragon remaining. That's when this final dragon named Broccoli retreats to a cave for the winter and reappears in the spring with a surprise that will thrill and delight. Prepare to read again!
The Artist by Ed Vere
Creative young children will see themselves and the world around them in a fresh light in this charming story about an artistic soul. Through setbacks and triumphs, our young hero adds color and life to a drab gray city, bringing beauty to those who live there. It's a journey that reminds us that it's okay to color outside the lines: Art is full of heart!
Blob by Anne Appelt
Blob is a creature of indeterminate kind. Blob can be a giraffe, cotton candy, and even an octopus. It’s not until a certain someone continuously calls them “Bob” that Blob starts to question who they really are. After a series of funny yet enlightening discoveries about all the possible things they can be, Blob realizes that the best thing to be is... Blob. (With the L.)
Bored No More by Julie Reiters
Whether you’re home with the flu or stuck inside on a snowy day, this lively picture book offers fun suggestions for families looking to step away from their screens. Julie Reiters’s bold and graphic art style is sure to appeal to readers of all ages, and the poetic text makes for a smooth read-aloud. With options from A to Z, Bored No More! is sure to provide inspiration for what to do when there’s nothing to do!
Hidden Gem by Linda Liu
When a small pebble sees others gathering on the steps of the Museum of Rocks, he grows curious. Once inside the esteemed halls, he is shocked by what he discovers. The only rocks on display are glittering gemstones, geodes, and crystals! These beautiful stones make him wonder: Can he be special, too? Perhaps he’ll find an answer in the World’s Most Beautiful Gem exhibition . . . or maybe, just maybe, he will find the answer inside himself.
How to Get Your Octopus to School by Becky Scharnhorst
Getting your octopus to school won't be easy. He would much rather stay home with you and play hide-and-seek or dress-up. But you know your octopus will love school if he gives it a chance. And you'll tell him that...as soon as you can find him... Reminiscent of If You Take a Mouse to School, get your little one ready for school with this silly and sweet back-to-school story.
Rooftop Garden by Danna Smith
A group of city friends work diligently together to grow herbs and vegetables in a rooftop garden. Set to a foot-tappin’ original tune, this rhythmic, rhyming story will have kids singing enthusiastically about the six stages of plant growth. The story concludes with a summer harvest and feast that celebrates the gardeners’ commitment. Includes singalong audio and video animation.
Real to Me by Minh Le
What do you do when your imaginary friend goes away? Did you dream up the entire friendship? Maybe... But you miss her laugh, her comfort, and her silly mischief. It all feels so real... you couldn't have just imagined those things, right?
The Three Billy Goats Gruff by Mac Barnett
Once there was a bridge and a terrible and VERY hungry troll lived underneath it. When the three Billy Goats Gruff decide to clip-clop across the bridge to get to the grassy ridge, the troll is already imagining all the way to prepare a delicious goat dinner. But the troll underestimates those seemingly sweet but oh-so-savvy goats!
Tokyo Night Parade by Minako Tomigahara
The night parade is about to begin... The ground thunders in Tokyo. A gust of wind blows. The pitter patter of paws and claws draws closer. The air is thick with swirling, swooping demons. It's Eka's favorite evening of the year, the one night she refuses to miss. But it's become harder to travel to Japan now that she's living across the world in New York. Unsure of when she can return next to see her yokai friends, Eka tries to forget that this could be her last parade for some time. Instead, she'll march, sing, dance, hoot, and screech until sunrise. Because on this night, there's no time to waste—the night parade awaits.
High on a mountain live 100 mighty dragons all named Broccoli. When a tremendous wind blows half the dragons away, ten others sail off to become professional surfers in Hawaii. The oldest and youngest dragons take a train to New York City to start their own heavy metal band. And a mysterious wizard turns four more into a unicorn, a werewolf, a zombie, and a tiny pink poodle. Now how many dragons are left? Young readers will delight in following each and every dragon as they leave their home for marvelous adventures, until there is but one dragon remaining. That's when this final dragon named Broccoli retreats to a cave for the winter and reappears in the spring with a surprise that will thrill and delight. Prepare to read again!
The Artist by Ed Vere
Creative young children will see themselves and the world around them in a fresh light in this charming story about an artistic soul. Through setbacks and triumphs, our young hero adds color and life to a drab gray city, bringing beauty to those who live there. It's a journey that reminds us that it's okay to color outside the lines: Art is full of heart!
Blob by Anne Appelt
Blob is a creature of indeterminate kind. Blob can be a giraffe, cotton candy, and even an octopus. It’s not until a certain someone continuously calls them “Bob” that Blob starts to question who they really are. After a series of funny yet enlightening discoveries about all the possible things they can be, Blob realizes that the best thing to be is... Blob. (With the L.)
Bored No More by Julie Reiters
Whether you’re home with the flu or stuck inside on a snowy day, this lively picture book offers fun suggestions for families looking to step away from their screens. Julie Reiters’s bold and graphic art style is sure to appeal to readers of all ages, and the poetic text makes for a smooth read-aloud. With options from A to Z, Bored No More! is sure to provide inspiration for what to do when there’s nothing to do!
Hidden Gem by Linda Liu
When a small pebble sees others gathering on the steps of the Museum of Rocks, he grows curious. Once inside the esteemed halls, he is shocked by what he discovers. The only rocks on display are glittering gemstones, geodes, and crystals! These beautiful stones make him wonder: Can he be special, too? Perhaps he’ll find an answer in the World’s Most Beautiful Gem exhibition . . . or maybe, just maybe, he will find the answer inside himself.
How to Get Your Octopus to School by Becky Scharnhorst
Getting your octopus to school won't be easy. He would much rather stay home with you and play hide-and-seek or dress-up. But you know your octopus will love school if he gives it a chance. And you'll tell him that...as soon as you can find him... Reminiscent of If You Take a Mouse to School, get your little one ready for school with this silly and sweet back-to-school story.
Rooftop Garden by Danna Smith
A group of city friends work diligently together to grow herbs and vegetables in a rooftop garden. Set to a foot-tappin’ original tune, this rhythmic, rhyming story will have kids singing enthusiastically about the six stages of plant growth. The story concludes with a summer harvest and feast that celebrates the gardeners’ commitment. Includes singalong audio and video animation.
Real to Me by Minh Le
What do you do when your imaginary friend goes away? Did you dream up the entire friendship? Maybe... But you miss her laugh, her comfort, and her silly mischief. It all feels so real... you couldn't have just imagined those things, right?
The Three Billy Goats Gruff by Mac Barnett
Once there was a bridge and a terrible and VERY hungry troll lived underneath it. When the three Billy Goats Gruff decide to clip-clop across the bridge to get to the grassy ridge, the troll is already imagining all the way to prepare a delicious goat dinner. But the troll underestimates those seemingly sweet but oh-so-savvy goats!
Tokyo Night Parade by Minako Tomigahara
The night parade is about to begin... The ground thunders in Tokyo. A gust of wind blows. The pitter patter of paws and claws draws closer. The air is thick with swirling, swooping demons. It's Eka's favorite evening of the year, the one night she refuses to miss. But it's become harder to travel to Japan now that she's living across the world in New York. Unsure of when she can return next to see her yokai friends, Eka tries to forget that this could be her last parade for some time. Instead, she'll march, sing, dance, hoot, and screech until sunrise. Because on this night, there's no time to waste—the night parade awaits.