Your child isn’t going to become a great reader over night, but it can happen one book at a time. But what is the best way for you to choose the right book for your child to read?

It may be second nature to feel like you should be picking your child’s books, but the fact remains that letting your child choose their own books is a skill that they should learn at a young age.

By allowing your child to choose their own books independent of your input, allows your child to learn the different reason we choose a book to read in the first place.

If your child has reached reading age, here are a few helpful tips to help him or her learn to choose books that will make them want to read more:

• When your child is ready to start reading, begin instilling the fact that we read for a purpose– whether it’s to learn something or if the purpose is simply for enjoyment.
• Have your child browse through the books either at the library or the bookstore. If this seems to be too overwhelming, then have them narrow down their choices by either a type of book (fiction or nonfiction) or by action, funny or other subject.
• Say “yes” as often as you can when your child selects a book that he or she is interest in. Rather than saying “non” try saying that a choice is a “not so great” selection.
• If your child selects a book that is beyond his or her reading ability, solve the problem by reading the book out loud with your child. Let them read as much of the book as possible, you can jump in if there are difficult parts.
• If your child has really enjoyed a particular book, remind him or her of the author name when they are selecting books the next time.

Thank you for reading!

It’s a common thing today: most families have two working parents. It’s a must just to survive, let alone for a family to have anything extra like even a small vacation.

Even if you’re careful to watch every penny spent, there are still plenty of ways to have some family fun even on a shoestring!

• Season passes: Whether you’re heading to a theme park, water park or zoo, most will offer season passes at a decent discount. If you live close enough that you could visit one of these places often, don’t be put off by the initial dollar amount investment and buy the season pass. You’ll find that because of the discounted prices, most season passes pay for themselves in just a couple of visits. Although the passes only cover the price of admission it can still save you money on food by allowing you to leave the park to eat and be readmitted without being penalized.

• Do you have a second-run theatre near you? These are theatres that play new release movies, but after they’ve already been released in the big theatres. What’s the point? Well think about it this way: when you go to see a new release when it first comes out, you’re likely to spend $8-$10 per ticket, per person. With a family of 4 or more, you’re looking at $40 in tickets and that’s before you buy snacks and drinks. A second-run theatre will play the same movie in its entirety but a few weeks after it’s considered a “new release”. These theatres tend to charge $5 or less per ticket. Worth the wait don’t you think?

• Consider the minors. If you are a family of sports enthusiasts but can’t quite swing the cost of even general admission tickets to see your favorite sports team, consider checking out a local minor league game instead, or even a local high school or college game. These smaller teams have smaller venues and typically smaller audiences so they do what they can to fill the seats – even charge as little as $5 for a general admission ticket. Some will even offer a ticket and snack package. There are few better memories than snacking on a ball park hot dog in the cheap seats.

These are just a few ideas to get your creativity flowing. Just because you’re watching your pennies doesn’t mean you have to sit at home on the couch and watch each other. Get creative and I’m sure you’ll find something you, your family and your wallet can all agree on.