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If you’re looking for summer reading programs for kids, this is our comprehensive list of all the completely FREE programs!
{Looking for other fun summer deals? Kids can bowl for free and skate for free at many participating locations this summer!
The Best Summer Reading Programs
Believe it or not, it’s almost that time of year again — when school is out and summer reading programs abound. Yay!
Note: We recommend calling your local stores to verify that they’re participating in these programs this year.
Do your kids love to read, too? If so, this is our big list of all the FREE summer reading programs that are available nationally!
Reading Programs for Elementary Aged Kids
Barnes & Noble— Earn a free book through the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program for kids in grades 1-6.
Read any eight books this summer and record them in your Summer Reading Journal (PDF download). Explain which part of the book is your favorite, and why.
Bring your completed journal to a Barnes & Noble store between July 1st and August 31st, 2024.
Receive a FREE BOOK of your choice from the selection on the Reading Journal list.
Chuck E. Cheese — Kids can fill out their Reading Rewards Calendar when they read every day for two weeks, and then trade it in for 10 FREE play points at your local Chuck E. Cheese location.
Summer Reading Programs for Older Kids
Half Price Books — Starting June 1st, Half Price Books is hosting Summer Reading Camp for kids 14 or younger. Kids are encouraged to read 15 minutes per day to reach a total of at least 300 minutes. After that, they can turn in their completed reading log to their local store to earn Bookworm Bucks to spend. Each week they will also offer fun new printable activity sheets of all kinds!
Mensa for Kids Excellence in Reading Program — Kids ages 18 and under can select a list from the grade level bands listed. Print the list and track each book you read by checking it off and recording the date it was read, along with a rating. Submit your list to receive a recognition certificate and T-shirt!
Pizza Hut Camp Book It — In addition to their annual school year program, Pizza Hut also has their summer reading program called Camp Book it! Simply track your child’s reading during June, July, and August. Once they reach their monthly reading goal, they can redeem for a free one-topping personal pizza at Pizza Hut!
Showcase Cinemas — Bookworm Wednesdays entitles kids to free movie admission to a select children’s film when they present a book report at a participating Cinema de Lux, Showcase, or Multiplex Cinemas box office.
SYNC — A summer reading program geared toward teens aged 13 and older, the program will run for 14 weeks and offer two thematically paired audiobooks for checkout each week, for free, to every registered listener.
Local Libraries — Above all, don’t forget about your local library! Most of them offer fun summer reading programs with prizes and more.
Summer reading programs are a great opportunity for kids to keep reading (and learning) even when they’re not in school.
Summer reading programs are free and something your children can do anywhere and at any time.
With the added incentives and prizes offered, it’s a win-win for kids and their families!
Why are Summer Reading Programs Important?
It’s good for their brain development and can help them to retain more of what they learned during the school year.
Reading is also a great way to pass the time — time they might otherwise spend zoning out to screens!
How to Encourage Kids with a Summer Reading Program
The best way to encourage your children to do anything is by modeling the behavior you want for them — so start reading!
Ask them what types of books interest them and then ask your librarian to suggest similar books at the child’s reading level. Or, select books you can read aloud to them.
Make reading time fun with special snacks, by reading outside, or by letting them “stay up late” to read one more chapter.
FAQs for Kid Summer Reading Programs
What is the best reading program?
It depends on your child’s reading level and what would be the “best” motivator for him or her. Look through the list of online reading programs above and check out your local library offerings and then just pick one!
How do you organize a summer reading program?
Save time and let your local library organize it for you — or search online for a free summer reading program. Most libraries and dozens of online websites offer reading programs for free. Once you’ve selected the summer reading program you want to do, then have a set time each day where you and/or your children will read for at least 15-20 minutes. Make sure to record your reading time and follow up with the appropriate challenges, and of course, don’t forget to redeem any prizes or rewards!
Looking for a fun way to encourage and motivate your kids to read more? Or need a creative way for your kids to keep track of all the books they read through summer reading programs this year?
Be sure to download our FREE Kid’s Summer Reading Printable Pack! It comes with a reading challenge, reading time tracker, and fill-in-the-blank summer reading list.
Do you know of any other Summer Reading Programs we should add to this list? Let us know in the comments!
We love comments from readers, so chime in with your thoughts below! We do our best to keep this blog upbeat and encouraging, so please keep your comments cordial and kind.Read more information on our comment policy.
Waterford Upstart is a free online PreK reading program, backed with decades of research, that teaches early literacy and in some states, math and science. Families receive everything they need, including access to fun and interactive software, expert coaching and support, and even a computer and internet in participating regions. All at no cost. We are enrolling now for the fall. Go here to see if you qualify in your state: https://www.waterford.org/upstart
Half Price Books will launch a new program this year on 5/31 called the Half Price Books Summer Reading Camp. You can find all the details here: http://www.hpb.com/summer.
The Good and the Beautiful homeschool curriculum has a program where you pay 99 cents shipping and handling to receive a sticker chart, bookmark and free book as an incentive. We’ve really enjoyed the books they offer for each grade level. https://www.goodandbeautiful.com/products/summer-reading-program/
Hi! Thanks so much for your list. My daughters LOVE summer reading programs/challenges, so we always try to participate in as many as possible. Wanted to let you know that we just checked in with TD Bank, as their form posted online is last year’s form, and they told us that they discontinued the summer reading challenge for 2020. Not sure if it is a result of the pandemic, but they are not offering the summer reading program/challenge this year, according to their corporate offices. Bummer!! 😊
Sorry about that! One of the B&N links was incorrect, but it’s been updated now. The TDBank form is from 2019, because they haven’t updated it yet. But they do it every year and it typically starts on June 1st. I’m betting they’ll change out the form after that date! They haven’t taken down their landing page for it, so I’m sure it’ll still be running this year! -Meg, MSM Team
Is it okay to read 8 books for one reading program and use those same reading minutes for another reading program? Just wondering what you think about that (or should kids use different reading minutes for different reading programs).
Personally, I will use them for both. I use the actual books for the Barnes and Noble program, and the minutes read from those books in our local library program. I see them as different incentives.
One awards time read, the other book completion. Plus at B&N they get a prize (book). Out library gives raffle tickets toward prize baskets. So it’s not like I’m just trying to collect “every available freebie.”
If you are participating in your local library’s program, they generally require that the books read come from their library. Grants usually fund at least part of the program and increased circulation is one of the ways they can show that recieving the grant has made a difference.
You may want to check with your local library on this. While I’m sure they prefer you use the library books, ours is more interested in building a habit of reading. Any book is fine. I don’t think ours are funded by grants (the prizes are donated), so that may be the difference.
The Book Farm, Inc. has summer reading storytimes. “We are happy to announce extended summer hours for our Outlet Store this summer We will be hosting five free ‘Just for kids’ events this summer. Each will be one hour long and include a read-a-loud story, an activity, a free take home surprise for each child who attends and special event discounts on books. These events rotate between weekday evenings and Saturday mornings to better fit busy summer schedules. Although geared for early readers there will be something for all readers to enjoy. https://www.thebookfarminc.com/Summer-Events-at-The-Book-Farm-Outlet-Store.html
The Barnes & Noble link isn’t working – Thanks for the great list!
Hmm, I just tried it and it was working for me. Can you try again? -Olivia, MSM Team
Waterford Upstart is a free online PreK reading program, backed with decades of research, that teaches early literacy and in some states, math and science. Families receive everything they need, including access to fun and interactive software, expert coaching and support, and even a computer and internet in participating regions. All at no cost. We are enrolling now for the fall. Go here to see if you qualify in your state: https://www.waterford.org/upstart
Oh wow! Sounds like such a great program! Thanks SO much for sharing! -Olivia, MSM Team
It is an amazing program! I very highly recommend it. It started in one state and it is in several states now.
Unfortunately it’s not available in our area which is sad because our daughter really needs help with reading.
Half Price Books will launch a new program this year on 5/31 called the Half Price Books Summer Reading Camp. You can find all the details here: http://www.hpb.com/summer.
Oh, thank you so much for that info!! -Meg, MSM Team
The Good and the Beautiful homeschool curriculum has a program where you pay 99 cents shipping and handling to receive a sticker chart, bookmark and free book as an incentive. We’ve really enjoyed the books they offer for each grade level. https://www.goodandbeautiful.com/products/summer-reading-program/
Thanks for the suggestion! That’s a great deal! -Jordan, MSM Team
Book it also does a summer reading program as well.
Yes, that’s a great one as well! -Jordan, MSM Team
The Amazon summer reading program only gives you $1 off of a book, not a free book.
Thank you so much for pointing that out! We will update the post! -Jordan, MSM Team
Hi! Thanks so much for your list. My daughters LOVE summer reading programs/challenges, so we always try to participate in as many as possible. Wanted to let you know that we just checked in with TD Bank, as their form posted online is last year’s form, and they told us that they discontinued the summer reading challenge for 2020. Not sure if it is a result of the pandemic, but they are not offering the summer reading program/challenge this year, according to their corporate offices. Bummer!! 😊
Oh, thank you for letting us know! We’ll update the post! -Meg, MSM Team
B&N link is 2019 not 2020 as is TDBank. Got me all excited and ready to go for nothing…
Sorry about that! One of the B&N links was incorrect, but it’s been updated now. The TDBank form is from 2019, because they haven’t updated it yet. But they do it every year and it typically starts on June 1st. I’m betting they’ll change out the form after that date! They haven’t taken down their landing page for it, so I’m sure it’ll still be running this year! -Meg, MSM Team
We will definitely have to look into those- my kid loved filling her reading log during school so I’m sure summer will be no different!
Is it okay to read 8 books for one reading program and use those same reading minutes for another reading program? Just wondering what you think about that (or should kids use different reading minutes for different reading programs).
Personally, I will use them for both. I use the actual books for the Barnes and Noble program, and the minutes read from those books in our local library program. I see them as different incentives.
One awards time read, the other book completion. Plus at B&N they get a prize (book). Out library gives raffle tickets toward prize baskets. So it’s not like I’m just trying to collect “every available freebie.”
Mine is still young enough that we read a book every night before bed, so we more than read enough books for multiple programs.
If you are participating in your local library’s program, they generally require that the books read come from their library. Grants usually fund at least part of the program and increased circulation is one of the ways they can show that recieving the grant has made a difference.
You may want to check with your local library on this. While I’m sure they prefer you use the library books, ours is more interested in building a habit of reading. Any book is fine. I don’t think ours are funded by grants (the prizes are donated), so that may be the difference.
Lea
The Book Farm, Inc. has summer reading storytimes. “We are happy to announce extended summer hours for our Outlet Store this summer We will be hosting five free ‘Just for kids’ events this summer. Each will be one hour long and include a read-a-loud story, an activity, a free take home surprise for each child who attends and special event discounts on books. These events rotate between weekday evenings and Saturday mornings to better fit busy summer schedules. Although geared for early readers there will be something for all readers to enjoy.
https://www.thebookfarminc.com/Summer-Events-at-The-Book-Farm-Outlet-Store.html
Thanks SO much for sharing!! -Meg, MSM Team
TD Bank http://www.tdbank.com/summerreading/
The restaurant Meatheads has a reading program as well. Below is the link:
https://www.meatheadsburgers.com/cowmunity/voracious-reading-program/
Thanks for sharing! -Meg, MSM Team