08/01/2026
Happy August! It's still Summer and there's still time to avoid the Summer Slide or Summer Brain Drain. Summer Slide or Brain Drain refers to "students' loss of skills and knowledge during the summer weeks when school is out" "Students lose up to an average of 1 month of school learning over summer vacation. Why does this happen? Limited access to books and a lack of positive reading are two of the main reasons. Good news is that "reading just 6 books with your children over the summer can help retain learning from the preceding year. " *
Build your home library, gift books, visit public libraries or little free libraries. Visit Marsha's Barefoot Books at Market Street Creatives on 100 Lawton Street, Torrington (Booth M16 in Room 2) or find me every Sunday in Collinsville at the Canton Main Street Farmers Market to buy gorgeous Barefoot Books. (I will not be at market on August 9th)
Barefoot Bear's pick of the month at Market Street Creatives is Outdoor Opposites, a Barefoot Books Singalong "
Written by Brenda Williams
Illustrated by Rachel Oldfield
Sung by The Flannery Brothers
"Grab your backpack and head into the countryside for a camping adventure full of contrasts! Little ones love to try out the opposite actions as they sing and dance along. Includes link to an audio singalong and video animation".
Watch singalong video teaser here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Znv_bjcyP0&t=6s You can also go to https://www.barefootbooks.com/Marsha-Miles to purchase books online
Keep reading and avoid going down that Summer Slide!
*summer brain drain information is by Stefanie Grossman
