Francis Walsh Intermediate School

FRANCIS WALSH INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
185 Damascus Road, Branford, CT  06405
203.488.8317  •  Fax 203.481.2785 
www.branfordschools.org

Dear Walsh Families,

Your children have grown so much during this school year and they’ve worked hard to continuously improve their reading skills and strategies. Summer is a great opportunity for students to continue building their love of reading! It’s also an important time for them to practice all that they’ve been taught over the course of the year.

Research tells us that goal setting has a positive impact on students’ reading development. To motivate students to build on their reading experiences during the school year and to continue reading over the summer, we encourage your children to set a personal reading goal before summer vacation. To do this, your children might think about different genres, authors, topics, or titles they want to read, the number of books they will read, the amount of time they will spend reading, and the books they have access to.  These are just some ideas to guide the goal-setting process.  Students’ personal reading goals should be meaningful to them and consider who they are as readers.

We are also kicking off our first ever “One Book, One Grade” initiative to foster a sense of community for each grade level! Students in each grade will receive a book that they will read over the summer. When they return in August, this book will be used to engage students in class discussions and activities. The theme for the book selections is “All Together Now.” During the summer, your family is invited to join us at Harbor Park (Branford Point) on July 12th from 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM for a summer reading event! We will make Kindness Rocks, enjoy a small snack, and socialize with new and “old” friends.  Additionally, the Read to Grow book-mobile will be visiting us during our event!  We are very excited about this shared reading event and hope you and your family enjoy it too!

Details about the Walsh Summer Reading Challenge can be found here for each grade level:

• Rising 5th Grade

• Rising 6th Grade

• Rising 7th Grade

• Rising 8th Grade

We know that families often find it helpful when a list of recommended books is provided, so we are including links to various resources:

Blackstone Library Teen’s Book Lists

Blackstone Library’s Children’s Book Lists

The Blackstone Library is hosting a variety of summer reading activities for students and families of all ages! For more information about the Blackstone Summer activities click here.

Connecticut Governor’s Summer Reading Challenge Book Lists

Suggested book lists are organized by grade level (as well as information about how to participate if interested).  Again, please note that these are not required book lists; they are intended only as a resource.

During the summer, students will have access to several online resources.  They can access e-books through the Blackstone Library’s SimplyE, an e-reader app that allows you to read e-books and audiobooks from various library resources all in one place. Students can also access the WIS Library Learning Commons website for other online reading resources and information about the WIS Summer Reading Challenge.

If you have any questions, please contact your child’s English Language Arts teacher.  

Happy Reading and have a wonderful summer!