Avid readers often are by nature a little bit of a contradiction. You see, avid readers are avid explorers–they love to discover new people and places. But at the same time, most of the avid readers I know are also, in some small part, homebodies: They like to be near their books, their comfy reading chair, someplace where they can close the door and block out everything but their book and let their imagination take flight.
For me, part of growing up as a reader was learning to find the balance between the introverted and the extroverted parts of myself. Going to school each day, or traveling to new places during vacations, was an exercise in excitement and terror: Excitement that I would be around other people, and terror that I might have to speak to one of them. Over the years I found that the best way to deal with the terror was (not surprisingly) by reading!
Reading books about a new place or situation helped the introverted me feel prepared. I now knew what I might expect and how I might deal with it. Likewise, reading helped the extroverted me feel excited and inspired–once I knew what wonders and delights lay ahead of me there was no holding me back!
I believe that the kids of today are even luckier than I was years ago, because they have modern technology on their side. Not only do they have the wonders of Google and the internet to help them learn (and get excited) about new locations and situations, they also have the ability to carry an entire library with them in their backpacks as they travel! With eBooks and the Reading Rainbow App there’s just no stopping the modern young excursionist! Here are just a few of the inspiring books about travel and exploration that kids can find in the Reading Rainbow App:
A Porc in New York – Monsieur Monmouton’s farm animals take a trip to New York City for a hilarious vacation!
Roscoe and the Pelican Rescue – A boy and his dog travel to the Louisiana coast for summer vacation… and learn how to rescue oil-covered animals following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Victor Vicuna’s Volcano Vacation – Victor Vicuna is in for some very exciting adventures during his family’s vacation at Verna Aardvarks Volcano Village.
What kind of a reader is YOUR child? Does she love exploration and adventure? Is he more of a homebody? What are some of the strategies your family uses to balance out the Reader’s Conundrum? Please join the conversation by leaving a comment below! And as always…
…Happy Reading!

Jenni Buchanan
Reading Rainbow Mom
Reading Rainbow’s mission is to inspire a love of reading in children and connect them to the world they live in through quality literature so they believe that they, “can go anywhere, be anything.”
Try our FREE iPad app in the App Store, download any of our Classic Reading Rainbow episodes on iTunes or learn more about Reading Rainbow and all our digital products at www.readingrainbow.com.











































