The Reading To Connect Show

<p>Tonight, 6PM local — Reading To Connect Day is here 📚💕</p><p>It’s happening. Families around the world are already gathering — and tonight at <strong>6PM your local time</strong>, it’s your turn.</p><p>Reading To Connect Day™ was born from something simple: me and my son Aidyn choosing to read for connection over performance. That choice has grown into proclamations from cities and counties, support from authors, and families across the world saying yes to pausing together.</p><p>In this short episode, Aidyn and I share exactly what to do tonight, why it matters, and how to join the movement.</p><p><strong>Key Topics:</strong></p><p>What Reading To Connect Day™ is (and isn’t)</p><p>How to join in at 6PM local — no rules, no pressure</p><p>Simple ways to post and share your moment so other families feel encouraged</p><p>Gratitude for our giveaway partners, authors, and proclamations already in place</p><p>Why reading together builds connection, not performance</p><p><strong>Links:</strong>🔹 Enter the giveaway: <a target="_blank" href="http://ReadingToConnect.com/Day?utm_source=chatgpt.com">ReadingToConnect.com/Day</a><a target="_blank" href="http://ReadingToConnect.com/Day?utm_source=chatgpt.com">🔹</a> Share page + graphics: <a target="_blank" href="http://ReadingToConnect.com/Day?utm_source=chatgpt.com">ReadingToConnect.com/Day/Share-RTC-Day</a><a target="_blank" href="http://ReadingToConnect.com/Day?utm_source=chatgpt.com">📬</a> Contact: <a target="_blank" href="http://ReadingToConnect.com/Day?utm_source=chatgpt.com">[email protected]</a></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe</a>

<p><strong>Announcing the first-ever Reading To Connect Day™</strong></p><p>I didn’t plan to create a holiday.</p><p>I just wanted families to feel safe again—to pause, not perform. To read like it mattered <em>beyond</em> the reading. And when I started sharing our story, something happened.</p><p>Parents from everywhere started joining in. Not for a program. Not for a prize.</p><p>For a moment.</p><p>In this episode, I’m announcing something we’ve been building toward all along—Reading To Connect Day. It’s not a trend. It’s not a hashtag. It’s a return. And this time, it’s happening together.</p><p><strong>Key Topics:</strong></p><p>- Why “just one moment” might be the most powerful thing we offer</p><p>- How a late-night scheduling push revealed a deeper purpose</p><p>- The shift from performance-based reading to legacy-based connection</p><p>- What happens <em>at 6PM</em> in every time zone on the last Sunday in August</p><p>- How you can be part of a global pause—without needing to perform</p><p><strong>Links:</strong></p><p>🔹 <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/day">Reading To Connect Day Info + Share Page</a>Everything you need to join (or invite someone else to)</p><p>📬 Contact: <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/day">[email protected]</a></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe</a>

<p><strong>For Some, It’s Deeper Than Being Tired</strong><em>Why one wrong math answer made her stop reading to her son.</em></p><p>She helped him with his math.She got it wrong.It became his lowest grade of the year.So she stopped reading with him.</p><p>It wasn’t even a reading moment. But it made her feel like her voice didn’t matter—and that maybe she was holding him back.</p><p>This episode isn’t about math. It’s about what we’ve done to reading.And why tired is often just code for something deeper.</p><p><strong>Key Topics:</strong></p><p>The invisible shame many parents carry when it comes to reading</p><p>How we’ve trained families to believe reading is academic, not relational</p><p>What gets lost when we make reading about scores instead of story</p><p>Why I created <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/what-do-you-need"><em>The Listening Room</em></a>—and what it’s really for</p><p>A personal moment I didn’t expect to uncover on air</p><p><strong>Links:</strong></p><p>🔹 <strong>What Do You Need Right Now? </strong>A quiet room for parents who feel far from reading<a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/">https://readingtoconnect.com/what-do-you-need</a></p><p>🔹 <strong>ENGAGE Shared Reading Manifesto </strong>Not about performance. About presence.<a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/">https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/</a></p><p>🔹 <strong>Reading To Connect </strong>The movement. The method. The invitation.<a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/">https://readingtoconnect.com/</a></p><p><strong>📬 Connect:</strong> <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/">[email protected]</a></p><p><em>Because you're not the problem.</em></p><p><em>And it’s okay to begin again.</em></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe</a>

<p><strong>What My Son—and One Surprising Conversation—Reminded Me About This Movement</strong></p><p>When my 11-year-old said "I love it because it just feels good...brings us closer" about our reading time, it reminded me why I started all of this. Then a friend shared how my private podcast shifted her from rushed, tense reading to creating intentional moments with her kids.</p><p>That's when I realized: Most families read together, but they're using the wrong map.</p><p>In this episode, I'm naming what we've been building all along—<strong>Engaged Shared Reading</strong>—and why it's not about reading more, but reading differently.</p><p><strong>Key Topics:</strong></p><p>Why reading together doesn't automatically create connection</p><p>The difference between compliance and connection in reading time</p><p>How one conversation revealed the movement I had to name</p><p>What <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/">Engaged Shared Reading</a> actually means</p><p><strong>Links:</strong></p><p>Engaged Shared Reading Manifesto: <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/">https://readingtoconnect.com/engaged-shared-reading/</a></p><p>Every Parent Reads Aloud. Few Do This: <a target="_blank" href="https://listen.readingtoconnect.com/fewdothis">https://listen.readingtoconnect.com/fewdothis</a></p><p>Reading To Connect: <a target="_blank" href="https://readingtoconnect.com/">https://readingtoconnect.com/</a></p><p><strong>Connect:</strong> <a target="_blank" href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a></p><p><em>You're not just reading anymore. You're connecting.</em></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe</a>

<p>Join me in this episode of <em>Reading To Connect</em> as I sit down with <strong>Hope Larson</strong>, New York Times bestselling and multi-Eisner award-winning cartoonist, to talk about her new middle-grade graphic novel, <em>Very Bad at Math</em>.</p><p>We dive into the power of <strong>shared reading experiences</strong>, the impact of <strong>learning differences like dyscalculia</strong>, and how books can help kids feel seen. Hope opens up about her personal struggles with math, the pressure of perfectionism, and how her own experiences shaped Verity, the book’s protagonist. We also explore <strong>friendship dynamics in middle school, the challenges of asking for help, and why kids' interests—including comics and pop culture—are key to connection</strong>.</p><p><strong>What You’ll Learn:</strong></p><p>📚 How shared reading (even with older kids) creates powerful bonding moments🧠 What <strong>dyscalculia</strong> is and how it impacts kids—and why stories like <em>Very Bad at Math</em> matter💡 How books can help kids <strong>navigate friendship struggles, self-doubt, and big emotions</strong>🎨 The role of comics and graphic novels in <strong>engaging reluctant readers</strong></p><p>This episode is a reminder that books are more than just stories—they’re tools for understanding ourselves, each other, and the world. <em>Very Bad at Math</em> isn’t just about struggling with numbers; it’s about <strong>learning to ask for help, embracing your strengths, and knowing that you are more than your struggles</strong>.</p><p>Let me know what moments stood out to you! 📚💕</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">readingtoconnect.substack.com/subscribe</a>