Get kids excited about reading during the summer with these fun summer-themed fiction and nonfiction books. Students will enjoy reading about the ocean, camping, and summer traditions. Many of the characters come from immigrant families or have family members that live in other countries. For more ideas about helping children read over the summer check out my Summer Reading Tips for ELLs.

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click on an Amazon link and make a purchase. This does not cost you any extra money.

Summer Fiction

Saffron Ice Cream– Rashin is excited about her first trip to an American beach. Follow as she describes her trip and remembers her beach trips when she lived in Iran.

And Then Comes Summer– Follow a child’s summer adventures with friends and family.

Summer Days and Summer Nights– Wong Herbert Yee writes about a young girl enjoying a summer day and night with lyrical rhymes and painted illustrations.

Summer Song– Kevin Henkes writes about summer with simple metaphors and simple questions.

The Hike– This book is part story part field guide. It tells about 3 kids that go for a hike. There are many labels and speech bubbles throughout the book. It would make a great mentor text for labeling pictures to help tell a story.

Cannonball– A Maori boy gets advice from friends and family as he works up the courage to try and jump off the diving board.

Fatima’s Great Outdoors– Fatima enjoys going on her first camping trip with her family after a difficult week at school.

When Lola Visits– A young girl doesn’t feel like it is summertime until her Lola visits from the Philippines. She goes to the beach, watches fireworks and listens to songs in Tagalog.

Summer Nonfiction

Hello Summer! (Hello Seasons!)– Learn about the season of summer with vivid photographs and simple text.

What Can You See in the Summer (Seasons)– Learn about what you can see in the summer with this simple pattern text. The book has colorful photographs. It repeats the sentence pattern You can see ______. throughout the book.

National Geographic Readers: At the Beach– Introduce students to the beach with this simple emergent reader. It has one-three lines of simple text on each page with colorful photographs.