Keeping kids motivated to read during the summer can be challenging…but you don’t have to resort to scare tactics or punishment. Keep things fun and entice your kiddos with a fun economical reward, like seeing the movie after they’ve read the book. There are so many options to choose from that we’ve helped you out with a few movie picks that are currently in the theaters or showing for FREE outdoors in a local park or at the library this summer in Des Moines.
Currently In Theatres
Captain Underpants
George and Harold have created the greatest superhero in the history of their elementary school–and now they’re going to bring him to life! Meet Captain Underpants! His true identity is so secret, even HE doesn’t know who he is!
The book series is by Dav Pilkey and was one of my son’s favorites when he was younger. The books are full of potty humor and pranks, that especially appeal to boys and are great to entice reluctant readers.
The movie is based on the second book in the series “Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets”. The movie stays true to the books with bathroom humor and mischief. Having read most of the books, I was a bit leery about the movie, but I was pleasantly surprised at how good the movie is.
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie was released on June 2, 2017 and is currently in theatres.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
The hazards of growing up before you’re ready are uniquely revealed through words and drawings as Greg Heffley records them in his diary.
Both of my kids love this book series by Jeff Kinney. The black and white cartoon type drawings are great and they relate to the challenges of being a kid and the struggles of trying to fit in.
Several of the books have been adapted into movies. The latest movie Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul is a typical everything goes wrong on the family road trip story and is pretty predictable. With that said, my eight-year-old daughter loved it.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul was released on May 19, 2017 and can still be seen at a few local theatres. You can also see Diary of a Wimpy Kid on August 11, 2017 during UCAN’s Midland Movie Night for FREE.
Discounted Movies
How to Tame Your Dragon
How to Train Your Dragon is set in a Viking world and follows the adventures and misadventures of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III. The books are a twelve-part series by British author Cressida Cowell and the two movies by DreamWorks were very successful.
How to Tame Your Dragon can be seen at AMC CLASSIC Cobblestone 9 in Urbandale on June 26 and 28, 2017. Kid’s tickets are just $4 and is part of the AMC Classic Summer Movie Camp.
Goosebumps
Goosebumps is a series of children’s horror fiction novellas created and authored by R.L. Stine. Sixty-two books were published under the Goosebumps umbrella title from 1992 to 1997. The movie Goosebumps was released in 2015 starring Jack Black as R.L. Stine.
Goosebumps can be seen at Century 20 Jordan Creek in West Des Moines on July 4 and 5, 2017. Tickets are just $1 and is part of the Cinemark Theatres Summer Movie Clubhouse.
The Iron Giant
A mysterious creature stalks the land, eating barbed wire and devouring tractors and plows frightening a small town in Maine in 1958. The Giant finds a friend in a local boy named Hogarth. The Iron Giant ultimately finds its humanity and saves the towns people of their fears and prejudices. The book written by Ted Hughes was first released in 1968. The movie was made more recently in 1999 with Vin Diesel as the voice of the Iron Giant.
The Iron Giant can be seen at Century 20 Jordan Creek in West Des Moines on July 11 and 12, 2017. Tickets are just $1 and is part of the Cinemark Theatres Summer Movie Clubhouse.
FREE Outdoor Movies
Jungle Book
The Jungle Book tells the tale of Mowgli, a young Indian boy, who, after straying from his village, ends up being taken in by a pack of wolves and living among the creatures of the jungle. The Jungle Book was written by Rudyard Kipling in 1894. It was originally a collection of stories. The most famous of the stories were those about Mowgli. Disney made an animated version of Mowgli’s story in 1967 and a live-action version more recently in 2016.
The Jungle Book can be seen for FREE at Ankeny’s Movie Under the Stars on June 30, 2017.
Fantastic Beasts
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander (J.K.Rowling) is an A to Z listing of magical creatures and is required reading for all first-year Hogwarts students. The movie which was released in November of 2016, shows the adventures of writer Newt Scamander in New York’s secret community of witches and wizards seventy years before Harry Potter reads his book in school.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them can be seen for FREE at Des Moines Park and Recreations’ Free Flicks on July 13, 2017 and at Windsor Heights’ Movies in the Park on July 21, 2017 (a rain date).
Wizard of OZ
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz written by L. Frank Baum was first published in 1900. The story is about a Kansas girl named Dorothy who’s transported by a tornado to the Land of Oz. The 1939 silver-screen adaptation, The Wizard of Oz, is the most-watched movie in history, according to the Library of Congress.
The Wizard of Oz can be seen for FREE at the Des Moines Art Center’s Free Flicks on August 3, 2017.
FREE Library Movies
The BFG
The BFG is a 1982 children’s book written by Roald Dahl. The book is about a young orphan named Sophie who is stolen away by a big friendly giant (The BFG). The film adaptation directed by Stephen Spielberg was released in June of 2016.
The BFG can be seen for FREE at the Indianola Public Library on July 14, 2017.
Harry Potter
Probably the most successful movie adaptation of a book. Authored by J.K. Rowling, the Harry Potter books and movies series are about a young wizard who discovers his magical heritage as he makes close friends and a few enemies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Harry Potter can be seen for FREE at the West Des Moines Public Library. They will host a Harry Potter Movie Marathon on June 30, 2017.
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is about a magical young boy who refuses to grow up. He lives on Neverland, a magical island, with the fairies and the Lost Boys, his band of followers. It’s also about his adventures with the Darling family of England: Mr. and Mrs. Darling and their three children Wendy, John, and Michael. The book Peter Pan was written by J. M. Barrie in 1911 and the Disney animated version of the story was released in 1953.
Peter Pan can be seen for FREE at the Grimes Public Library on June 26, 2017.
What’s your favorite book that has a film adaptation? Tell us about it in the Comments below!
