Friday, July 1, 2011

Summer Reading Lists – A Way To Stay Cool On Hot Days

It's finally getting hot outside. If the kids are indoors cooling off, here are some books and activities to keep them reading. This website, education.com, provides grade level reading lists for preschoolers through third grade. They also suggest several fun activities such as creating a kids' book club, having children illustrate a famous book, and pretending to be characters in the story they're reading. There are also tips for parents to help “sneak and asked her reading.”


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Research shows that students who do not engage with books during the summer often halve “summer learning loss.”  This tends to be more true for students who do not have access to books, or, simply take a break from school during the summer. Our Fairfield Public Library is a wonderful resource for summer reading materials and activities. Parents, family members, and family friends can encourage students to read in everyday situations. Young students often use context clues, the beginning letter of words, in the shape of words to guess what word is. For example, children recognize signs, advertisements, and labels of common household items, and often infer what word is. This is a great strategy!

It is also important for children to interact with other types of print such as magazines and books. In primary grades, teachers assess “concepts of print.” Here are some examples and questions you can ask your child regarding concepts of print.

  • Does the child recognized the front of the book?
         Say: Show me the front of the book.
  • Does the child  know that the print, not the picture, is what is to be read?
         Say: I will read this book to you. Show me where to read.
  • Does the child know that print is from left to right?
         Say: Which way do I go?
  • Does the child know that at the end of the line they should return to the next line?
         Say: Where do I go after that?
  • Does the child have one-to-one  matched with voice to print?
         Say: Point to the words as I read.
  • Does the child understand the concept of first and last?
         Say: Show me the first part of the story. Show me the last part of the story.
  • Does the child know that the left page is read before the right page?
         Say: Where do I start reading?. (After opening the book to a page with words on the left and right pages.)
  • Does the child know the meaning of a question mark?
         Say: What is this for? (Pointing to a question mark.)
  • Does the child know the meaning of a period?
         Say: What is this for? (Pointing to a period.)
Feel free to stop by the school Facebook page and share what you're reading! Maybe you'll find others with similar interests who are looking for a good book. Have a great summer! Mrs. Schloss

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