Hello,
Reading aloud to children is more than just "reading a story" to pass the time. The content and amount of the adult's language is very instrumental to the child's developing language skills. The article in the April/May/June issue of READING RESEARCH QUARTERLY, published by The International Reading Association, goes into great detail about the content of talk while reading aloud. I will summarize a few of the points in today's blog and in next week's blog.
The higher the cognitive demand in the types of questions you ask, the more your child will be engaged in an analytical type discussion. For example, ask your child to make predictions, hypothesise, summarize or explain what is happening in the story. If your child is a preschooler, then you can be the one to model how to think analytically. After reading a part of a story you can say, "I think the momma bird will eventually want to teach her baby birds how to hunt for worms."
This type of language will give your preschooler a head start in comprehension strategies. As an older reader, your child will continue to build on analytical skills and interest in reading.
The story reference above is from Moosey-Moose's blog post today. Yes, we have a new family of robins in our garden! Check out his blog at Mooseymoosewrites.blogspot.com.
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Sleepy Bear Hosts a New Book Club
Hello,
Sleepy Bear is hosting a book club for girls ages 6-10 at Mockingbird Books in Greenlake, WA. We will meet on the third Wednesday of each month from 7-8pm. Sleepy Bear will then post questions and answers on his blog.
If you live in the area, we hope to see you at Mockingbird Books! If not, be sure to visit his blog every Thursday for the latest news. His blog is: SleepyBearWrites.blogspot.com
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
Sleepy Bear is hosting a book club for girls ages 6-10 at Mockingbird Books in Greenlake, WA. We will meet on the third Wednesday of each month from 7-8pm. Sleepy Bear will then post questions and answers on his blog.
If you live in the area, we hope to see you at Mockingbird Books! If not, be sure to visit his blog every Thursday for the latest news. His blog is: SleepyBearWrites.blogspot.com
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
A Few of My Favorite Things at the SCBWI Conference
Hello,
This weekend I had the opportunity to attend the SCBWI Western Washington Regional Conference. It was two full days of meeting fellow authors, agents, and editors.
I will highlight some of the authors and their books that I'm sure you will enjoy reading for yourself or for the kids in your world.
On Saturday we had the pleasure of being entertained by the keynote speaker, Adam Rex. He is the author of THE DIRTY COWBOY, FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH, a New York Times bestseller, THE TRUE MEANING OF SMEKDAY and his newest book, FRANKENSTEIN TAKES THE CAKE.
On Sunday, Jon Scieszka, the first National Ambassador of Young People's Literature, gave the keynote address to close the weekend. He is also the founder of GUYS READ, a literacy initiative for boys. A few of his titles are, THE TRUE STORY OF THE THREE LITTLE PIGS, THE STINKY CHEESE MAN, the TIME WARP TRIO series, and the TRUCKTOWN series, just to name a few.
Other authors and or illustrators who attended the conference were Justina Chen Headley, Sundee Frazier, Ellen Hopkins, Nina Laden, and Grace Lin, just to name a few. I highly recommend their books!
Until next week,
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
This weekend I had the opportunity to attend the SCBWI Western Washington Regional Conference. It was two full days of meeting fellow authors, agents, and editors.
I will highlight some of the authors and their books that I'm sure you will enjoy reading for yourself or for the kids in your world.
On Saturday we had the pleasure of being entertained by the keynote speaker, Adam Rex. He is the author of THE DIRTY COWBOY, FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH, a New York Times bestseller, THE TRUE MEANING OF SMEKDAY and his newest book, FRANKENSTEIN TAKES THE CAKE.
On Sunday, Jon Scieszka, the first National Ambassador of Young People's Literature, gave the keynote address to close the weekend. He is also the founder of GUYS READ, a literacy initiative for boys. A few of his titles are, THE TRUE STORY OF THE THREE LITTLE PIGS, THE STINKY CHEESE MAN, the TIME WARP TRIO series, and the TRUCKTOWN series, just to name a few.
Other authors and or illustrators who attended the conference were Justina Chen Headley, Sundee Frazier, Ellen Hopkins, Nina Laden, and Grace Lin, just to name a few. I highly recommend their books!
Until next week,
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Do Crocheting and Literacy Really Have a Connection? - Update
Hello,
A quick update on the progress of my students and their crocheting.
The students are creating a variety of projects. Some have decided to make coasters, others scarves, and others are making hats!
During our choice time in the classroom, some students will sit around a table to crochet while one student reads aloud to them. They take turns passing the book around the table to read.
Another positive for the students learning how to crochet is that they talk about how relaxing it is to sit and crochet while they visit with friends during recess or watch TV at home.
All in all, a great success!
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
A quick update on the progress of my students and their crocheting.
The students are creating a variety of projects. Some have decided to make coasters, others scarves, and others are making hats!
During our choice time in the classroom, some students will sit around a table to crochet while one student reads aloud to them. They take turns passing the book around the table to read.
Another positive for the students learning how to crochet is that they talk about how relaxing it is to sit and crochet while they visit with friends during recess or watch TV at home.
All in all, a great success!
Happy Reading,
Kathleen
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