Before Reading
What do you think this story might be about?
During Reading
What are you wondering about?
Can you make some predictions?
What has happened so far?
After Reading
What did you remember about the story?
What was your favorite part?
Was there a main character?
What did you think of the main character?
Describe the setting. Did it change?
What was the problem? Was it solved?
Did this story remind you of another story you've read or heard?
Did anyone learn a lesson in this story?
Would you recommend it to a friend to read?
Comprehension Questions for Nonfiction
Before Reading
What is this mostly about?
What do you already know about this topic?
What would you like to find out?
Look at the Table of Contents
During and After Reading
What was your favorite part?
Did you learn an amazing fact?
Did you learn something new?
Did you learn a new word?
What are the bold or colorful words?
Were there charts or maps or graphs? What did they tell you?
How did the author organize the ideas?
What else would you like to find out?
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
ABC's for Reading Success Letter
Ask your child to read with you every day.
Be a good listener and a good reading buddy.
Congratulate your child for any attempts at letter and word recognition.
Discuss illustrations in a book and how it relates to the story.
Encourage early attempts to memorize whole words.
Find patterns in the text. Are there rhyming words? Repeated words?
Give your child gifts of literature.
Help your child pick out "just right" reading books.
Investigate varied reading material, such as plays and poetry.
Join a children's story time group at a bookstore or a library.
Keep your child on a regular daily reading schedule.
Limit television viewing. Have a nightly family read-aloud time instead.
Make reading a fun and positive experience for your child.
Notice and discuss road signs and billboards while driving.
Organize a quiet reading place in your home.
Provide your child with many opportunities to read.
Question your child's understanding while reading.
Read to your child often. Show how much you enjoy literature.
Sample varied letter activities, such as playing with magnetic letters.
Take time to talk about the parts of a story that your child enjoyed.
Use a computer. Try using children's beginning reading software programs.
Visit your local library often.
Work in partnership with your child's teacher.
Xerox and read interesting articles about beginning readers.
Your involvement and excitement will give your child confidence.
Zip through these suggestions on a regular basis.
Be a good listener and a good reading buddy.
Congratulate your child for any attempts at letter and word recognition.
Discuss illustrations in a book and how it relates to the story.
Encourage early attempts to memorize whole words.
Find patterns in the text. Are there rhyming words? Repeated words?
Give your child gifts of literature.
Help your child pick out "just right" reading books.
Investigate varied reading material, such as plays and poetry.
Join a children's story time group at a bookstore or a library.
Keep your child on a regular daily reading schedule.
Limit television viewing. Have a nightly family read-aloud time instead.
Make reading a fun and positive experience for your child.
Notice and discuss road signs and billboards while driving.
Organize a quiet reading place in your home.
Provide your child with many opportunities to read.
Question your child's understanding while reading.
Read to your child often. Show how much you enjoy literature.
Sample varied letter activities, such as playing with magnetic letters.
Take time to talk about the parts of a story that your child enjoyed.
Use a computer. Try using children's beginning reading software programs.
Visit your local library often.
Work in partnership with your child's teacher.
Xerox and read interesting articles about beginning readers.
Your involvement and excitement will give your child confidence.
Zip through these suggestions on a regular basis.
Friday, August 28, 2009
How can you tell if your child is reading appropriate material?
Parents can do a "five finger test" with their children. Have your child read a page from the book they are reading. Each time the child incorrectly reads a word or doesn't know a word, put a finger down. At the end of the reading, check to see how many fingers are down. If one to two fingers are down, your child is reading a vacation book. These books are good for building fluency. If three to four fingers are down, children are reading a "just right" book. These are books that will increase vocabulary and comprehension. Lastly, if all five fingers are down, this is a dream book. That book should be put away for now. These books can be taken out another time, and hopefully will become "just right" and vacation books.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Summer Reading Tips for Families
Summer Reading Tips for Families
The information below is from the Illinois Reading Council Journal Volume 32, No. 3, Summer 2004, and the Reading Is Fundamental website, www.rif.org (link is below).
Visit Aurora Public Library: If your child would like a library card, or for friendly summer reading programs, visit http://www.aurora.lib.il.us/spguide.htm (link is below).
Read aloud with your child.
Take your child to see a local storyteller or be one yourself.
Help your child find time to read: Schedule a time everyday that fits into his/her daily routine. Fifteen to twenty minutes of reading daily is preferred.
Lead by example: Read a newspaper, magazine, etc. to let your child see you as a reader. Talk to your child about what you have read and learned.
Taking a Break From Books
Ways to keep kids reading beyond books
1. Newspapers-Many newspapers have sections geared toward kids, such as comics.
2. Magazines-Kids can often identify with the tone and subject matter of magazines and the articles hold their attention.
3. Cookbooks-Cooking is a great opportunity to get kids reading. Give your child a cookbook and let him/her pick out several recipes to try (Post-Its are great markers!).
4. Comic Books-Comic books are popular among kids. The illustrations and often offbeat topics will keep kids interested.
5. Brochures-Are you going on a special vacation? Get brochures for destination spots, tourist attractions, and theme parks. Let your child read the brochures and let him/her get excited about the upcoming event or adventure.
6. Food Labels-Have your child read the cereal box, bag of chips, pop cans, etc.
7. Writing-Write notes to your child and have him/her write back to you. Create books at home, keep a diary, make a grocery list, etc.
8. Games-Play board games.
Many parents want to know the best ways to help their child become a better reader. At Brooks, we use the following strategies to help your child with unfamiliar words and comprehension. At home, you can promote these strategies while reading with your child. Please, do not feel you need to do all of these strategies. Focus on one or two at a time. Remember, you don’t need to correct your child every time as long as meaning is not disrupted.
Strategies for unfamiliar words:
o Sounding out the word: Have your child start to sound out the word by saying “get your mouth ready.” Ask what sound comes first, etc.
o Look for a word within a word (chunk it): For example, “at” is in hat.
o Look for a pattern (word family or rhyming): For example, if your child knows the word “day”, he/she should be able to substitute the first letter and be able to come up with the word (say, may, play, etc.).
o Look at the picture. Is there something in the picture that would help your child with the word? What would make sense? For example, if the word is snail, have your child look at the picture and ask what item on the picture begins with the word “s.”
o Skip it and read on. Have your child read to the end of the sentence or paragraph. Next, ask your child what word would make sense there and check to see if it is correct.
o Ask someone.
Strategies for comprehending a story:
o Before reading:
Look at the title and cover of the book.
Do a picture walk, or for an older child, have him/her read the back of the book.
Predict: Use background knowledge (personal experiences).
o During reading:
Question the text. As your child reads, he/she should ask questions.
Make inferences: Teach your child to think like a detective.
Use clues from the pictures and story to figure out what the author is trying to say.
Make connections (Text-to-Self, Text-to-Text, and Text-to-World).
Visualize the story: Help your child to picture the events of the story in his/her mind.
o After reading:
o Have your child discuss his/her thoughts, feelings, and reactions to the story.
A great book that offers additional information is 7 Keys to Comprehension: How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins.
The information below is from the Illinois Reading Council Journal Volume 32, No. 3, Summer 2004, and the Reading Is Fundamental website, www.rif.org (link is below).
Visit Aurora Public Library: If your child would like a library card, or for friendly summer reading programs, visit http://www.aurora.lib.il.us/spguide.htm (link is below).
Read aloud with your child.
Take your child to see a local storyteller or be one yourself.
Help your child find time to read: Schedule a time everyday that fits into his/her daily routine. Fifteen to twenty minutes of reading daily is preferred.
Lead by example: Read a newspaper, magazine, etc. to let your child see you as a reader. Talk to your child about what you have read and learned.
Taking a Break From Books
Ways to keep kids reading beyond books
1. Newspapers-Many newspapers have sections geared toward kids, such as comics.
2. Magazines-Kids can often identify with the tone and subject matter of magazines and the articles hold their attention.
3. Cookbooks-Cooking is a great opportunity to get kids reading. Give your child a cookbook and let him/her pick out several recipes to try (Post-Its are great markers!).
4. Comic Books-Comic books are popular among kids. The illustrations and often offbeat topics will keep kids interested.
5. Brochures-Are you going on a special vacation? Get brochures for destination spots, tourist attractions, and theme parks. Let your child read the brochures and let him/her get excited about the upcoming event or adventure.
6. Food Labels-Have your child read the cereal box, bag of chips, pop cans, etc.
7. Writing-Write notes to your child and have him/her write back to you. Create books at home, keep a diary, make a grocery list, etc.
8. Games-Play board games.
Many parents want to know the best ways to help their child become a better reader. At Brooks, we use the following strategies to help your child with unfamiliar words and comprehension. At home, you can promote these strategies while reading with your child. Please, do not feel you need to do all of these strategies. Focus on one or two at a time. Remember, you don’t need to correct your child every time as long as meaning is not disrupted.
Strategies for unfamiliar words:
o Sounding out the word: Have your child start to sound out the word by saying “get your mouth ready.” Ask what sound comes first, etc.
o Look for a word within a word (chunk it): For example, “at” is in hat.
o Look for a pattern (word family or rhyming): For example, if your child knows the word “day”, he/she should be able to substitute the first letter and be able to come up with the word (say, may, play, etc.).
o Look at the picture. Is there something in the picture that would help your child with the word? What would make sense? For example, if the word is snail, have your child look at the picture and ask what item on the picture begins with the word “s.”
o Skip it and read on. Have your child read to the end of the sentence or paragraph. Next, ask your child what word would make sense there and check to see if it is correct.
o Ask someone.
Strategies for comprehending a story:
o Before reading:
Look at the title and cover of the book.
Do a picture walk, or for an older child, have him/her read the back of the book.
Predict: Use background knowledge (personal experiences).
o During reading:
Question the text. As your child reads, he/she should ask questions.
Make inferences: Teach your child to think like a detective.
Use clues from the pictures and story to figure out what the author is trying to say.
Make connections (Text-to-Self, Text-to-Text, and Text-to-World).
Visualize the story: Help your child to picture the events of the story in his/her mind.
o After reading:
o Have your child discuss his/her thoughts, feelings, and reactions to the story.
A great book that offers additional information is 7 Keys to Comprehension: How to Help Your Kids Read It and Get It! by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins.
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