CDSD Kindergarten Family Letter
Reading, Writing, Listening, & Speaking
Unit 4: Structures of Fiction and Nonfiction Texts
Key Learning:
Good readers use parts of a story to understand and retell the stories they hear and read.
Good writers use story elements to write stories that make sense.
SPEAKING AND LISTENING:
Help your child learn how to . . .
- listen when someone is speaking.
- speak clearly and loudly enough to be understood.
- express her thoughts, ideas, and feelings clearly.
- engage in turn-taking in conversations.
- ask questions to get more information and to seek help.
- use age-appropriate grammar when speaking.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Give your child simple one to two step directions to follow. Have your child restate the directions before she completes them.
- Play listening games such as, Simon Says.
- Engage your child in conversations about topics she is interested in.
- Provide times when you and your child can share stories.
- Encourage the use of appropriate volume and pacing.
- Let your child see you asking clarifying questions.
- Encourage your child to ask questions when she doesn't understand what is said or how to do something.
- Rephrase her sentence structure or grammar by repeating the sentence properly.
UNDERSTANDING HOW BOOKS WORK:
Help your child learn how to . . .
- handle books appropriately.
- follow words left-to-right across a single line of text.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Provide many opportunities for your child to look at and read books and magazines.
- Encourage your child to handle and use books appropriately.
- When reading a book to your child, point to the words as you read them.
HEARING SOUNDS IN WORDS:
Help your child learn how to . . .
- say words that rhyme.
- identify the first sound (not the letter name) in a spoken word that begins with a vowel (i.e., a, e, i, o, & u), a blend (e.g., bl, pr, sm, & tw), a digraph (i.e., ch, sh, th, & wh).
- identify the middle vowel sound (not the letter name) in a spoken word. (cat = /a/)
- identify the final sound (not the letter name) in a spoken word. (cat = /t/)
- after hearing three or four sounds, put the sounds together to say one word (/sh/ + /e/ + /p/ = ship; /b/ + /l/ + /o/ + /k/ = block).
- after hearing a word with three or four sounds, break it apart to say each sound. (ship = /sh/ /i/ /p/; block = /b/ /l/ /o/ / k/)
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Read books that have many rhyming words in them. Ask your child to repeat the words that rhyme.
- Read nursery rhymes to your child. (Watch the first video from 1:18 to 3:00)
- See the videos below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDSjc2cuMvk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CiQuKxVjRE
LETTERS, SOUNDS, AND WORDS:
Help your child learn how to . . .
- when shown an a or an i, make the correct short vowel sound.
- when a short a or short i sound is made, write the correct corresponding letter.
- read and write three letter short a and short i words (e.g., fan, fin, sap, sip, ham, & him)
- read these words in a snap: am, he, can, have, this, do, look, are, come, was, by, of
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Make a several three letter short a words out of magnetic letters or letter tiles. Point to each letter and make its sound and then read the whole word. Make some more three letter words. Point to each letter and have your child say each sound with you. Then, read the whole word with your child. Make several more three letter words. Have your child point to each letter and say its sound. Then, have your child read the whole word.
- Use magnetic letters or letter tiles to make three letter short a words.
- Have your child build the words with magnetic letters or letter tiles.
- Write each word on a different sticky note. Stick the words on the walls in your child's bedroom. Give your child a flashlight and turn off the lights. Say a word or make and have your child shine the light on the word. Let your child tell you a word to find.
- Put some sugar, sand, shaving cream on a cookie sheet or plate. Have your child use his finger to "write" the words. Have him name each letter while he "writes" the word.
- Give your child a cup of water and a paint brush. Have your child use the water and paintbrush to write each word on the sidewalk. He should say each letter as he writes the word.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wogMY6FBrAo
https://youtu.be/qRCU7khOQvM
UNDERSTANDING NONFICTION AND FICTION TEXTS:
Help your child learn how to . . .
- identify a cause of an event/action in a nonfiction text. (Why did the snowman melt?)
- use the pictures in a nonfiction text to retell the sequence of events.
- use sequence words to retell the events in a nonfiction texts.
- ask "who," "what," "when," and "where" questions when reading fiction texts.
- with help from an adult, retell a story she has heard or read.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Read to your child daily!
- Ask your child questions that prompt him to share the causes of actions in his life. (Why do we need to take an umbrella with us today? Why did the
- Use picture cards to sequence events.
- When reading to your child, ask questions you want to know about the characters and events of the story. Encourage your child to ask questions too.
- Help your child make bag or stick puppets and use them to retell favorite stories.
WRITING PERSONAL NARRATIVES (True Stories about Me):
Help your child learn how to . . .
- say a word segment the sounds and write a letter for the sounds she hear.
- tell about a true event in her life by drawing it or telling an adult what words to write. (e.g., a birthday party, going on a trip, soccer game, or first day of school)
- make a drawing of who the story is about and where it happens.
- make drawings to show three events in order (first, next, last).
- attempt to write a sentence to describe each event. (I went to the park = I wt to the prc. I went on the slide = I wt n the s. I played tag. I pad tag.)
- use speech bubbles and thought bubbles to show thoughts and feelings of characters in the stories.
- write an ending that shows a feeling. (The park was fun = The prk wz f.)
- add color and details to the sketches to show more.
- to share his story with others.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Tell stories to your child about events that happened to you when you were her age.
- Encourage your child to tell stories to you.
- Ask questions related to sequencing. (What did you do first? What did you do after you went on the slide.)
- Encourage your child to segment the sounds in words and have her write a sound for each sound she hears. Be accepting of approximations.
- Ask your child questions that will bring out more details in the story. Encourage her to add these details to her drawings.
- Provide your child with different materials (crayons, markers, paint, etc.) to create her stories.
WORDS TO KNOW
- capital letter: a "big" letter; and uppercase letter
- character: the person or animal who acts out the story.
- consonant: a letter that is not a vowel
- event: something that happens
- experience: an event in your life
- exclamation point: a stop sign at the end of the sentence that is used to show a strong feeling
- period: a stop sign at the end of a telling sentence
- question: a sentence that asks something
- question mark: a stop sign at the end of an asking sentence
- reason: why someone feels, thinks, or does something
- setting: the time when and the place where a story happens
- speech bubble: a cloud over a character's head that shows what he is saying
- story: a text that uses characters, setting, and events to tell what happens
- thought bubble: a cloud over a character's head that shows what she is thinking
- volume: how loud or soft a sound is
- vowel: a letter that is not a consonant (a, e, i, o, u)
MORE WAYS TO HELP AT HOME
ONLINE RESOURCES
Reading Rockets
This is a great resource where parents can find information in helping their children become successful readers, writers, and thinkers.
Starfall
This is a website where kindergarten children can practice early reading skills.
ABCya!
This is a website where kindergarten children can practice early reading skills.
VIDEOS FOR CHILDREN
LIttle Bo Peep | Nursery rhyme for kids
Jack & Jill | Kids Songs | Super Simple Songs
STAR LIGHT STAR BRIGHT Song + Lyrics
One, Two, Buckle My Shoe | Best Kids Songs | PINKFONG Songs for Children
MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB Nursery Rhyme for Kids!
Reading machine, middle a, CVC words, blending 3 letter words, lowercase, phonics.
Let's Read! Three letter words with "i"
Short Vowel Letter i/English4abc/Phonics song
ig | Big Pig | Super Phonics | Pinkfong Songs for Children
Word Families 3 | Dan Ran | Phonics | Little Fox | Animated Stories for Kids
Word Families 4 | Dad Is Mad | Phonics | Little Fox | Animated Stories for Kids
Word Families 6 | Tag on a Bag | Phonics | Little Fox | Animated Stories for Kids
VIDEOS FOR ADULTS
Life Long Learning: Reading Skills for Kids
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTPereUFukE
Tips on Reading to Kids:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD9a6g2TE0
What to Do When Your Child Has Reading Homework:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=korfvEOQb14