Oakridge Reads
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Preparing for “Real Life Reading”
In school, your teen will be challenged to read literature, social studies, and science texts. However, students learn about “real-life” text forms mostly at home. Show and discuss cell phone and credit card bills, tax and insurance forms, medicine labels, and online “user agreements,” GPS instructions, and car registration.
By the End of Sixth Grade, Your Tween Will Be Expected to:
- Cite evidence to support analysis and draw inferences from a text.
- Determine the meanings of words and phrases, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.
- Integrate information from different sources (for example, an article and a chart).
- Describe how a plot of a story unfolds in episodes.
- Compare and contrast texts in different forms (drama and poetry, for example) that cover the same theme.
By the End of Seventh Grade, Your Tween Will Be Expected to:
- Determine two or more central ideas in a text and explain their development.
- Compare and contrast audio and multimedia interpretations of a text.
- Analyze the reasoning of authors and the evidence that supports their claims.
- Compare fiction and nonfiction from the same time period.
- Analyze the elements of poetry, drama, and multimedia presentations.
By the End of Eighth Grade, Your Teen Will Be Expected to:
- Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing and speaking.
- Analyze how a text uses comparisons, analogies, or categories.
- Analyze the structure of a paragraph and the rhetorical purpose of different sentences.
- Analyze texts that present conflicting information on the same topic.
- Contrast modern and classic stories with similar themes.
Reading Activities for Ages 11-13
Encourage your older reader to pick up a book and read for pleasure with these 4 fun strategies:
1. Book Club
Start a book club with your teen Invite them to choose a book you’ll each read, and then you choose the next one. You’ll both be motivated to pick something the other will really enjoy. Don’t shy away from gross, silly, or even more difficult subjects (Gossip Girl or The Demonata, for example) books that your child might pick. Showing an interest in her literary taste — whatever it might be — is a sign of respect.
2. The Behind-the-Scenes Story
As your teen looks forward into their own future, they might start to identify with various celebrities. They may want to become a pro ball player or a scientist. Help them find age-appropriate biographies so they can learn all the facts about what it takes to succeed in the fields they are interested in.
3. Reading Rewards
Middle school students are often so busy that downtime is increasingly valuable to them. That usually means video games, TV, and talking on the phone. Reading for pleasure might be the last activity they want to do. Try making a deal with your teen. Together, make a list of books she wants to read this year. Develop milestones for reading with rewards your tween may enjoy.
4. Mom or Dad’s Executive Assistant
Planning a vacation? Ask your teen to do some legwork on the Internet. Ask them to research accommodations, driving routes, bus or plane schedules, or other necessary planning tasks. They will take pleasure in helping to make decisions for the family. You can translate this activity into research for buying a new television or finding a new public park to visit.
Reading for Fun
What do teens want to read online? Many teens enjoy celebrity gossip. Reading volume and endurance — often best developed by reading something you are interested in — is an important part of reading development. Common Sense Media has a list of celebrity sites with parent-friendly reviews. To take your teen’s interest in celebrities to a critical thinking level, try MyPopStudio. This engaging site offers savvy media literacy activities that help your teen understand the techniques that go into the creation of celebrity journalism.
Many teens may also enjoy sports sites. Complex, rich sites like NFL.com and MLB.com have new articles daily on sports news. While there are also videos and games that can keep your teens busy for hours, encourage them to read the news — the stats, quotes, and details will keep them in the know about their favorite players and teams.
Reading these sites is not a waste of time. Your teen is actually learning valuable skills. Using menus, navigating between pages, bookmarking pages, and skimming and scanning text are some of the reading and navigating techniques that they are developing and will serve them well in the future.
In addition to these websites, eBooks offer tweens and teens a fun way to explore many different subjects.
Reading for School
Of course, the Internet is the most important resource your teen has for doing research and reading to support his schoolwork. Familiarize yourself with your teen’s school resources on the web. Many teachers have a class blog, along with helpful links for your teen to use with school assignments.
For a list of reviewed reference sites, check out Great Web Sites for Kids, a list put together and reviewed by the American Library Association. Their selections cover history, math, science, languages, and more.
Recommended Books for 11-13
Looking for options your teen is likely to love? Try these titles, which hit on teen issues, but aren't excessively challenging to read. Or, share these edgy books.
Student Brag Spot
THE WISH by Barbara O’Connor
Have you ever felt like you didn’t belong or like you are left out? Then this is the book for you. Charlie Reese is sent to live with her aunt and uncle while her parents are trying to fix their mistakes. This book is about Charlie trying to fit into her new town and making new friends. My two favorite parts of this book are when Charlie meets Howard’s family (her new best friends). My second favorite part of this book is when she sees her sister after the move. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes the feeling of suspense and being able to picture what they are reading.
Cheyenne Joshi, Team 6-3