BPE Monthly
January 2018
Raising Ready Readers - and Keeping Them That Way
A guide for parents and caregivers with some tips to encourage children to want to read - and keep on reading!
NEA and National Parent Teacher Association
TIPS FOR READING TO INFANTS AND TODDLERS
- Snuggle with your child and his or her favorite blanket or toys as you read.
- Read with expression using different voices for different characters.
- Emphasize rhythms and rhymes in stories. Give your toddler opportunities to repeat rhyming phrases.
- Use pictures to develop speaking vocabulary by talking about what is shown. Encourage your child to repeat what you say or comment on it.
- Encourage your child to ask questions. Provide models of interesting questions and examples of possible answers. “I wonder what is going to happen next? I think the rabbit will get lost because he is not paying attention to where he is going. What do you think?”
- Look for books that are about things that interest your toddler. For example, does your child like cars, insects, or animals?
- Make reading a habit before bedtime, after lunch, or after naptime.
- Give your child a chance to choose his or her own books for reading. If your toddler chooses a book that is too long to hold his attention, read some and skip some, discussing the pictures and how they relate to the story.
- Read stories again and again. Your toddler enjoys repetition and it helps him/her become familiar with the way stories are organized.
TIPS FOR READING TO AND WITH YOUNG CHILDREN IN SCHOOL, KINDERGARTEN THROUGH THIRD GRADE
- Keep reading to your child even when he can read. Choose books that are too difficult or long for him to read alone.
- Try reading books with chapters and talk about what is happening in the story. Encourage your child to make predictions about what will happen next and connect characters or events to those in other books and stories.
- Talk with your child about which stories she likes best. Ask whether she likes adventure stories, mysteries, science fiction, animal stories, or stories about other children. Encourage her to explain the reasons for her preferences.
- Talk with your child about favorite authors and help him find additional books by those authors.
- Take turns reading a story with your child. Don’t interrupt to correct mistakes that do not change the meaning.
- Talk about the meaning of new words and ideas introduced in books. Help your child think of examples of new concepts.
- Enjoy yourself and have fun when you’re reading together. The most important thing you can do to help your child become a successful reader is to let him know that you enjoy and value reading.
- Talk with your child about stories using the notions of the beginning, middle, and end of the story to organize thinking and discussion.
- Ask your child to tell why a character took the action that he did. Then ask him what in the story made him come to that conclusion.
TIPS FOR READING TO AND WITH CHILDREN IN GRADES FOUR THROUGH SIX
- Take turns reading a book with your child.
- Ask your child to compare a book to another familiar book. How are the characters alike or different? Do the stories take place in similar settings? How are the illustrations the same or different?
- Ask what part of the story or book your child liked best and why
- Ask if your child liked the ending of the story. Why or why not?
- Ask your child what type of mood the story or chapter in a book creates. Ask how the author created that mood. Was it with words? Pictures? Drawings?
- If your child has read more than one book by the same author, ask how the books are similar or different.
TO PROMOTE READING FOR ALL CHILDREN
- Set a good example as a reader—read every day at home even if it is a magazine or newspaper.
- Make reading fun—a time that you both look forward to spending together.
New Year's Resolution...Be Tardy-free
Need to Know....
We have built an extra co-cur rotation into our schedule this school year. Each grade level has a designated day of the week on which the students attend their extra co-cur class. Below is a schedule you may find helpful as you plan for your week.
The additional rotation is at 2:25 each day. The designated days by grade level are:
Kindergarten on Monday; 1st grade on Tuesday; 2nd grade on Wednesday; 3rd grade on Thursday; 4th grade on Friday.
The schedule below lists which co-cur rotation students will be attending each week over the next nine weeks. For example, the week of January 8th your student's extra rotation will be with the co-cur class they typically attend each Tuesday.
January 8 - Tuesday
January 15 - Wednesday
January 22 - Thursday
January 29 - Friday
February 5 - Monday
February 12 - Tuesday
February 19 - Wednesday
February 26 - Thursday
March 5 - Friday
Home Access Center (HAC) is Available as an App
Winter What Ifs...
The winter season is upon us. Our district staff understands that our decision to open or close schools in bad weather has a significant effect on families. We also understand that our students are better served – both academically and socially – by being in school. But as always, our top priority is the safety of our students.
The superintendent will make the decision to open or close the schools in bad weather by 5:30 A.M. based on analysis of all relevant factors, such as:
· Information on road conditions from transportation staff and from the police
· Amount of snow and ice accumulated
· Whether precipitation is continuing
· Building conditions (such as whether we have electricity and heat)
· Parking lot conditions
· Temperature and wind chill
· Weather predictions
· Sidewalk conditions
· What other school districts are doing
Families will be notified of decisions through a variety of media resources. Tune to WBAP-820 AM or KRLD 1080 radio, WFAA8, NBC5, FOX4, KTVT11 or KTXA21 television stations or KSTV for up-to-date information on school closings. Keller ISD does not recommend that you call the school or district office unless it is an emergency. You can also sign up for e-mail notification service through the district’s website. Check our district Web site www.KellerISD.net for information. A red alert bar will appear across the top of the KellerISD.net home page should campuses be closed