Download - How to Get Your Child to Love Reading
How to Get Your How to Get Your Child Child
to Love Readingto Love ReadingPart IPart I: Beginning Your Beginning Your Adventure in the Adventure in the World of Children’s World of Children’s LiteratureLiterature
Potato Power: The Art of Potato Power: The Art of Using Using What You’ve GotWhat You’ve Got
What can you teach with a potato?What can you teach with a potato?
Potato Power: The Art of Potato Power: The Art of Using Using What You’ve GotWhat You’ve Got
Why did the author write this?Why did the author write this?
Hat TrickHat Trick
Parents and teachers both wear big hats. Parents and teachers both wear big hats.
When parents and teachers work When parents and teachers work together instead of playing the blame together instead of playing the blame game, great things happen when it game, great things happen when it comes to literacy. Esme’s advice: “If comes to literacy. Esme’s advice: “If you don’t perform a hat dance, if you you don’t perform a hat dance, if you don’t step outside your assigned role to don’t step outside your assigned role to do something extra exciting, don’t do something extra exciting, don’t expect that others necessarily will.”expect that others necessarily will.”
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Potato Power: The Art of Potato Power: The Art of Using Using What You’ve GotWhat You’ve Got
Potato Possibilities:Potato Possibilities:
““Let’s not focus on worrying Let’s not focus on worrying whether or not a child is full. whether or not a child is full. Instead, let’s assume a child is Instead, let’s assume a child is hungry.”hungry.”
-Esme-Esme
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““Every single one of the outcomes of Every single one of the outcomes of literature-based education is literature-based education is something that a child’s teacher is something that a child’s teacher is hoping for and working toward every hoping for and working toward every day, so read-aloud is the perfect day, so read-aloud is the perfect home/school collaboration. Conflicts home/school collaboration. Conflicts often arise between teachers and often arise between teachers and parents when they forget they are parents when they forget they are working toward the same goals.”working toward the same goals.”-Esme -Esme
Bridging the Bridging the GapGap
Potatoes Up Close and Potatoes Up Close and PersonalPersonal
On Educational Theory – Behaviorism“I don’t like operating on instinct. If you know why you are doing what you are doing, you can do a better job of advocating for your approach if it works, or understanding why it doesn’t work and being more helpful next time. . .we are not reinventing the wheel here, we are trying to ride the bike.”-Esme
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Children’s Book Basics:Children’s Book Basics:Magic Pieces of Background Magic Pieces of Background KnowledgeKnowledge
Read-Aloud Works Every TimeRead-Aloud Works Every Time
What’s in it for me, anyway?What’s in it for me, anyway?
Relaxation Help my child achieve
Laughter Quality time with my child
Recognition Time with great books
Fun Knowledge of my children’s playmates
Pride A real view of classroom dynamics
Entertainment
Keep my New Year’s resolutions
Source: How to Get Your Child to Love Reading by Esme Raji Codell (2003)
Hints for Reading Out LoudHints for Reading Out Loud
Love the book yourself before you read it to Love the book yourself before you read it to the children.the children.Choose a book that lends itself to reading Choose a book that lends itself to reading out loud.out loud.Have high expectations.Have high expectations.Make read aloud time special.Make read aloud time special.Be versatile in your approach.Be versatile in your approach.Introduce the artists.Introduce the artists.Show the pictures while you read.Show the pictures while you read.Read with expression.Read with expression.Don’t over evaluate.Don’t over evaluate.Read aloud every single day.Read aloud every single day.Leave them asking for more.Leave them asking for more.Applause, applause!Applause, applause!
Kids Have Reasons for Reading Kids Have Reasons for Reading and These Reasons—or and These Reasons—or Motivations—Can Be MilkedMotivations—Can Be Milked
The Three The Three IIs:s:
Interest – what motivates a child to readInterest – what motivates a child to read
Integration – making connections to the Integration – making connections to the world beyond the bookworld beyond the book
Invention – The book holds the child’s Invention – The book holds the child’s interest, the child sees possible interest, the child sees possible connections to the world beyond the book, connections to the world beyond the book, and then the child decides to use that and then the child decides to use that interest and insight to create something interest and insight to create something new.new.
Your job is to connect children with books.Your job is to connect children with books.
There is a book for every job in the want ads. There is a book for every job in the want ads. Ask the right questions, and make the connections.Ask the right questions, and make the connections.
““What do you want to be when you grow up?”What do you want to be when you grow up?”““What do your parents do for a living?”What do your parents do for a living?”
““What do you like to do?”What do you like to do?”
Award Winners Are Children’s Award Winners Are Children’s Literature’s Royalty and Knowing Literature’s Royalty and Knowing
Them Is HandyThem Is Handy
““Readability, personal tastes and interests Readability, personal tastes and interests will dictate children’s visions of excellence, will dictate children’s visions of excellence, and will likely fluctuate with their and will likely fluctuate with their development.”development.”-Esme-Esme
Books that have won awards may not always Books that have won awards may not always appeal to children, but it can be a good place appeal to children, but it can be a good place to start because awards point out writing and to start because awards point out writing and illustrative above the ordinary.illustrative above the ordinary.
Web Sites That List AwardsWeb Sites That List Awards
AMAZON.COMAMAZON.COMAMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONAMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONASSOCIATION OF JEWISH LIBRARIESASSOCIATION OF JEWISH LIBRARIESBOOK SENSEBOOK SENSECARNEGIE AND GREENAWAY AWARDSCARNEGIE AND GREENAWAY AWARDSCATHOLIC LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONCATHOLIC LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONCHILDREN’S LITERATURE WEB GUIDECHILDREN’S LITERATURE WEB GUIDEINTERNATIONAL BOARD ON BOOKS FOR INTERNATIONAL BOARD ON BOOKS FOR
YOUNG PEOPLEYOUNG PEOPLENATIONAL BOOK FOUNDATIONNATIONAL BOOK FOUNDATION
Innovative Ideas
Invent your own award and hold your own Invent your own award and hold your own awards ceremony program.awards ceremony program.
Readability FormulasReadability Formulas
Kincaid Readability Formula(words/sentence X .4) + (syllables/word X 12) – 16
Fry Readability Graph100-word section of straight proseCount number of sentencesCount number of syllablesCompare to obtain grade level based on the graph (doesn’t account for content)
Reading levels can be useful for children in the midst of emergent literacy or when trying to find materials for children with special reading challenges, but they should not “define your child” or “level your child’s love of reading.”
Useful Useful InformationInformation
Speaking of LevelsSpeaking of Levels
Esme’s Easy Designations:Esme’s Easy Designations:
Primary – preschool through third Primary – preschool through third gradegrade
Intermediate – fourth through sixth Intermediate – fourth through sixth gradegrade
Older Readers – seventh grade and Older Readers – seventh grade and upup
Levels, Shmevels! In the World Levels, Shmevels! In the World of Letters, Numbers Can Be of Letters, Numbers Can Be Misleading: Misleading:
1. Have child choose a page in the middle of book with lots of text and make a fist
2. Have child read the page silently3. When he gets to a word he doesn’t know, have
him put out thumb4. For each unknown word, hold out another finger5. If three to five fingers are up at the end reading, it
means the book will be a challenge6. Let the child decide if he wants to try to read the
book anyway7. Pleasure reading should have 0-2 fingers up
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You Can Locate Long-Lost You Can Locate Long-Lost BooksBooks
www.addall.com
www.alibris.com
www.bibliofind.com
www.half.com
Amazon.com
Raise Your Hand If You Want Raise Your Hand If You Want to Volunteer in Your Child’s to Volunteer in Your Child’s SchoolSchool
Which type are you and what Which type are you and what (exactly) does that mean? (exactly) does that mean?
Type AType A
Type BType B
Type CType C
The Silent Scream: The Silent Scream: Adult Illiteracy in AmericaAdult Illiteracy in America
Congress developed the following definition Congress developed the following definition of literacy: “Using printed word and of literacy: “Using printed word and written information to function in society, written information to function in society, to achieve one’s goals and to develop to achieve one’s goals and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.”one’s knowledge and potential.”
- 40 million American adults in lowest functional - 40 million American adults in lowest functional levellevel
- 52 million American adults can barely read at all- 52 million American adults can barely read at all
Creepy Schools
““I have a teeny-weeny confession. I have a teeny-weeny confession. Sometimes schools give me the Sometimes schools give me the creeps. Too many rules. The creeps. Too many rules. The continual assertion of the continual assertion of the nonsensical idea that if the children nonsensical idea that if the children are having fun or making choices, are having fun or making choices, they aren’t learning anything.”they aren’t learning anything.”
-Esme-Esme
Imagine the possibilities. . .