5 Reasons to Put a Book in their Hands...EVERYDAY!

Teachers know books are the key.  

Teachers are quick to incorporate Read Alouds, both fiction and non-fiction, into lessons for reading skills, math, science and social studies.  Teachers provide students with books in guided reading small group sessions…and then they take it back.  WHAT?

...STOP…WHAT?  

Yep, they take it back.  "What if they lose a book?"  "What if they get mixed up with someone else's books?"  It is unbelievable to me, but ONE exposure to a book cannot be considered valuable or “best practice.”

Here are 5 reasons they NEED the books at their disposal EVERY DAY.

Practice.  If you want a child to be better at piano, you make them practice.  If you want a child to be better at soccer, you make them practice.  If you want to child to be better at dance, you make them practice.  If you want a child to be better at reading, you make them practice.  You would not give them a piece to play on the piano ONCE.  You would not have them kick a soccer ball ONCE.  WHY would you expect a student to become a successful reader with one glance at a book.  Students need to have the books from small group at their disposal to develop comprehension, fluency and expression.  They need practice every day...with new books every day!  I provided each student with a gallon-sized Ziploc(R) bag.  Each day they get give me the oldest book in their bag and they get a new book.  There are always 5 books in their bags.  They need LOTS and LOTS of exposure to text on their level!  Practice makes permanent.

Word wall words or sight words CANNOT be learned in isolation.  Well, they can be…but, why would you?  When students are just beginning to connect letters to sounds and sounds to words every connection made clear makes an impact on their learning.  Early readers, levels A – C, are sight word heavy.  Typically a word or two is repeated in predictable text can not only provide further practice with fluency, students are practicing sight words on every page.  As they become more and more familiar with these books the sight words become easily recognized and ingrained.

Responsibility is another key skill for early learners.  Giving them the responsibility of their book baggie allows them to have a part in their learning.  They need to bring the book baggie to the small group table.  They need to make sure their book baggie is put in the proper place.  They need to make sure their books are kept in the baggie.  

Independence is one of the most important skills students can acquire through books.  After a small group lesson students keep the book in their book baggie (a Ziploc® bag with their name).  These bags are kept in a specific place in the room.  When students are finished with their work, they can get their book baggie and sit in the classroom library to read.  They know how, when, and where to read their books and it’s up to them to do it.  

Finally, putting books in the hands EVERYDAY creates a routine of reading.  When the routine is created a love of reading can grow.  Students who know they will read every day and they will be successful every day.  Success feels good…so reading will feel good, too. AND THEN...love will grow!

Give them the books.  Don't be afraid!  It will make all the difference!

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May The Force Awaken Reading

The Star Wars bug hit our house this past year.  My husband finally felt that my girls were ready for all the Star Wars movies...and they were hooked. This led to also reading ALL the Star Wars books that they could get their hands on.  And through this, I learned that there is quite a variety of books that are available to all our different readers, learners, and Star Wars enthusiasts.

So in honor of "May the 4th (force),"  I am highlighting some of the Star Wars books that are currently out there.  It may not be an interest of mine, but as teachers, we always need to be on the lookout for books that are going to "hook" our readers in.  Especially the readers that are awfully hard to "hook."  Some of these books (or ones like them) may just do the trick.

Fiction stories...There is a wide array of book available that tell the different stories within the Star Wars movies.  These range from leveled books, bedtime story books, to chapter books.  Some books are illustrated, while others have photographs of scenes from the movies.

Jeffrey Brown has also put out some Star Wars books that explore a new side to Darth Vader...fatherhood.  They are humorous books that examine what Vader's household may have been like when Luke and Leia were younger. You will want to pre-read these books to ensure that the humor matches the age of your students.

Some graphic novels called "Star Wars Jedi Academy" were also written by Jeffrey Brown. The story is about a boy, Roan, that is rejected from pilot school and finds himself headed to middle school at a Jedi Academy.  Woven throughout the books are journal entries, notes, letters, emails, and much more.  These additions make it so much more than a graphic novel.

Nonfiction texts...It is really interesting that Star Wars is a fictional set of stories but there are so many books available that are written in a nonfiction style.  One example is the Character Encyclopedia.  It is a large book that is chuck full of information about the different characters within the movies.  Captions, labels, diagrams, photographs, and biographical information are all included.

There are also books that focus on the technical side of Star Wars.  Some of these books are thinner, with less challenging words for our younger readers.  They may include diagrams of the different ships, details about items sold in shops, or facts that compare and contrast lightsabers.

Although Star Wars books are not my first choice of reading material, they may just be a hot-ticket item for some of the students in my class.  And I know that many of us will do just about anything to reel our reluctant readers into this wonderful world of reading! 

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Inspiring Little Readers

Hi! I am Jonelle Bell from A Place Called Kindergarten. I teach Kindergarten in Ohio and am a mom to 3 sons. (Both rewarding and challenging jobs.) I am excited to be joining Adventures in Literacy Land as it celebrates turning 2. 

I look forward to sharing my love of literacy with the readers of this blog.

My expertise comes from 25 years of teaching and learning from little readers. There is no greater joy as a Kindergarten teacher than to watch 5 and 6 year olds gain the skills needed to become readers. From phonemic awareness, alphabet knowledge, concepts of print, listening comprehension, vocabulary to decoding and comprehension every milestone is a cause for celebration. 

(Read more about these skills in Jessica Hamilton's post HERE.) The list of skills little readers need to build a reading foundation is long, but they also need to think of themselves as readers and make connections to books and authors to fall in love with reading. 

We start the year off with establishing reading routines at home and at school. At the beginning of the year many Kindergarteners do not think of themselves as readers and reading may not be a part of their routine at home. 

Here are some things that I do to inspire my little readers...

Develop Family Reading Routines

It is important for early readers to spend time reading and being read to. One of the first things that I do at the beginning of the year is help parents understand the importance of making reading a part of their daily routine. Read to Your Bunny is a great book to read during your parent information night at the beginning of the year to establish the importance of nightly reading. 

"Read to your bunny...and your bunny will read to you."

Create an Interest in Characters and Authors

I have a huge book collection in my classroom. Most of the books go untouched until we spend some time reading about a character, learning about an author and making connections stories. Then...watch out...there becomes a frenzy for that character or author book box. 

-keep your book area organized by your students' interest

-make finding books and putting books away manageable

-keep a list of characters and authors displayed and make connections to them

-buy several copies of class favorites like...

               

Make Connections to Books

Connecting 5 and 6 year olds to stores, characters and authors make for some interesting conversations. I had a conversation with a student about how he is afraid to go to sleep at night, but is making a plan just like Scardey Squirrel does to help him fall asleep. Priceless!

Read Favorites Again and Again

Both at home and at school you need to read little readers their favorite stories again and again and again. During read to self I love hearing retells of Goldilocks or Pigeon stories, especially from my struggling learners. They are able to do this because we have read those stories several times. 

Readers and Book Lovers

I call my students readers and book lovers all throughout the year after we establish what it means to be a community of readers and book lovers. 

A community of readers is a place where children...

-want to read every day

-refer to themselves as readers

-choose books thoughtfully

-handle books carefully

-share favorite books with their peers

I love teaching literacy skills and inspiring my little readers! 

It is my hope that they will leave Kindergarten with the confidence to continue to think of themselves as readers and book lovers as they continue to grow in the area of literacy throughout school.

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