READING
SUMMER READING LISTS
ALMOST THERE
Teacher's Choice
HEY! CHALLENGE ME!
Fun Websites:
Cursive Handwriting for Kids Click Magazine Aesop Fables
Tumblebooks--online books The Stacks Ant Bee
Readquarium Time For Kids Storyline
Kids Reads A Europe Tales Children's Classics
Mighty Books Mrs. P Professor Garfield
Story Nory MysteryNet Peetnik Mysteries
Johnnie's Stories Bite Size Little Animals
Roy the Zebra Rhyme and Alliteration Affixes
PHONEMIC AWARENESS
Reading Rockets Songs For Teaching Blending Bowl
An Assortment of Phonemic Awareness Games
Reggie's Rhyme--Play this game with a parent or older child Clifford's Sound Match
PHONICS
One of the foundations of reading is "Phonics." Phonics is the skill of combining the sounds of language with the letters that represent each sound. For example, knowing that the letter "c" in the word "cat" makes a "k" sound is phonics. Being skilled in the area of phonics, a student can read more fluently which will then help with comprehension. There are many free websites and many for-fee websites and programs such as Hooked on Phonics. Below you will find some free websites to help your child with his or her phonics skills.
FLUENCY
Which do you prefer to listen to: reading that is halted, with-out expression, and boring or reading that is exciting, with feeling, smooth, fluid, and energetic? If you are like most people it would be the energetic reading. Not only do we as listeners find it more pleasing to the ear but the readers are also more likely to understand what they are reading about. Fluency is made of two parts: the speed and smoothness of the reading and the expression that is read with. Both characteristics are present in a reader that truly understands what they are reading. The follow chart shows how fluently a child should be reading by grade-level (reading from on-grade-level text):
VOCABULARY
Vocabulary is understanding the meaning of words spoken in conversations and read in books. The majority of words a child learns are learned accidentally. Due to this, there is a strong relationship between the amount of time reading and/or discussing with the number of words a student understands. A student who reads 20 minutes per day is exposed to approximately 1,820,000 words per year. "Talk (and reading) is cheap" and it REALLY works.
Along with spending time on independent reading, here are several websites for practicing vocabulary:
Comprehension
Now, this is the area of reading that you have most definitely heard about. On top of this, you are probably fully aware that comprehension is "understanding what is read." Easier said than done, right?
Within the category of reading there are several sub-categories, that readers need to master. The first two sub-categories are strategies and skills. Strategies are the "thinking" that readers use to make sure they are comprehending the text. Skills are items that are taught to students that can be identified during or after text is read.
Strategies
Strategies include:
decoding: sounding out unknown words
Summarizing: rewording what was read
Visualizing: creating pictures in one's mind of what is being read
Monitoring: Asking one's self, "Do I understand?"
Connecting: Recalling things that are similar to what one is reading
Questioning: Asking questions about what is being read
Predicting: Making educated guesses about what will happen next
Skills
Skills include:TUTORING
