Encourage Reading At Home

Becoming a good reader is very important for your childs education. It is recommended that your child read 20 minutes every night. By doing this they will learn more, have a stronger vocabulary, write better, and become a better reader. However, many students lack the motivation. By trying some of the ideas in this packet, you can help encourage the love of reading in your child.

Jenny Allison [email protected]

Table of Contents

Reading at Home Tips Paired Reading Directions and Contract Fun Activities to do at home! Where to Start? A List of Recommended Reading for Sixth Grade

Use the Newspaper!

Word Wizard Learning about words is important to learning inside and outside school. The more words a child knows, the more the child will learn. What youll need: a newspaper, magazine, or a book What to do:

Have your child find a word in the newspaper, magazine, or book that he or she does not know or has not seen before. For example, your child may not know the word foretell (meaning "to predict or tell beforehand," as in, "The woman in red could foretell the future"). Your child might also find a word that is familiar but used in a new way. For example, the word boat means a small vessel used for getting around by water. However, when boat is used in the sentence, "The people were all in the same boat," it means "faced with the same problems." Ask your child to listen for a new word in everyday talk or look for a new word in the newspaper. Have your child find a new word or an old word used in a new way each day. Ask your child to keep track of the words in a special notebook.

In Laughing Order: The Comic Strips When children read about events, they must keep the major actions in order. Children can develop a sense for order while reading comic strips. What you need: Your childs favorite comic strip What to do:

Find a comic strip that you and your child enjoy. Before reading the strip, cut it out and separate the frames. Mix them up and ask your child to put the frames in the correct order. Once they are in order, have your child read the comic strip and tell you what the strip means or is saying.

Fables and Tall Tale Fun

Tall Tale Retell Children love to read and talk about tall tales--stories about events, people, and places that are bigger than life and not real. What you need: A book of tall tales What to do:

Have your child choose a tall tale to read. Ask your child to read it silently. Then ask your child to tell you how the tall tale reminds him or her of something that has happened in real life--at home, at school, or in the news. At another time, ask your child to tell you what the story is about--but ask your child to add something to the story that was not in the original story. Tell your child that you are going to be listening very carefully to guess the part of the story your child made up! Try to figure out the "tall tale" part that your child added to the story.

Lessons Learned An important part of reading is guessing what the lesson or theme of a story is. What you need: a collection of fables What to do:

Choose a short fable to read to your child. Read the story but stop before you get to the moral at the end of the story. Ask your child to state what lesson the story has to tell. Then read the moral (usually the last line of a fable). At the end of this game, talk to your child about the story. Were there any surprises in the story?

Everyday Reading
The Moose Cafe Opportunities for reading and writing are all around us--even when the subject is food. What youll need: menu What to do:

Go with your child to several restaurants to ask for free copies of their menus. Take them home. Ask your child to read several of the items on each menu with their descriptions. Ask your child to make up a menu for an imaginary restaurant--the Moose Cafe or the Tuna Bake Bistro--with creative descriptions.

Family Words Matter Reading and writing can enable family members to share important life stories. What youll need: Letters from grandparents and other family members What to do:

Select a family member whom your child knows well and likes. Ask the family member to write a letter to your child. The letter should tell a story, funny event, or something about your child. When your child receives the letter, have the child read the letter. Ask your child to write a return letter to the family member, telling a story or something about the family member that the family has told the child. Repeat the letter with another family member.

Reading at Home Tips

1. Read to and with your child. Schedule a set time each day. While reading out loud, read with enthusiasm. Take turns reading and ask questions. Try not to read too much at one time, just take it a chapter at a time. 2. Let your child pick material they are interested in. In the back of this packet is a list of recommended reading for sixth graders. 3. If your child finds reading frustrating, have books on tape in your home. There are many available in Jeffersons library. 4. Help your child see reading is important. Suggest reading as a free time activity. Set a good example for your children by reading newspapers, magazines, and books. 5. Set up a reading area in your home. Keep books that interest your child in places that are comfortable to them. 6. Talk with your child as you do your daily activities and ask your child to describe their day. 7. Restrict the amount of TV your child watches.

Paired Reading
Getting Ready 1. Explain the procedure. Before you begin paired reading, share a very simple explanation of the strategy with your student. Let the child see your enthusiasm and confidence in this procedure. 2. Agree on a time commitment. It only takes 5-15 minutes a day, 5 days a week for 8-12 weeks to strengthen your childs reading skills.

Lets Read 1. Let the child choose the reading material. The student will be more eager to read material that he/she has selected. 2. Use a starting signal. This is simple, like one-two-three, and gets you started together. 3. Adjust your reading speed to match your child. Dont surge ahead or lag behind. This is together reading. 4. Deal with simple mistakes by simply repeating the words correctly. After the child repeats the word, you can talk about the word meaning if you think thats needed. 5. Establish a signal for independent reading. When the child signals, follow along as he or she reads independently. 6. Praise independent reading. When the child signals, follow along as they read independently. 7. Wait 4 second for self-corrections, then give help if its needed. If the child hesitates, wait a while before helping with the correct pronunciation. Have the child repeat the word, then resume reading together until the child signals again to read independently. 8. Talk about the reading material. At natural stopping points, talk with the child about the meaning of the text: whats happening or whats been learned. Encourage your child to comment or ask questions.

Paired Reading Contract

We are going to do paired reading together 5-15 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week for 8-12 weeks. We will begin paired reading during the week of _______________________, and we will finish our paired reading during the week of ________________________.

The best times for us to do paired reading are: __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________

We understand that paired reading works best if its done for a short time several days a week for several weeks. That is what we plan to do.

Childs Name _______________________________________________________ Parents Name ______________________________________________________ Todays Date _______________________________________________________

Where to start?
A list of recommended books for 6th Graders

Action/Adventure 1. Holes: A boy being punished for a crime he didn't commit learns there's more going on at a juvenile
correctional facility than meets the eye

2. Chasing Vermeer: There's so much here to stimulate a child's mind: the codes embedded in both
the story and the illustrations, art history, pentominoes, the works of Charles Fort, mathematical patterns, and much more.

3. City of Embers: Part dystopian fantasy, part mystery, part code-breaking treasure hunt, this intriguing little story already has a sequel in the works.

4. Shadow Children Series: The Shadow children are third children, hidden from the population
police to keep them alive. In this futuristic society, there are severe penalties for having and harboring third children. Luke is a 3rd child, and though loved and wanted by his family, he discovers a life of isolation isnt a life at all.

5. Point Blank: Alex Rider is the youngest agent of MI6 and their secret weapon. In the second installment of this series, Alex is sent to investigate Point Blanc, an elite boy's school that enrolls the heirs of powerful men.

6. Escaping the Giant Wave: An earthquake, followed by a tsunami, hits the Oregon coast where
13-year-old Kyle is vacationing with his family.

Realistic Fiction 1. Maniac Magee: Jeffrey "Maniac" Magee is a young boy who had to deal with the horrific death
of his parents. After their death, he ran away from home and found himself in a small town plagued by racism.

2. Watsons Go to Birmingham: Readers come to know this funny, quirky family pretty well.
There is a kindness in all, even Byron, who tries to hide it, which induces in the reader a growing affection.

3. My Teachers Funeral: C'mon back to rural Indiana in 1904 and join 15-year-old Russell, whose
summer ends with the unexpected death of old Miss Myrt Arbuckle.

4. Because of Winn-Dixie: The summer Opal and her father, the preacher, move to Naomi, Florida, Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket--and comes out with a dog.

5. Freak the Mighty: Funny, scary, suspenseful, and wise, this book can help young readers accept
kids who seem different from them.

6. Bridge to Terabithia: Katherine Paterson (1977) tells a fascinating story of friendship.

Where to start?
A list of recommended books for 6th Graders

Sports
1. The Boy Who Saved Baseball: The future of the small town of Dillontown rests on the
outcome of the baseball game, and the Wildcats are woefully unprepared for the challenge. 1.

Baseball Card Adventures: Joe is able to use baseball cards to go back in time to visti famous baseball players from Babe Ruth to Jackie Robinson.

2. Million Dollar Shot: Eddie Ball lives in a trailer park in Louisiana with his widowed
mother. He gets a chance to win a million dollars in a shooting contest.

3. Heat: Michael Arroyo is growing up in the shadow of Yankee Stadium. He is the star pitcher
of his Little League team, dreaming of pitching them to the Little League World Series.

4. Roar of the Crowd: These books in the new Winning Season series follow two teams at
Hudson City Middle School, which sits in the shadow of New York City.

5. Matt Christopher Books

Fantasy/ Science Fiction 1. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: Four siblings discover a magical land in C.S.
Lewis classic Fantasy tale.

2. Once Upon a Marigold: this story is truly "part everything-but-the-kitchen-sink." 3. Tuck Everlasting: In many ways, the story is a fairy tale, with a magical spring, a kidnapped heroine, an enchanted handsome prince, and even a bittersweet ending.

4. Aquamarine: This book talks about a mermaid looking for her lost love on land. She has left
her dad and 6 sisters in the ocean to find her true love.

5. Spiderwick Chronicles: A pair of peculiar letters at the beginning of the book gently, but
firmly, pulls the reader into this story about three very ordinary children.

6. The Lightning Thief: Written from Percy's point of view in choppy, attitude-filled prose,
there are two levels of fun here.