Strengthen Comprehension Skills With The New Kung Fu Panda Movie

I just got back from seeing the new Kung Fu Panda Movie my family and thought it was a fun show.  I also thought wow...I could have done a little bit of background building with this movie before taking the girls to see it!  Here are a few good ways to develop background knowledge and build vocabulary:

(1) Go to the library and check out books on Kung Fu, China, and Pandas.  Ask your children to find one interesting fact from one of the books to the dinner table and share with the family.

(2) Use the computer and go to Google Earth and check out where the story takes place before going to the movie.

(3)  Brainstorm foods that your children think that the people in China may eat...you could even look up some information on the computer and create a list of foods or simple recipes.  Maybe, you are lucky enough to be able to order some Chinese take out and can taste some different foods for dinner.  Use this meal as a time to introduce vocabulary words.

(4) Watch the 1st Kung Fu Panda movie and then create a list of the characters in the first movie and then look for the characters in the new Kung Fu Panda.  After the movie check your list and see if any new characters were added.

(5) Take a few minutes and ask your child to retell the story to a family member. Encourage your child to include the beginning, middle, and ending of the story.  This will help with your child's comprehension skills.

(6) Ask your child to be a movie reviewer and rate the movie from a 1 to a 4 star movie and explain. Once they have created their review you can either email it to a family friend or print and save it in a summer movie journal. Check out a real child movie reviewer - Lights, Camera, Jackson.

Enjoy the movie ...but take advantage of the learning opportunities that abound in our daily lives.  Make it fun --they don't need to know that you are building background, improving vocabulary, and strengthening comprehension.

Good Books To Check Out:

                               

How To Get The Boys Reading

Don't sweat it....this  summer get the boys in your life reading.  Maybe, some of the ideas in this blog will help your boys become motivated to read and enjoy it! Research has found that not only are boys having difficulty reading but that their reading skills are also declining.  Educators and researchers have not pinpointed exactly why this is happening, however, there is some belief that reasons maybe biological and/or sociological.  The ray of sunshine within this research is that boys can and will read if the are allowed to read about what interests them. The key is find out what their interests are and build upon those interests with encouragement and patience.

Quick Tips

1.  Boys usually prefer non-fiction topics....animals, sports, science, space, volcanoes, weather, natural wonders, racing, etc..

2. Short stories or articles are great way to hook boys into reading.

3.  Don't forget about magazines.

4. Take advantage of the awesome websites for example...National Geographic, Discovery, Sports Illustrated For Kids, and many other age appropriate sites that are motivating because of the presentation. Boys may even read more than the short article they set out to read when they begin clicking on keywords of interest and are directed to other related articles.

5. Let them wiggle when you are reading together...boys tend to learn better when they can incorporate movement.  While reading aloud let your child demonstrate or act out a silly part of the story or clap their hands when they hear  rhyming words.

6.  Be supportive and enthusiastic about their interests...remember we are trying to motivate them to become lifelong readers.

Something to Think About.......

J

John Lennon

Getting Into The Swing of Reading With Summer Incentive Programs





Motivate your child with these incentive reading programs offered by numerous companies. 
Book Adventure Book Adventure is a FREE reading motivation program for children in grades K-8. Children create their own book lists, take multiple choice quizzes on the books, &  earn points and prizes for their successes.

Border's "Double Dog Dare"- children 12 and under can earn a free book after reading ten books. The "Double Dog Dare"  program runs May 4 - August 26, 2011.

Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program Imagination's Destination - kids earn a free book once they have read 8 books.  The children can download a free reading journal and there are also parent and educator resources available.

TD Bank Summer Reading Program -Check this out...earn $10 for reading 10 books this summer! Here is what they will have to do -Read 10 books this summer, write down the names of the books they've read on the summer reading form (found on the site), print and take the form to the nearest TD Bank to get $10 which will be deposited into a new or exsisting "Young Saver Account".

Pottery Barn Story Time Every Tuesday from 11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Members receive an official passport at their first Story Time, and a special gift after attending 5 Story Time sessions.

PBS Super Reading Event This June through July, more than 4,000 libraries across the country will distribute FREE SUPER WHY "Reading Packs" that include SUPER WHY bookmarks and a reading progress chart for your child. Be sure to visit your local library for details. This site also has a ton of useful and fun reading materials which you can download and print.

Scholastic Summer Challenge Help set a new world record for the number of minutes spent reading during the summer of  2011!!  The 20 schools with the most minutes will be featured in the 2012 Scholastic Book of World Records. Your child will need to log their reading minutes and reach the weekly reading goal to win digital prizes.

Chuckie Cheese Reading Rewards Your child can earn 10 free game tokens with any food purchase if they read daily for  two weeks period & record their time on a Chuck E. Cheese calendar.

I listed as many as I could find thus far...let me know if anyone out there finds another incentive program to add to our list.  Happy Reading and have fun!!

What Is The Summer Slide?

Every parent should know that children who do not continue to read daily will experience "the Summer Slide". What is the "Summer Slide"? Research has found that it is possible for children to regress in their reading by approximately 3 months. There are things that we can do as a family to keep our children from experiencing the summer slide...painlessly;) Let's face it for many of our children they are ready to "play hide and seek" when it comes to reading daily over the summer.  Here are some simply ways to help your child swing into the next year ahead, rather than sliding backwards:

1.  Be sure that your child has a book in their hands as soon as the summer vacation begins. Check out the library, thrift stores, or arrange a book swap in your neighborhood for books.
2.  Check out your local library for the summer children's programs that they have scheduled for the summer.  Be sure to sign yourself and your children up for library cards.

3.  Assist your child in finding a book that is at their independent reading level.  One of the main reasons students don't read or finish reading a book is that they are not reading a book at their independent level.  See your child's teacher for direction as to their reading level - they may refer to this as a Lexile Level. Use the following link to help you match the correct book with your child's reading level:  http://www.lexile.com/findabook/

4.  Use the technology....it is their world.  Reading digital media is reading!  There are many sites with digital book resources.  Here are just a few to get you started...
http://en.childrenslibrary.org/
http://www.magickeys.com/books/
http://pbskids.org/island/activities/stories.html

5. Plan a vacation with your family it can be a real vacation or a dream vacation and research the destination together.  Encourage your child to use both traditional resources and online resources to search and plan for the vacation.  Another fun idea is to pull out a map and read different stories of interest to your child and map the different locations of the characters from the stories ( a bookation).

Let me know what you think....

Summer Reading Tips From Librarians | Scholastic.com

Summer Reading Tips From Librarians | Scholastic.com

Check Out This Amazing Literacy Site

I know that it is the end of our traditional school year, but even though we are wrapping up this year many of us are thinking already about next year. Take five minutes and check out the following site: www.literacyhead.com This site is amazing in that it teaches literacy through art work. It encourages higher level questioning and greater depth in thinking. I discovered the site while attending the recent International Reading Association Conference.