A Wall Both Wider and More Porous

I'm sure you all received the email from Mrs. Davis today with these tips for keeping your good readers throughout the summer, but I wanted to post them here because I love them. They are from articles written by Beverly B. Swanson and Ellen Schwartz:

Continue being a good role model: Let your child see you read.

Keep a variety of reading materials in the house: Make sure to have reading materials for enjoyment as well as for reference.

Encourage your child to practice reading aloud: Frequently listen to your child read out loud and praise her often as she does so. Offer to read every other page or even every other chapter to your child. Have conversations and discussions about the book with your child.

Write short notes for your child to read: Write down his weekly household responsibilities for him to keep track of put your child in charge of reading the grocery list.

Encourage activities that require reading: Cooking (reading a recipe), constructing a kite (reading directions), or identifying a bird's nest or a shell at the beach (reading a reference book) are some examples.

Establish a reading time, even if it's only 10 minutes each day: Make sure there is a good reading light in your child's room and stock his/her bookshelves with books and magazines that are easy to both read and reach.

Talk with your child: Talking makes children think about their experiences more and helps them expand their vocabularies. Ask your child to give detailed descriptions of events and to tell complete stories.

Link books to summer activities: If you are traveling, put your child in charge of reading about the area/activity and sharing with the rest of the family!

Many children enjoy non-fiction: Match your child’s individual interests with a non-fiction book or magazine.

Pair books with movies: Read a book-rent the related movie-pop the popcorn and make it a family event.

Give your child writing materials: Reading and writing go hand in hand. Children want to learn to write and to practice writing. If you make pencils, crayons, and paper available at all times, your child will be more inclined to initiate writing activities on his own.

Restrict television time: The less time your child spends watching television, the more time he will have for reading-related activities.

Visit the library often: Have your child apply for her own library card so she can check out books on her own for schoolwork and for pleasure reading. Ask your child to bring home a library book to read to a younger sibling and encourage her to check out books on tape that she can listen to on long car trips.

Next week is Literacy Week (okay, so maybe that's just as far as I'm concerned, since we have Literacy Night on Thursday evening from 6:45-7:45 at Woodbrook). Expect to see some summer reading lists here on The Dojo next week for some strong suggestions for books to read for the eleven weeks of summer before they kiddos go to the middle school.

Have a great week, and remember to build people with a love of reading--even if it means you have to become one yourself. Seriously, it just makes you smarter.