TN SIG Toolkit.Indd
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A LITERACY RESOURCE KIT FOR PARENTS Families Helping Children Become Better Readers Tennessee State Improvement Grant 2007 The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services. This Resource Kit is the result of collaboration among many individuals. We would like to thank parents and children from Inskip Elementary School for telling us what parents need to know to help their children in school, for taking the time to test the information during their summer vacation, and for telling us what worked and what didn’t work. Editor: Reggie Curran Center for Literacy Studies Tennessee State Improvement Grant Advancing the Skills of Tennessee Students Kathy Strunk, Project Director E-mail [email protected] Telephone 615-532-1659 http://sig.cls.utk.edu Department of Education Division of Special Education 7th Floor, Andrew Johnson Tower 710 James Robertson Parkway Nashville, TN 37243 I T E L R A R C Y O F S T R U E D T I N E E S C The University of Tennessee Center for Literacy Studies 600 Henley Street, Suite 312 Knoxville, TN 37996-4135 1-877-340-0546 or 865-974-4109 (fax) 865-974-3857 http://cls.coe.utk.edu/ The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services. UT Publication No.: R01-1704-058-010-07 A LITERACY RESOURCE KIT FOR PARENTS Table of Contents ach section of the kit addresses a different area of information that can help your children succeed in school. Read the suggestions and use whatever appeals to you. Not every area will pertain to you—just use whatever makes sense and will help you to help your child. If an idea is not working for you and your child—if either or both of you are becoming frustrated—stop Eand go on to something else. You can try that activity again later, or you may decide it’s not appropriate. An activity doesn’t need to be used for a long period of time to be effective—five or ten minutes a few times a day adds up to time spent helping your child. SECTION 1: FAMILY INVOLVEMENT Purpose of this Resource Kit . 1 What Happens Outside of School Is Critical for Academic Success . 2 Home Literacy/Involvement Checklist . 3 SECTION 2: READING DEVELOPMENT How Do Children Learn to Read? . 7 Tips for Families to Prepare Children for Reading . 10 Reading First Basics. 11 Learning Standards for Reading in Tennessee Elementary Schools . 12 Helping Your Child Choose the Right Book . 35 Reading Suggestions . 36 SECTION 3: ACTIVITIES FOR BUILDING READING SKILLS Building Literacy into Everyday Activities . 43 Activities to Help Children Learn, Organize, Plan, etc. 46 Activities to Go Along with Books in SIG Kit. 78 SECTION 4: WORKING WITH TEACHERS AND SCHOOLS Working with Teachers and Schools . 97 Parent-Teacher Conferences . 98 Helping Your Child Prepare for Tests. 99 Monitoring Homework . 100 Report Card Checklist . 102 Additional Resources for Parents . 103 SECTION 5: SPECIAL NEEDS AND DISABILITIES Part I: General Guidelines for Children With Special Needs . 105 Children With Disabilities and Special Needs: Characteristics and Strategies . 107 Quick Information about RTI (“Response to Intervention) . 113 Part II: Suggestions for Parents of Children With Significant Disabilities. 115 Sample PLPs – Present Levels of Performance. 120 Other Resources . 121 Additional Literacy Resources for Children With Special Needs . 123 A LITERACY RESOURCE KIT FOR PARENTS SECTION 1: FAMILY INVOLVEMENT Purpose of This Resource Kit his resource kit is provided to you as a result of your school’s partic- ipation in the Tennessee State Improvement Grant. The strategies in the book are designed for you to use to help your child succeed in school. If you and your child are already doing most of these Tthings, hooray for both of you! If not, we hope you will consider trying some of these activities to see how they help. This book has activities and resources that will help you become more involved in your child’s education. The focus is on literacy; the ability to read, write and communicate. Literacy is important throughout life; we need reading and writing skills to be successful in school, but we also need to be able to read to l See the resources in the live our everyday lives. Reading helps us to communicate with others, make special education section for consumer purchases, understand directions and maps, enjoy good books, and engage in many other activities that improve our lives. Literacy is used during specific information about day-to-day activities to help us “get things done”. resources for families who have special needs. We have packed this book with ideas about how you can help your children be successful in school. There is information about how children learn to read and how to work with teachers and school personnel. There are activities you can use with your children to help to improve their reading skills; try out the activities and use whatever works for you and your child. If your child gets frustrated or tired, stop and try again later. Spending five or ten minutes of fun work is more productive than thirty minutes of frustration. Have fun using these ideas and discovering more ideas of your own! Throughout this manual there will be ideas and strategies that are specifically designed for families who have children with special needs. The l symbol will represent additional information that is intended to assist families who have children of all ages with various types of disability. In addition, a section has been added that addresses issues related to informing families of chil- dren with special needs about the special education process, including how to address literacy in a child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). SECTION 1: FAMILY INVOLVEMENT 1 A LITERACY RESOURCE KIT FOR PARENTS What Happens Outside of School is Critical for Academic Success What Can Parents Do At Home to Help Children Achieve? arents often ask what they can do at home to help their chil- dren achieve more in school. The way time is spent outside of the classroom is a powerful influence on what and how much children learn. The descriptions of families whose The way time is spent outside Pchildren are doing well in school repeatedly mention these examples of the classroom is a power- of what happens in their homes: ful influence on what and how much children learn. • Establishing a daily family routine – providing time and a quiet place to study; assigning responsibility for household chores; being firm about times to get up and go to bed; having dinner together. l • Monitoring out-of-school activities – setting limits on time If your child is non-verbal or has a spent watching TV or on the computer or surfing the internet; disability that prevents them from checking on children when parents are not home; arranging for sharing with you the activities of after-school activities. the day, ask for a journal between home and school that can be • Modeling the value of learning, self-discipline, and hard used for the teacher to give you work – communicating through questioning and conversation; information about your child’s day demonstrating that achievement comes from working hard and not so that you can interact with them giving up; using reference materials and the library. about the specific things they did in school. In the same manner, • Expressing high but realistic expectations for achieve- you can write short notes when ment – setting goals and standards that are appropriate for a your child participated in a family child’s age and maturity; recognizing and encouraging special tal- event that the teacher can use to ents; informing friends and family of successes. include your child in classroom discussions. • Encouraging children’s development and progress in school – maintaining a warm and supportive home; showing interest in a child’s progress at school; helping with homework 2 SECTION 1: FAMILY INVOLVEMENT A LITERACY RESOURCE KIT FOR PARENTS (but not doing it); discussing the value of education and possible career options; staying in touch with teachers and school staff. If your child is non-verbal or has a disability that prevents them from sharing with you the activities of the day, ask for a journal between home and school that can be used for the teacher to give you infor- mation about your child’s day so that you can interact with them l about the specific things they did in school. In the same manner, If you are interested in information you can write short notes when your child participated in a family regarding Disability Mentoring event that the teacher can use to include your child in classroom Day (800-280-STEP), contact the discussions. Parent Training Information Center. Introducing your child with special • Reading, writing and discussion among family mem- needs to adults with similar bers – reading, listening to children read, and talking about what disabilities is a great way to is being read; discussing the day over dinner; telling stories and encourage and motivate your child. sharing problems; writing letters, lists and messages. • Using community resources for family needs – enrolling in sports programs or lessons; introducing children to role models and mentors; using community services. From A New Generation of Evidence: The Family is Critical to Student Achievement. Henderson and Berla, 1995 Home Literacy/ Involvement Checklist Your home is where your young child gets his or her s your home literacy-friendly? Are you staying involved in your first experiences with books, child’s learning? As parents, you are your child’s first teachers, and where your growing and you have the greatest amount of influence on your child’s children see you as a model learning.