November (English)

Dennis-Yarmouth Title I

From the Title I Coordinator Volume 1, Issue ii

recommendations on books for you. ◊ Set aside time for reading. Designate a time November, 2017 of day when family members can read for pleasure. Make reading a part of your family routine. ◊Make reading special. Children should feel as if having a book is special. Help them create a space for storing their books. However, if your child doesn’t show an interest or strong ability in reading, be patient, but do not give up. Reading should be viewed as an enjoyable activity. ◊ Use your local library. One of the best resources you will have as a parent is access to your community’s library. It costs nothing to borrow books. Many libraries offer story hours and other fun literacy activities. Make visits to your library a routine activity.

Yarmouth Libraries South Yarmouth—508-7600-4820 f you have any questions, please Parents play a specific role in their child’s literacy Yarmouthport—508-362-3717 contact me, Cookie Stewart, at 508- 778-7599 ext. 6204 or development by: creating a literacy-rich environ- West Yarmouth—508-775-5206 [email protected] ment; sharing reading and writing activities; acting Dennis Libraries as reading models; and demonstrating attitudes Jacob Sears—508-385-8151 toward education. A strong educational environ- Dennis Public Library—508-760-6219 ment at home can be a major factor in reinforcing the home-school connection. Limit television time. Monitior program selection Read to Your Child for your children. Discuss programs with them. As parents, you should know that shared learning Have a “NO-TV” night with your family on a regular and reading experiences are valuable gifts you can basis. Read magazines, write letters to relatives give your child. Reading is a key learning skill that living far away, play charades, or games as a will enable your child to become proficient in other refreshing alternative. areas. Reading aloud can also help your child be- Reminder: November 10th is a holiday. There come a better listener. will be no school in honor of Vetran’s Day. Reading doesn’t take a lot of time, either. As a parent, finding the time to read to or with your For parents having difficulty with mathe- child is not always easy. However, it is an invest- matics: ment that pays off in big dividends! Research shows that children who spend as little as You should be able to find some help at the 30 minutes a day reading books, magazines, and following; www.greatminds.org newspapers are more likely to become good read- Once you have arrived at the site, click on ers. the word math. When that page opens, click Raising a Reader: Getting Started on the word parents. You should be able to These easy-to-do activities are designed to build a find everything you need right there. solid foundation of family literacy at home.

◊ Know your children. Before selecting books, make sure you know your child’s reading abilities

and interests. Your child’s

teacher can help you with

the reading level, and the

teacher or librarian can make age-appropriate

Building Excitement and Success for Young Children November 2017 Dennis Yarmouth Title I Program

TOOLS & It’s still a triangle! TIDBITS Your youngster may I see a pattern here not realize that a yield “Breakfast, lunch, dinner, sign is a triangle—it’s just “upside breakfast, lunch, dinner” is down” from what she probably draws a pattern, and so are the as a triangle. Explain that any shape orange and black stripes with three straight sides is a triangle. on a tiger. Whether your Then, challenge her to draw as many child is spotting patterns different triangles as she can—long all around him or creating and skinny, short and wide, or point- patterns of his own, he’s sharp- ing left or right. ening his math skills and pre- Mission to the moon paring for future algebra. Your child will have a blast modeling Build a pattern phases of the moon. First, help him Give your youngster blocks in different find moon phases in books or online. sizes and colors. Challenge him to create Then, twist something with a pattern like a striped example, a yellow light tells you a red off the tops snake that repeats red, red, black, red, red, light will be next. of several black, red, red, black. Or maybe he’ll Roll a pattern cream-filled sandwich cookies. Let build a castle with a pattern of short and Play this number pattern game him use a plastic knife to carve the tall blocks around the edges of the roof. cream into quarter, crescent, and gib- together. You’ll each need 6 dice. To bous moons. How could he show a Spot the pattern start, each player names a two-number full moon or a new moon? Now, enjoy Take turns naming patterns in every- pattern using the numbers 1–6 (say, 5, the lunar snack together! day life. Your child might think of traffic 2, 5, 2). Roll your dice at the same time, lights (green, yellow, red, green, yellow, trying to be the first to form your pat- Book picks red) or seasons (winter, spring, summer, tern. If your youngster’s first roll is 1, 5, Your youngster can solve clever fall, winter, spring, summer, fall). Talk 6, 2, 6, 3, he should set aside the 5 and 2 word equations like “squirrels + _____ about why patterns are helpful (they for the first parts of his pattern. Then he = winter storage” in Mathematickles! let you know what to expect). For keeps rolling until he completes his (Betsy Franco). pattern with all 6 dice. Rosie Revere’s Big Project Book for Bold Engineers (Andrea Beaty) shows Play the plastic cup children that being a successful engi- How can a plastic cup be a musical instrument? With neer involves a lot of trial and error. this activity, your youngster will learn that the secret is in the vibrations. Just for fun Help your child loop a rubber band across the top and under Q: What’s worse than finding a worm the bottom of a plastic cup. If she plucks the rubber band, in an apple? she’ll hear a noise. Let her try plucking over the opening of the cup and then along the sides of the cup. She’ll see that A: Finding half she can change the “music” by changing where she plucks a worm! her “instrument.” Ask her what makes a higher sound or a lower sound. What happens if she adds more rubber bands? The science: You can explain that when she plucks the rubber band, it causes vibrations, and vibrations make sounds. At the opening of the cup, she’s mostly vibrating air. On the sides, the cup itself vibrates. And just like strings on a guitar, each makes its own sound!

Place these stories in a bowl at Relay race for a start line on the floor or ground. Then for each player (or team), the difference put a pile of 20 objects (marbles, beads) a few feet past the start, A great way for your youngster paper and pencil a few feet later, to understand any math problem is and another sheet of paper and a to first act it out with objects, then pencil a few feet beyond that. draw it with pictures, and finally write it with numbers. This relay Let’s play. Have two players or race is a fun way to try this approach two teams line up. On “Go,” the with subtraction. first players each grab a subtraction story and race to the objects to Set up. Help your child write 12 subtraction stories on sepa- create the math problem. For example, they would gather 10 rate slips of paper. Example: “You have 10 marbles. You lose 6 marbles and move 6 marbles away. Next, they use the paper of them. How many are left?” and pencil to sketch the problem (draw 10 marbles, cross out 6 of them). At the last station, they write the number sentence PA R E NT (10 – 6 = 4). Players race back so the next players can go. The TO first team to solve six story problems all three ways wins! PA R E NT Write your math MATH Which mug holds more? “autobiography” CORNER For a hands-on way to explore capac- My son Jamal was assigned to write ity, challenge your youngster to find the mug that his “math autobiography”—a story holds the most liquid. about his life using as many numbers as Help him take mugs of different sizes and possible. He said his teacher wanted the shapes out of your cabinet. Have him line them kids to see how numbers are everywhere up in order from the one he thinks will hold the least in their lives. water to the one that will hold the most. Let him sketch or Jamal’s take a photo of his predicted order. story To check his predictions, help him fill each mug to the brim with water and included then pour the water into a large measuring cup. He can record the amount each his age (7), mug holds—its capacity—in ounces or cups. his little sis- Now he should rearrange the mugs by capacity in the correct order. He could ter’s age (3), the draw them or take a picture. How close did his predictions come? number on his T-ball jersey (15), and his favorite number (11). After he read his story to us, I asked if he’d write “math biographies” for the rest of our family. Jamal asked lots of questions to get SCIENCE Reaction action the right numbers. For his sister, he LAB Your youngster will What happens? Several inches will wrote, “When Kaya was 6 months old, delight in this simple “slip through her fingers” before she she got her 1st tooth. Now she has 20!” drop-and-catch experiment that mea- catches the ruler. As she practices, she’ll His dad’s biography tells about his fam- sures her reaction time. likely catch the ruler quicker. ily moving to the United States when he was 9 years old—and that they traveled You’ll need: ruler Why? Our brains take in information like seeing the ruler fall or more than 6,000 miles to get here. Here’s how: Have your child hold the feeling our fingers let go of Next, Jamal is going to write the biog- ruler vertically, grasping the 0-inch end it. The brain then tells the raphy of our cat. He has already asked with her finger and thumb. Tell her to hand to grab the ruler. if it’s true that cats have 9 lives. let go of the ruler and catch The time in between it with that same hand OUR PURPOSE is called reaction time. To provide busy parents with practical ways to as quickly as she can. With practice, the reac- promote their children’s math and science skills. Together, read what inch Resources for Educators, tion becomes a habit— a division of CCH Incorporated mark her fingers end up so it doesn’t take her 128 N. Royal Avenue • Front Royal, VA 22630 on. Have her repeat the 800-394-5052 • [email protected] brain as long to figure www.rfeonline.com experiment 10 times. You out what to do. ISSN 1942-910X could take a few turns, too. © 2017 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated Home&School ® Working Together for School Success CONNECTION November 2017 Dennis Yarmouth Title I Program

SHORT NOTES Practice patience Patience is a lifelong Doing my own homework skill that will help your youngster in When your child is school—and in life. The key is know- the one responsible for ing how to pass time pleasantly while her homework, she waiting so he doesn’t feel anxious or will form good habits frustrated. Together, come up with that will benefit her special “waiting activities” like saying throughout her school the alphabet backward or counting career. Use these tips to down with the crosswalk sign. help your youngster be A future job independent at home- Help your child make the connection work time. between school and the career she Your child’s job: Let could have someday. Point out work- her choose a usual place ers using school subjects like a nurse and time for homework. writing on a chart or a TV weather That will make her more forecaster describing a cold front. likely to stick with her routine. How to help: If your youngster gets Also, friends and relatives might tell She may want to work at the kitchen table stuck, suggest that she reread the direc- your child what they studied in school after school or at her desk after dinner. tions or look for similar examples in her and how it’s related to their jobs. How to help: Make sure your family’s book. Offer to play study games with her. See that illustration? evening activities don’t interfere with Also, check to see that her homework is Understanding the meaning of images homework time. From time to time, ask finished. in books, magazines, and newspapers your youngster whether she needs more Your child’s job: It’s up to her to hand will boost your youngster’s reading supplies, such as pencils, erasers, mark- in completed work. She can find a way comprehension. To build visual literacy, ers, or glue. to remind herself, maybe by posting a ask your youngster to explain what’s Your child’s job: She should tackle note on her backpack. happening in illustrations and graph- How to help: ics. He might even enjoy making up homework on her own. Not only will this Together, choose a visible his own captions. help her learn, it will also show the teacher spot to keep her backpack and anything how well she understands the material. else she needs for school.♥ Worth quoting “Adventure is worthwhile in itself.” Amelia Earhart An attitude of gratitude Around Thanksgiving, people often talk about what JUST FOR FUN they’re thankful for. These activities can inspire your Q: What does even the most careful youngster to express gratitude now—and all year long. person overlook? On the calendar. Brainstorm categories of things to be A: Her nose! grateful for, such as people and nature. On a calendar, list one category per day for a week. Then each day, have family members name something they’re grateful for in that category (a healthy grandparent, a beautiful fall day). Behind the gift. When your child receives a gift, ask him to think about what the giver put into it. For instance, if his aunt sends him a sweater that he doesn’t like, he might say it was nice that she took the time to find out what style is popular with kids his age.♥

Be considerate Be a good school citizen Part of good citizenship is Your child can make his treating others the way you school a better place to learn want to be treated. Ask your and play by following school child to share examples of con- rules and being considerate siderate things he did today. of his fellow students. Encour- Maybe he got off a playground age him to be a good school citi- swing so another student could zen with these ideas. have a turn. Or perhaps he waited quietly before speaking up in a Follow rules group and listened to others without interrupting. Have your youngster name school rules, and discuss what would happen if they didn’t exist. What if no one had Do your part assigned seats? (People might waste time deciding where to Every school citizen has an important role to play, and help- sit.) What if students could run in the hallways? (They might ing teachers and classmates is a part of that role. Suggest that get hurt.) He’ll see why it’s important to follow the rules— your youngster draw himself doing classroom jobs like feeding ♥ just like people must obey laws. the class guinea pig or delivering papers to the office.

Design a city ACTIVITY PARENT Sparking CORNER If your youngster could create TO her own city, what PARENT curiosity would it look like? Suggest that she pretend My daughter to be an urban planner. She’ll use thinking, Hailey used to be curious about every- planning, math, and engineering skills as thing from whether butterflies dream she follows these steps. to why she has curly hair. As she grew 1. Pick a location. Have your child decide where her city will be located. It older, she didn’t ask as many questions. could be near an ocean, in a desert, or even in outer space. I wanted to keep her curiosity alive—so I decided to start asking her questions. 2. Add services. Encourage her to consider where people will live, work, grow For exam- food, and spend free time. Also, how would they get around? They might travel by car, ple, when we subway, bike, hovercraft, spaceship—or use an entirely new form of transportation. saw ants carry- 3. Make a plan. Let her draw a map of her city, revising it until she’s satisfied. ing big leaves, I wondered aloud 4. Build and play. Suggest that your youngster make a model using household materials (construction paper, empty boxes, paper towel tubes, plastic cups, string). how they can hold ♥ stuff that’s bigger She can see how her city functions by adding toy people, animals, and vehicles. than they are. Hailey looked it up, and she was proud to teach me that ants’ muscles are thicker than ours compared Q A successful parent-teacher conference to their body size. And these muscles & Q: I’m attending the parent-teacher your son likes about school. Example: don’t have to support much body weight, A conference for my son this month. “Dylan loves science. He especially freeing them up to hold other things. How can I get the most out of it? enjoyed learning about polar bears.” Hailey enjoys telling me facts I don’t Listen closely to find out where your A: First, write down what you want to know. We are both learning new things, youngster is doing well or where he needs say before you go. List any questions and she’s discovering that you’re never to improve. Ask how to support his learn- ♥ you have. Also, include information to too old to be curious and ask questions! ing at home—perhaps by helping him help the teacher learn more about your review math facts. OUR PURPOSE child, such as the Finally, agree on To provide busy parents with practical ideas kinds of books he that promote school success, parent involvement, how to follow up reads or activities and more effective parenting. throughout the Resources for Educators, he’s involved in. school year so you a division of CCH Incorporated Then, be sure to 128 N. Royal Avenue • Front Royal, VA 22630 can stay connected 800-394-5052 • [email protected] arrive on time, and and help your child www.rfeonline.com set a friendly tone by do his best.♥ ISSN 1540-5621 mentioning something © 2017 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated November 2017 Dennis Yarmouth Title I Program

Read-aloud favorites For reading out loud! ■ The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors (Drew Daywalt) Reading aloud to your youngster Rock, Paper, and Scissors are great builds listening skills, improves warriors in their own kingdoms— reading comprehension, and with one problem. Their opponents encourages her to love books. Try aren’t challenging enough! This these three strategies for fitting humorous legend tells how they in at least 20 minutes a day of found each other and the game Rock, read-aloud time. Paper, Scissors was born. Little by little ■ Look at That Building! A First In a time crunch? That’s okay. Even short bursts of Book of Structures (Scot Ritchie) reading throughout the Tag along with day add up. Read a five friends as chapter before school— they set out perhaps while your child to build a is getting ready or during doghouse for their pet. Blending breakfast. Squeeze in a few jokes fiction with nonfiction, this book from a joke book or facts from a includes ideas readers can use to build trivia book before dinner. Then, w a miniature doghouse of their own. MY TALE wrap up the day with a picture book ■ Andy Shane, Hero at Last or two at bedtime. Dreaming up an autumn rebus story—a story where pictures replace some words— (Jennifer Richard Jacobson) Two for one gives your child a creative way to practice Andy isn’t sure he can win a bike- Reading doesn’t have to be a writing. decorating contest stand-alone activity. Add a read- First, help him choose a fall topic like against his friend aloud to other things you and your raking leaves or watching squirrels gather Dolores. But as the youngster are doing. Read a book nuts. As he writes, he can substitute a pic- children ride their about different kinds of transporta- ture for at least one word in each sentence. bikes in the town tion while riding the subway. Share Examples: parade, Andy has a the directions for a craft project chance to be a hero and save the day. while you work on it together. “I used a to make a giant pile of .” Part of the Andy Shane series. Weave in a story during bath time. “The ran up the to get an ■ National Geographic Readers: Family affair .” Storms (Miriam Busch Goin) Invite other family members to If he repeats a word What causes tornadoes, hurricanes, read to your child—that counts that he has replaced, and other storms? This book about toward the 20 minutes per day, too! he could draw the Mother Nature’s fiercest weather has Your youngster can connect with same picture. the answers. Simple explanations, pho- them by phone or with a video app When his story tographs, and quick facts help readers (Skype, Facetime). Before Grandma is complete, ask understand the science behind wind, reads over the phone, you could him to read it to rain, lightning, both get the same book from the you. What will his and more. (Also library. Or during a video chat, next rebus story available in remind Uncle Dave to hold up the be about?♥ Spanish.) book and share the pictures with your child.♥

Share. Invite your child to A is for ... show you what he gath- Hunting for objects that start ered. As he names each with a certain letter lets your item, talk about the vari- youngster explore the alphabet ous sounds the letter and letter sounds. Here’s how. makes. For instance, how does a sound in ape? What Collect. Have your youngster about in apple or art? label a paper lunch bag with Continue. “Aa.” Then, he can fill the bag Tomorrow he can with small objects, pictures cut label a bag “Bb” and hunt from magazines, or index cards again. After 26 days, he’ll with words printed on them—all have a complete collection beginning with the letter A. of ABC bags! Tip: Gently correct him if something doesn’t belong. For example, if he collects an elephant on “U” day, sound out the word together. Can he name the correct letter for it now?♥ Story VIPs It’s all in the details! Sound-alikes Boost your child’s reading comprehension by helping her pick out the This simple activity teaches story details that really matter! your child the meanings Read a book together, and encourage of homophones—words that sound the same her to identify the VIPs (Very Important but have different meanings and spellings. Parts). If she’s not sure, ask, “If this Materials: paper, pencil, index cards, crayons detail were missing, would the story be Together, list all the homophones you can the same?” For instance, in Goldilocks think of. Examples: blew/blue, toad/towed, pair/pear, hare/hair. and the Three Now, have your youngster come up with a sentence that uses both words of a Bears, the pair. For blew/blue, she might imagine “A soccer player blew a blue bubble.” She can detail “She draw a picture on an index card to illustrate it. Then, help her write the sentence on walked into the back of the card. Encourage her to make a card for each set you thought of. the living Idea: Suggest that she use the cards to play a guessing game with friends. They room” is could take turns picking a card and displaying the picture for the other players. nice to Who can name the words that are homophones?♥ know, but it isn’t necessary to the story. But “Goldilocks woke up and saw the three bears” is a VIP. Your child You’ll love this cereal! can write each VIP on a star cut from construction paper. Recently, my son a mascot and added a slogan, “A berry Afterward, let her arrange the stars in Billy said he wanted good way to start your day!” He even order from start to finish and use them to rename his favor- printed an ingredient list on one side and to retell the story. As she goes, she could ite cereal “Billy’s Blueberry Crunchies.” wrote a recipe on the back—which were add stars for any important parts she That gave me an idea. Why not let him good ways to get in what his teacher calls missed or take away ones that aren’t nec- redo the whole box? “informational writing.” essary for the tale.♥ I covered an empty cereal box with Billy had so paper and suggested that he redesign the much fun that we OUR PURPOSE package to persuade other kids to make hunted through the To provide busy parents with practical ways it their favorite cereal, recycling bin for to promote their children’s reading, writing, and language skills. too. First, he wrote other containers he Resources for Educators, “Billy’s Blueberry could “make over.” a division of CCH Incorporated 128 N. Royal Avenue • Front Royal, VA 22630 Crunchies” on the I never thought 800-394-5052 • [email protected] front in big blue such a simple idea www.rfeonline.com letters. Then, he would encourage ISSN 1540-5648 drew a bluebird as so much writing!♥ © 2017 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated Reading Readiness • November 2017 ®

How Families Can Help Children Get Ready to Read Dennis-Yarmouth Regional School District Title 1 Get your child involved when you Enrich your child’s library visits The public library is a read actively great source of read- To make the most out of reading with your ing opportunities. To child, try to engage him as you read make sure your child and talk about the stories. He will is reaping the benefits get more out of the story if he is of the library: actively involved, rather than just • Sign him up for a library card and listening and looking. check out books regularly. Here are some ways to • Ask the librarian to suggest books. encourage your child’s • Explore the library’s other offerings, participation: such as DVDs and audiobooks. • Ask about what he sees • Attend story time and other events or notices on the page. held at the library. “What animal is this? Source: L. Newton, “Benefits of Trips to the Library,” What is it doing in this families.com, niswc.com/library_trip_benefits. picture?” • Expand his response by rephrasing it and asking Create a cozy spot for for more information. “The duck is peeking out of the pond. Why do you think it’s your child to read doing that?” Help your child desig- • Rephrase the question to see what he has learned. “What was the nate a special reading duck looking for when he was in the pond?” spot. Whether it’s her Source: G.J. Whitehurst, “Dialogic Reading: An Effective Way to Read to Preschoolers,” own special chair or a blanket Reading Rockets, niswc.com/reading_aloud_actively. on the floor, set aside a place for her to look at books. If she likes it, it may “The world is full of magical places, and the library has even encourage her to read more! always been one of them for me.” —Julie Andrews There’s always time for language fun It doesn’t take a long time to help your Provide activities to make your child think child build language The more critically your child is able to think, the better skills. From having the reader she is likely to become. Try these activities to conversations and boost her thinking skills: reading stories to singing songs • Give her puzzles to solve. Break out the jigsaw puzzles and and playing rhyming games, language- get busy! Once she masters puzzles with just a few pieces, rich activities will put him on the road try some that are more complicated. to reading. • Tell riddles. What has two hands but no feet? A clock! These activities help your child: What gets wetter as it dries? A towel. See if your child • Broaden his vocabulary and knowledge can figure out these and other brain teasers. of words. • Play with patterns. Use coins or other small objects to • Sharpen his memory and listening skills. make a pattern (like nickel, quarter, dime, nickel, quarter, • Expose him to different sounds in words. dime). See if your child can continue it correctly. Source: D. Davis, “Easy Ways for Families to Help Children Learn,” Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, niswc.com/learning_literacy_activities.

Spend time playing rhyming Choose advanced books for read games with your child alouds with your child Rhymes are a terrific tool for boosting your child’s language learning. Carve out some When selecting books “rhyme time” each day and play: to read to your child, • Change the Name. Rattle off the names don’t be afraid to of everyone in your family, and then look beyond her challenge your child to invent rhymes for each one. See who reading level. When can come up with the silliest one! you read aloud from books that are above • What Do I See? Think of an object in the room and give your her reading level, you: child rhyming clues about it. If you want him to guess the word table, you might say “I see a nable ... a wable ... .” If you can, use • Expose her to new vocabulary words. • Introduce her to complex some real words as well as nonsense words. and different • Roses Are Red. Use the classic verse as a jumping-off point for concepts. • Encourage her to explore creating new rhymes. “Roses are red, violets are blue … .” Now other higher- what? level books. Source: L.K. Rath, Ed.D. and L. Kennedy, The Between the Lions Book for Parents, HarperCollins. Books to delight your early reader • Big Friends by Linda Sarah and Benji Make reading fun to inspire a love of reading Davies (Henry Holt and Company). Birt and Etho take two big cardboard When story time is exciting, your child will look forward to boxes out each day and sharing this special time with you. To make reading together pretend they are pirates, enticing: astronauts and more. • Make it entertaining. Story time One day, a boy named shouldn’t be a chore—it should be Shu comes up the hill a delight! Be playful when reading with his own giant with your child. cardboard box. • Put your child in charge. Let her choose which books to read—even • A Place to Read by Leigh if she always picks the same ones. Hodgkinson (Bloomsbury USA You may cringe at the thought of Childrens). A young reader is in reading a particular tale over and search of the ideal reading spot. He over, but it is beneficial for your looks all over to find the perfect child to hear repeated stories. location. • Mix up your location. Who says story • How to Dress a Dragon by Thelma time has to happen inside? Grab Lynne Godin (Scholastic Press). Take a blanket and share books in the note of these helpful hints in case backyard or park! you need to dress a dragon—for example, dragons prefer shorts to pants and capes to shirts. : My child doesn’t always feel like reading stories. What Q other reading-related activities can we do? : There’s no limit to the reading-related fun you Building Readers® A can have. Listen to audiobooks. Act out favorite How Families Can Help Children Get Ready to Read Publisher: L. Andrew McLaughlin. stories with finger puppets. Make bookmarks. Host Publisher Emeritus: John H. Wherry, Ed.D. a “book character” tea party using your child’s Editor: Stacey Marin. stuffed toys. And when your child is in the mood to read, settle in Copyright © 2017, The Parent Institute® (a division of PaperClip Media, Inc.) together with a story! P.0. Box 7474, Fairfax Station, VA 22039-7474 1-800-756-5525, ISSN: 1531-48981533-3299 Do you have a question about reading? Email [email protected]. www.parent-institute.com

Book ■ My Side of the Mountain Picks (Jean Craighead George) Building word power It’s the 1950s, and Sam Did you know that a doesn’t want to live in his cramped strong vocabulary paves New York City apart- the way for your child to ment with his fam- become a fluent reader, a ily anymore. He better writer, and a more runs away to the confident speaker? Try Catskills and these everyday strategies to learns to live increase your youngster’s on his own. A word power. coming-of-age story for young nature Create crosswords lovers. (Also available in Spanish.) Encourage your child to make ■ Science in Ancient Egypt a crossword puzzle for you to solve. (Geraldine Woods) She’ll boost her vocabulary as she col- Does your youngster know that lects unfamiliar words from books and might realize that principal is the amount ancient Egyptians used uses dictionary definitions to write of money you have. Or a recycling sym- the sun to tell time, made clues. Idea: Have a crossword puzzle bol near the car wash chemicals may be a paper from plants, and night. Get crossword puzzle books from hint that biodegradable relates to environ- designed tools the dollar store. Take turns reading clues mental conservation. aloud, and fill in the answers. Or make to lift and move Make a word wall your own puzzles, and swap. heavy objects? Set aside a bulletin board or a space This nonfiction book explains many Search during errands on a kitchen wall where family members things we have learned from this long- At the bank, supermarket, or car wash, can post interesting words they read or ago civilization. ask your youngster to be on the lookout hear. During dinner, talk about where for new words. Can she figure out the ■ Trauma Queen (Barbara Dee) you found the words and why they’re meaning of words like principal or bio- Thirteen-year-old Marigold wants to interesting to you. Then, try to sprinkle degradable by using context clues? For go to school, make friends, and, most the words into your conversation. Each instance, if a sign at the bank says, “Inter- of all, avoid embarrassment. That’s week, have every person choose her est is paid on your principal monthly,” she hard to do with the unusual way her favorite new word. mother teaches the drama class at her new school. A hilarious look at Host a poetry slam mother-daughter relationships. This family “poetry slam” lets your child enjoy poetry and practice speaking in front of others. ■ A Bad Case of the Giggles Find. Have your youngster pick out poetry books from (Compiled by Bruce Lansky) the library or print poems from websites. Then, each fam- This funny collection of poems on ily member can choose one to memorize or read. everything from stinky feet and hic- cups to spaghetti and hand-me-down Perform. On the big night, take turns performing your poems. clothes is practically guaranteed to For extra fun, use props. Your youngster could juggle strawber- make readers love poetry. Includes ries while reciting “Wild Strawberries” (Shel Silverstein) or hold more than 60 an umbrella and a stuffed elephant as he recites “Behold the Bold poems by Umbrellaphant” (Jack Prelutsky). numerous Discuss. Boost your child’s reading and listening comprehension by poets. talking about the poems. Ask questions like “What do you think the poem’s mes- sage is?” or “Why do you think the poet chose that topic?”

2. Add details. Suggest that What’s the scoop? your youngster dig for details Encourage your youngster to practice that support and clarify facts. informational writing by pretending he’s Prompts like “Tell me more a “roving reporter” when you visit with about…” and “Could you relatives this month. These steps will explain…” may lead him ensure he gets the scoop on all the fam- to discover which foods his ily news that’s fit to print. cousin tried on his trip to Korea or what inspired his grand- 1. Ask questions. Have your child mother to run a marathon. list the six questions reporters ask: who, what, when, where, why (the “5 Ws”) and 3. Check facts. Your child how. He can use them to think of questions should consult books or websites when he interviews family members. Examples: “What school to confirm information. For example, he could check the did you go to?” “When did you graduate?” ingredients for Korean specialties or find out how many miles are in a marathon (26.2). 4. Write and publish. Once your youngster has all the facts, it’s time to write! Suggest that he write an article about each rel- ative he interviewed or one long article combining his informa- Fun Menu games tion. Then, he could distribute copies to family members. with Words Restaurant and take-out menus are chock-full of Parent opportunities for your children to prac- 2 Be a guest reader tice reading skills. Here are two ideas. Parent At my daughter’s parent-teacher Search for words conference, I met her reading teacher, Ms. Con- Go on a word hunt nor. She let me know that she was looking for with your youngster. parent volunteers, so I signed up to come in Who can find the twice this month. longest word? The For my first time volunteering, I read with small groups of students. The word with the most teacher explained that hearing someone read aloud encourages kids to view syllables? You might books as a source of pleasure. Then, I had some students read to me, which she ask her to find a syn- said helps them improve their reading fluency and listening skills. onym (a word with My daughter was excited to see me in her class, and I really enjoyed reading the same meaning) with her and her classmates. Next, I’ve signed up to take part in the book dona- for delicious (mouth- tion program coming up. We are going to ask other parents and the community watering). Or see if to contribute used books for a classroom library. she can find an antonym (an opposite) for chilled (steaming). Find the food Branching out as a reader Choose an ingredient (zucchini, Q& alfredo sauce, garlic), and have your A ●Q My son only likes to read explore together, a different type of book child find a menu item that contains it. stories about sports. Any ideas may catch his eye. If the menu has photographs, point to a for getting him to try something new? Also, since he’s a sports fan, biogra- picture of a dish she doesn’t know, such phies of athletes may be a natural fit. as chicken Parmesan, and cover up the ●A It’s great that your son enjoys read- Reading these real-life stories may lead to name. Let her study the picture and then ing and has go-to favorites. an interest in biographies about inventors, read through the menu descriptions to To help him discover a musicians, or world leaders. find one that matches. variety of books, try taking Another idea is to steer him to a library or book- him toward books about OUR PURPOSE store and pointing out sports history. Reading To provide busy parents with practical ways displays showcasing mys- to promote their children’s reading, writing, about the origin of the and language skills. teries, new releases, clas- Olympic Games or the Resources for Educators, sics, or how-to books. impact of the civil rights a division of CCH Incorporated Sometimes children get 128 N. Royal Avenue • Front Royal, VA 22630 movement, for instance, 800-394-5052 • [email protected] into the habit of going may encourage interest in www.rfeonline.com straight to the same sec- other history books. ISSN 1540-5583 tion every time. If you © 2017 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated Elementary School • November 2017 ®

How Families Can Help Children Become Better Readers Dennis-Yarmouth Regional School District Title 1 Take advantage of everything your local Keep track of your child’s reading library has to offer progress The older your child gets, the more The library isn’t just a place to find new books he’ll read to himself. That can make to read with your child. Libraries offer a assessing reading wealth of information, programs and other skills tough. When helpful services. Here are just a few things you’re keeping you can find at the library: tabs on your • Read-aloud and book club programs. child’s reading Some of these are led by children. progress, check There may also be presentations that he: by authors that your child enjoys. • Reads books at his own reading • Reference materials. Help familiarize level independently. your child with dictionaries, almanacs, • Enjoys reading by himself. atlases and encyclopedias. They’ll • Can understand and analyze the infor- come in handy as she needs to mation that he reads on his own. complete assignments throughout • Uses reading as a way to learn new her school career. information. • More than just books. From magazines to audiobooks to movies, there is a lot more than just books at the library. See what you and your child can find on your next visit! Share your passion for reading Source: U.S. Department of Education, “Beyond Books: Library Services for Children,” Enthusiasm for reading goes a long Reading Rockets, niswc.com/library_elem_tips. way. Are you thrilled about a book you’re reading? Tell your “I continue to do what I did as a child; child! Help her find dream of books, make books and collect books.” reading materials she’ll —Maurice Sendak love, too. If she sees reading is an exciting activity, she’s more likely to do it. Boost thinking skills by discussing books When your child finishes a book, use it as an opportunity Teach sight words through touch for him to share what he’s learned. Do something simple Sight words are words that kids will and natural: Have a conversation. You can: see over and over—so often that they • Discuss the book with your child. Ask him what he need to recognize them at first “sight,” thought of the characters, plot and ending. Consider words such as about reading the book yourself to make the talk more and because. Knowing lively. Suggest that everyone in your them makes reading • Have a family discussion. much easier. family read the book. Gather one evening to share Have your child write your views. Did anyone have the same favorite part? a few sight words in glue • Start a book club. Encourage your child to read the and then cover them with same book as some of his friends. Then, host a book glitter, sand or yarn. When the club meeting. They can meet at your home to discuss words dry, your child can trace them what they have read. with his finger as he reads.

Make connections and build vocabulary by Find opportunities to read on the go using word webs Your child can practice Creating word webs is a visual way for your child to connect reading anywhere—even concepts, questions and words and it helps her in the car or on the bus. build her vocabulary. Word webs can also When you and your provide a framework for writing. child are out, encourage To create a word web, have your child him to: write a word in the middle of a blank sheet • Read road signs and billboards. of paper (gardens, for example). Ask your • Find words on license plates and child to write other words all around the page bumper stickers. that relate to the main concept (vegetables, grow, • Read the directions to unfamiliar plants) and draw lines that connect the new words to locations. the center word. Your child can also think of words that relate to some of her other words. For example, she might write tomatoes as a branch off the word vegetables. For lower elementary readers: Source: “Vocabulary Strategy 8: Create Word Webs,” Reading Horizons, niswc.com/ connect_word_webs. • Just Joking: 300 Hilarious Jokes, Tongue Twisters, and Ridiculous Riddles by National Geographic Kids (National Geographic Children’s Books). Get Emphasize an understanding of math words silly with these jokes, all related to science! Your child has a math test coming up, and he knows all his facts. But how are his reading skills? Reading is a part of every school • Prince and Pirate by subject, especially when it comes to taking tests. Your child will Charlotte Gunnufson need to read directions and solve test problems. (G.P. Putnam’s Sons Have your child: Books for Young Readers). Two fish • Look over homework and that are used to being on their own past tests. Notice which are put into the same fish tank, so words appear often, they must find a way to get along. whether they’re math For upper elementary readers: terms or in directions. • Little Cat’s Luck by Marion Dane Practice reading them with Bauer (Simon & Schuster Books for your child. Make sure he Young Readers). Patches is in search understands what they of her own special place when she mean. follows a fluttering leaf and is off on • Solve new problems. Help an adventure. your child figure out how to apply his knowledge correctly. For example, is he comfortable with words such as fewer and • The Key to Extraordinary by Natalie product? Lloyd (Scholastic Press). Every woman in Emma’s family lives an extraordinary life, revealed to them in a dream. So, Emma eagerly waits : How can I make sure that my child is comprehending for her own dream. Q everything that she reads? : Talk with your child about what she reads. Discuss Building Readers® A all kinds of things, such as characters, plot and word How Families Can Help Children Become Better Readers Publisher: L. Andrew McLaughlin. definitions. Link reading to her life. Does she relate Publisher Emeritus: John H. Wherry, Ed.D. to characters or situations? What would she have Editor: Stacey Marin. done if she were the character? Copyright © 2017, The Parent Institute® (a division of PaperClip Media, Inc.) P.0. Box 7474, Fairfax Station, VA 22039-7474 1-800-756-5525, ISSN: 1533-33021531-4901 www.parent-institute.com Do you have a question about reading? Email [email protected].

Copyright © 2017, The Parent Institute®, a division of PaperClip Media, Inc., www.parent-institute.com X02369220 e ı e c s Dennis Yarmouth Title I Program R c p s for Suc e s NOVEMBER 2017 Practical Activities to Help Your Child Succeed Refrigerator Poster Just hang your Recipes poster on the refrigerator and sneak in an activity when you have a few SPELLING READING minutes. These fun activities will Find a word Learning with similes help develop school success and Let your child turn her spelling list into a fun word game. Comparing new ideas with familiar ones positive behavior. Check off each box as you complete the “recipe.” Ingredients: spelling list, pencil, graph paper can improve your youngster’s reading comprehension. Have your youngster writeunder five thespelling other, words and onein rows letter on per graph box. paper, Then, onesee how Ingredients: many new words she can form with the letters. The let- textbook, storybook, paper, pencil ters must touch each other—horizontally, vertically, Before your child reads a textbook chapter, encourage him to or diagonally. For instance,, and if she read stacks, she themight words find write this fill-in-the-blank sentence: “_____ is like _____ teeth, maybe flavor, apple, bed. because ______.” He can complete the sentence as he reads. flap, meat, and For instance, if he’s studying volcanoes, he might come up Hint: If your child has trouble with “A volcano is like a whistling teapot because pressure finding words, she can switch in the earth pushes lava out like pressure in a the order of the list or add teapot forces steam out.” new spelling words. He could try the same idea while reading fiction. Example: “The character Sam is like my RESEARCH dad because he is always fixing things.” Not your usual pet This activity will stretch your child’s imagination while she does research and learns about animal habits. Ingredients: STRATEGY library books, notebook, pencil, markers SCIENCE Have your child make a game Suggest that your youngster Ask your youngster to pick an animal that would make an unusual pet, perhaps board by drawing three rows of three pretend she is a magnet. She could a whale, a squirrel, or a donkey. A librarian can help her find books or recom- circles, with vertical, horizontal, and walk around the house and think of mend websites about her “pet.” diagonal lines to connect them. Give five things she would stick to (soup him three pennies and yourself three Then, have her write a “pet owner’s guide” that tells how to can, refrigerator) and five that she nickels, and take turns putting a coin wouldn’t (couch, care for the animal. She could include pointers like the type on any circle. To play, take turns mov- book). Then, let of shelter and exercise recommended. For instance, she ing your coins one at a time. Get three her use a refrig- might write, “Your whale needs a huge saltwater pool to in a row, and win. live in so he has plenty of room to swim and jump. Make erator magnet sure he has a couple of dolphin friends to play with.” to check her Encourage your child to illustrate her guide with pictures predictions. and diagrams.

© 2017 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated • 128 N. Royal Avenue • Front Royal, VA 22630 • 800-394-5052 • [email protected] • www.rfeonline.com Recıpes for Success Character Practical Activities to Help Your Child Succeed NOVEMBER 2017 Corner PUNCTUATION Ask your youngster to read a MATH picture book or short magazine arti- ■ HONESTY Guess my number cle and make a tally mark for each The next time you buy clothes or eat in a restaurant, check the receipt with Try this guessing game to sharpen your child’s number sense. period, comma, question mark, and exclamation point. She can count the your child. Have her help you make paper, pencil Ingredients: total for each and give you examples sure you were charged for everything and that the prices are correct. If you spot a Take turns choosing a secret three-digit number, such as 548. Write of how they’re used mistake, let your youngster see you being down the number, cover it up, and have the other player guess (comma between honest by telling the clerk or server. each digit by asking questions. For instance, your youngster might a city and state, exclamation ask, “Is the digit in the hundreds place greater than 4?” “Is it an ■ PERSEVERANCE point to show even number?” “Is it less than 6?” Show your child that you can both surprise). Based on your answers, he will realize the digit is 5. Let him ask learn new skills and improve old questions about the other digits until he comes upthree-digit with the whole number. ones. Choose a goal: Do a headstand, write Variation: To more neatly. Practice together a few minutes make the game each day. By week’s end, you both may be more challeng- READING surprised by your progress! ing, limit the A cookbook is a tasty tool for ■ COOPERATION number of learning to use an index. Turn to the Let your youngster experience teamwork questions back, and ask your child to find three in action. Hold one hand behind your back. allowed. recipes, perhaps for beef stew, corn Have your child put one hand behind his. chowder, and chili. Help him use the Together, use your free hands to page numbers to locate the recipes. He tie his shoes. You must work can choose his favorite and cooperatively to succeed! read the instructions aloud while you cook together. STUDY SKILLS HISTORY Your child will practice recalling what Congratulations! How many American patriotic he studies with this idea. Each of you write symbols can you and your youngster five short sentences—about think of? Examples: U.S. flag, Liberty anything—on a sheet of paper. We finished activities together on this poster. Bell, bald eagle. Talk about (“Eric likes chess.” “The ele- what each one stands for phant has big ears.”) Trade and how it ties into our papers, and study the lists for Signed (parent or adult family member) Signed (child) history. Then, suggest one minute. Put them away, that she draw pictures of and try to write every sentence the symbols and label them. from memory.