<p>Accelerated Reader... </p><p>Helps kids get excited about books AR helps students focus their attention on careful reading of books which improves their comprehension, critical-thinking skills and builds on their intrinsic love of reading.</p><p>Provides teachers with reliable, objective information AR helps teachers to monitor students’ reading practice both in quantity and quality.</p><p>Helps to keep students challenged Using AR, students read appropriately leveled books within their zone of proximal development (ZPD). This ensures that every student is challenged without being frustrated. The ZPD score is based on an adaptive computer test. Your child’s teacher will be given their ZPD scores at the beginning of each school year. </p><p>With nearly 140,000 quizzes available (and growing), students have a large selection of books to read for points. To check whether a quiz is available for a particular book, students and parents can go to http://www.arbookfind.com/ to find out.</p><p>If there is no quiz for a book your child would like to read or has read, you can make a recommendation on the company’s website at: http://www.renlearn.com/ar/customer/suggestions.aspx </p><p>AR Home Connect (by Renaissance Learning) allows you and your child to view their progress in Accelerated Reader (AR) from any computer with an Internet connection. Home Connect is a wonderful tool that allows parents to always be informed of their child’s progress toward their AR goals.</p><p>Home Connect is fun and easy to use. It allows you to: • Receive email notification when your child has taken a quiz • View your child’s reading history and progress toward their goals • See your child’s average reading level on quizzes taken • See your child’s point totals by trimester or the whole year • View their bookshelf (view quizzes taken) • Search for AR books at your child’s level</p><p>Note: AR quizzes can only be taken at school. Students cannot take quizzes at home using Home Connect. Students log in to Home Connect with the same username and password they use to take quizzes.</p><p>A link to AR Home Connect can be found on the school website, on the links page.</p><p>Students log in using the same username and password they use to take quizzes at school. Home Connect is a wonderful tool that allows parents to always be informed of their child’s progress toward their AR goals. School Awards (Incentives)</p><p>As students reach their individual goals each trimester, they will earn incentives/rewards for achieving their goal. The incentives are as follows:</p><p>1st trimester = Cougar dog tag 2nd trimester = Cougar bracelet 3rd trimester = completion certificate</p><p>AR Trimester Raffle</p><p>For each trimester that students meet their goal, they will receive a raffle ticket that will be entered into a drawing. The raffle will take place at the trimester assemblies and students can win prizes if their ticket is drawn.</p><p>If you have any questions about AR Home Connect, contact Dara Klein at [email protected]</p><p>Other learning sites your student may enjoy and (also on the links page of the Helen Carr Castello Elementary School Website): http://www.abcya.com/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/ http://www.edheads.org/ https://www-k6.thinkcentral.com/ePC/start.do?orgID=10006759 (Go Math!) http://www.sumdog.com/sch/helen-carr-castello-elementary-school http://www.myon.com/login/elkgroveunified/HCCES/ http://activities.macmillanmh.com/science/ca/ http://www.starfall.com/</p>