Welcome to Read Aloud, Accountable Talk And Writing About Reading Presented by: Valerie Vacchio Literacy Coach at Vernon (grades 3-6) Phone extension: 3225 Email: vvachio@obenschools.org Gina Faust Literacy Coach at T. Roosevelt (grades K-2) Phone extension: 5201 Email: gfaust@obenschools.org
The Best The best part of the day is when I hear the teacher say, Sit by my chair while I read. We sprawl on the rug. It s like listening to a hug, while the story magic pours over me. ~Author Unknown
Goals for the Course Support your work in the classroom Share what you learn and spread the work among colleagues Deepen children s comprehension and left the level of work they do in partnerships through read aloud Learn from each other and be a support for each other
Date 11/13/2006 Session 1 11/20/2006 Session 2 12/04/2006 Session 3 12/11/2006 Session 4 12/18/2006 Session 5 1/22/2007 Session 6 1/29/2007 Session 7 Topic Reading Aloud Matters Course overview Why is reading aloud so important? The purposes of read aloud Building reading identities Creating a community of readers Opportunities for reading aloud across the day Read aloud professional resources Planning for Read Alouds What are the qualities of a good read aloud? Choosing read alouds Teacher/student roles during read aloud Planning effective and purposeful read alouds Planning read aloud prompts Accountable Talk Teaching kids to have conversations about texts Characteristics of good conversations Good talk lies in good listening Partnerships What are partners reading? What are partners doing? What are the routines? Read aloud and partnerships Writing About Reading Communicating about reading Teaching kids to think, talk and write about books Readers notebooks: purpose and practice Early, easy entries Other tools for tracking reading Reading and Writing Go Hand in Hand Using read aloud to support the Units of Study in reading and writing Matching skills to read alouds Reading Celebrations Reading celebrations? How might you celebrate reading in your classroom? Additional resources to support reading aloud Sharing successes and challenges Literacy gifts/celebration
New and Old Favorites Write down a few old and a few new favorite books. Share with a new friend.
Reading aloud to our children will change their lives forever. ~Mem Fox
So What s the Big Deal About Read Aloud?
When we read aloud to children, we fill the air and their ears with the sound of language. Reading aloud to students (of all ages) invites them to make meaning, create images, and linger with language and to become infatuated with words and simply fall into a story. ~ Lester Laminack Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature
We read to children for all the same reasons we talk with children: to reassure, to entertain, to bond, to inform or explain, to arouse curiosity, to inspire. But in reading aloud we also: Condition the child s brain to associate reading with pleasure Create background knowledge Build vocabulary Nurture a child s listening comprehension Provide a reading role model ~Jim Trelease The Read-Aloud Handbook Reading is like riding a bicycle, sewing, or creating a power point presentation In order to get better at it you must do it!
Children who haven t been read to don t expect print to make sense. And if children don t expect print to make sense they ll find learning to read very difficult. Children who haven t been read to haven t experienced: the sense in written language g the sense of rhyming the sense of stories the sense of songs the sounds of unusual words the unfamiliar formal grammar of written sentences the way sentences work. Children who have been read aloud to regularly do expect to make sense from print. They know about rhyme and rhythm and repetition. They know how stories work,, which makes it easier for them to read real stories. They can predict that certain words, patterns and plots will occur. Mem Fox Reading Magic
Experts tell us that children need to hear a thousand stories read aloud before they can begin to learn to read themselves. (That s only three stories a day in one year!) ~Mem Fox, Reading Magic
Read, Read and Read Still More Kindergarten: Read or re-read independently or with another student or adult two to four familiar books each day. Listen to one or two books read aloud each day at school and at home. Fist Grade: Read independently or with assistance four or more books a day. Hear two to four books or other texts read aloud each day. Second Grade: Read one or two short books or long chapters every day. Listen to and discuss every day one test that is longer and more difficult that what can be read independently. Third Grade: Read 30 chapter books a year. Listen to and discuss at least one chapter book read aloud every day. New Standards is a joint project of the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh and the National Center on Education and the Economy. New Standards has led the nation in standards based reform efforts. It has the support of the US Department of Education.
Children can hear and understand on a higher level than that on which they can read. They can hear and understand stories that are more complicated and more interesting that anything they could read on their own. How nice for first graders!!
Rare Words There are about ten thousand words that we use in conversation. Beyond the 10,000 words there are rare words. Regular conversations will take care of basic vocabulary, but when you read to a child, you leap into the rare words that t help most children when it s time for school and formal learning. These rare words play a critical role in reading. The eventual strength of our vocabulary is determined not by the ten thousand common words but by how many rare words we understand. Number of rare words met per thousand An adult speaking to a 10 year old child 11.7 An adult speaking to an adult 17.3 A children s book 30.9 Newspaper 68.3 Scientific Paper 128 Jim Trelease The Read-Aloud Handbook
What are we doing when we are just reading aloud? When we read aloud we: Provide models of language in use Build interest in language Increase awareness of words Build vocabulary Aid in the development of new insights and understandings Extend and layer on existing knowledge Aid in overall comprehension Create a risk-free zone in which all listeners have more equal access to knowledge Have the potential to spark a love of reading Can have a positive influence on reading attitudes Provide models of fluent reading Provide a living demonstration of the act of reading Can model how readers think in the process of reading Demonstrate the nature and purpose of reading Show the range of topic, styles, and genres available in written language Help develop tastes in reading and in selecting literature Improve listening skills Aid in the development of imagery Offer multiple perspectives Broaden a listener s worldview Make the rhythms of written language familiar Provide demonstrations ti of the various ways stories can be developed d Lester Laminack Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature
Parents sometimes feel it is cheating to read aloud to children who are able to read independently. d Teachers and librarians should remind parents that reading aloud to their children continues to be an essential part of helping them to become good independent readers. By listening to adults read aloud, children expand their vocabulary, encounter new ideas, and enjoy language on a more complex level than would be possible in independent reading. Most importantly, reading aloud can be a great source of pleasure for adults and children to share. Constance Vidor Book Links, May 1994 Easy to Read, Strategies and Selections
Purposes of Read Aloud Read aloud is the easiest way to demonstrate using reading strategies. Read aloud and accountable talk supports reading as a social activity. it Conversation supports fundamental and deep comprehension. A partner and/or a whole class conversation after read aloud is the easiest way to model and teach talk strategies.
Read Aloud as a Teaching Tool Shared experience To be moved To savor language/love of word To build common history Model reading habits that feed independence How readers choose books How readers plan for their reading Valuing reading Model the sound of strong reading Phrasing and fluency Expression/voice Develop stamina to listen to and read books Develop skills to talk back to books Think aloud prompts Turn & talk prompts Conversational prompts Learning to think more deeply about texts Ask questions, wonder Make personal connections Compare texts Grow ideas or theories Comment on someone s idea Think about what the book is really about Critique
Fall in love with authors, characters and most of all Reading!!
Building Reading Identities Students should have a special reader s notebook, similar to a writer s notebook. Students are encouraged to decorate their notebook. (Use photographs of reading heroes, pictures of favorite authors, pictures of favorite books, quotes about reading, etc.) Students should fall in love with their notebook! Have partners discuss times in their lives when reading really worked for them. Students could discuss the following What was it about this one reading experience that made it work for you? How can we be sure that all of the reading we do together this year can be just as magical?
Responses students may complete in Reader s Notebook: Students can sketch a picture of one time or one book which really mattered to them, or perhaps they ll bring a book to school that has been important. Create a timeline of your reading life list books that mattered to you & why they mattered place a dot on the timeline, then drop down and make a textbox. tb Make your timeline beautiful. List three books that you ve read that really mattered to you and write why they mattered. Write about where you do your best reading work and then write what it says about you as a reader. Record your reading goals for the school year. Write about a person who is your reading hero. How has this person influenced you? Create a bulletin board with pictures of kids doing their best reading work.
The Book That Changed My Life.
Reading is not just a skill, it is a lifestyle. l
Create A Community of Readers by Reading Aloud the First Thing Every Day Establishes a ceremony, a ritual, a routine Sets the tone for the day Places value on the read aloud Provides an opportunity to celebrate and appreciate differences and each other Ignites conversation Addresses challenges, joys, fears and worries that children may face
Book Stacks for Building Community Celebrating Ourselves and Others Believing in Yourself Providing a Lens to View the World Learning to Value Special People with Special Ways Today I feel Overcoming Obstacles and Facing Life s Challenges Meeting Neighbors and Making Friends Coping with Taunting, Teasing and Bullying It Happened at School A Family Is Learning to Say Good - Bye
Opportunities for Read Aloud Across the Day Start the day with a read aloud. During the first big transition. Right before lunch. Right after lunch. Build connections across the curriculum Close the day. Lester Laminack
Wearing your love of reading on your sleeve is the best way to get your students to love reading as much as you do!! ~Lucy Calkins
Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars. ~Lester Louis Brown
Professional Resources Reflections
For Next Class.. November 20, 2006 Please bring a few Read Aloud Books you will use in your classrooms. If you d like, decorate your notebook. Tha k f a ti i ati! Thanks for your participation! Valerie and Gina