I’m pretty sure my little bear went through a Wonder Week recently. Yes, I’m still keeping track of those things. She came out of it pronouncing words more clearly and starting to put together longer phrases! Woohoo!
But I was not woohoo-ing during those few weeks. I wanted to cry. Mostly because she would not stop crying. She was super clingy, and would not pause even when I was mere inches away (or even touching her) across a baby gate. I had to be interacting with her on her side of the gate or she’d throw a fit. So naturally, when hubby came home, I was tempted to throw a fit, in my own quieter grown-up way. This wasn’t really working out for any of us, so I decided it was time to look into something new to snatch her attention, in case this “Wonder Week” lasted for more than a week. Which it did.
I have been wary of caving into TV time (though truth be told, I’m thisclose to giving in), so I started looking for other solutions online. Toddler activities, including “busy boxes” and “quiet bags” filled my screen. Many boxes were labeled by day of the week, filled with craft doodads like feathers and pom poms and pipe cleaners which I had not touched since my own elementary school days. I can’t say I was the best about doing crafts as a teacher, so this is not my forte. So it’s time for busy boxes and quiet bags, huh? I thought to myself. I had always seen them on Pinterest, but I guess when you have an infant, those things seem way too advanced. But I no longer have an infant. I have a full blown toddler, and God knows this age group is not my area of expertise. Especially from 4-6pm.
So I skimmed a few blogs, pinned a few ideas, and started shopping away on Amazon. Here are some themes I’m finding for the 1-2 year old set:
- Putting things into containers is a thing. Like pushing pom pom balls through holes into a yogurt tub, or pushing pipe cleaners through holes into a cylinder (Which, btw, was a HIT with my little girl this past weekend).
- Things that stick and unstick are fun. Like velcro.
- Sorting stuff is fun.
- Color matching is fun.
So I picked up plastic shoe bins
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All I really had to do was punch some holes into the top of an old oatmeal cylinder and twist some pipe cleaners together. Little girl took to her new toy immediately and was pushing away for at least half an hour the first day, and about twenty minutes the next day when we brought it to church to occupy her since we had to keep her with us during service that Sunday. A friend of hers, who is about a year older, also enjoyed the activity, and was able to match the pipe cleaners with the colors of the holes as well! It occupied him a good twenty minutes before he lost interest, which gives me hope that this will keep her occupied decently well in the next year!
Here are the basic instructions to make it yourself!
What do you remember about reading as a child? Do you recall doing whole-class reading, with one child reading out loud while everybody else followed along in the thick anthology reader? Did your teacher read aloud to you after lunch, letting you rest your recess-sweaty head on the cool desk while watching Ashley make faces at you? Did your whole class do units on a book together, working through packets and making book jackets at the end?
We all have memories of what it was like to be taught to read in school, and even though the format may be different, reading continues to be just as vital of a skill as it ever was. You already know a lot about what it’s like to learn to read, and that information will help you as you learn to teach your child to read!
…See what I did there? 🙂 Before jumping into my lesson, I activated your background knowledge. CLEVER HUH? 😀 (Yes, I am really feeling quite pleased with myself right now :D).
What does it mean to activate background knowledge?
When you activate background knowledge, you are basically helping a child unearth information she already knows and pulling it to the forefront of their mind. If you’re reading a story about dogs, then you’re asking the child what experiences she’s had with dogs before. If you’re starting a unit on the planets, you can ask them what things they’ve seen in the sky before. If it’s a unit on the Gold Rush, then you ask children to think about ideas they’ve had to make money (selling lemonade, doing chores, etc.). Activating background knowledge will help your child make sense of new information and also help them remember new information that they read. And what’s the point of reading unless you are going to remember what you read?
I think the reason this is such an effective strategy has something to do with brain theory. I remember learning in college that new information sticks better when it is connected with old information. Sometimes, I even draw my students this diagram and tell them, “You already know a TON of stuff. If you can connect the new stuff you learn to the old stuff you already know, chances are you will remember it much better. If you just learn new stuff without connecting it to something you already knew before, it will be harder to remember.”
“Okay, son. It’s 3pm. Time for reading. Get your books, I’m going to set the timer!”
Your child drags his feet away from the snacks and pulls out a thick, pictureless book from his backpack. Nice, you think to yourself with satisfaction, that looks like a serious chapter book!
He settles down onto the sofa and starts thumbing through his book. You settle down at your computer and click away while he reads away. Getting those 20 minutes in of required reading every day isn’t so hard, right? But here’s the thing: A compliant, quiet kid in front of a thick book does not mean useful reading is happening. Here are the telltale signs your child is just enduring those minutes without processing many words at all:
- He is reluctant about starting those twenty minutes of reading.
- He hasn’t turned any pages in a long time.
- Even though he is quiet (yay?) he seems to be gazing elsewhere and not concentrating on his book.
- He keeps checking the time or looking around, clearly not engaged in the book.
Sure, if you have plans to take him swimming with friends in an hour, then time may feel like it’s passing slowly for him while he’s reading… but if these are regular characteristics of your child during silent reading time, it wouldn’t hurt to check in and see if this book is the right level for him.
When I first started teaching, I was surprised to find how frequently students chose books that were too hard for them. Some chose them because their friends recommended it and liked it, and they wanted to try it out. Some chose the too-difficult book because they wanted to look like they were reading at a higher level than they actually were able to. Others chose it just because the title or picture on the front cover looked interesting, with little regard to whether or not they could actually understand the text. Choosing a “just right” book merits a couple mini-lessons all its own in the beginning of the year!
As a teacher, I always made it a point to keep an eye on what books my students were reading. If I saw any of the telltale signs listed above (boredom, disinterest) or simply knew that a book was beyond a particular students’ reading level, I’d pull them back for a quick check to make sure they really picked a “just right” book. Most often, the book was indeed too hard. Ideally, though, it doesn’t take a teacher or an adult to tell a young reader that a book is too difficult for him. Ideally, a child will be able to tell himself that a text is too hard within the first page of reading it. Many students do pick up on this quickly, but others won’t pause to think about it unless I point it out for them. These students are weak in monitoring their comprehension: they don’t get that they are not getting it!
What does it mean to monitor comprehension?
We started reading to our infant from Day 1. Okay maybe Day 3 or 4, after we got home from the hospital… but it was soon. Even though I knew she was a mere infant, teacherness oozed out of me as I held her in my lap:
In the great green room there was a telephone
It’s a simple enough text, but every night, I found myself delving into various reading strategies with my infant, making connections to other books we’d read, encouraging her to make predictions on what would happen next, or posing questions as we made our way through the pages. I couldn’t help it. Reading strategies ran through my veins, and reading out loud without teaching them felt stiff and awkward.
My husband always marveled when he overheard the discussions “we” had during these reading sessions. “Wow, you’re so good! How do you even think of all these things to talk about? This is so great! I’m so glad she has you to teach her!”
Isn’t he nice? 😀 I mean he could have laughed and reminded me that most 10-day old babies don’t appreciate doing guided reading every day, but instead he was encouraging and excited that our little daughter would have a teacher mommy to help her think well while reading.
Sometimes he expressed disappointment in himself, “Man, I’m so boring when I read. I just read straight through the text. I don’t know what to talk about while we read. You should do a post on your blog on how to read with kids!”
“You think so?”
“Yeah! That’d be great! I’m sure other parents would want to know better ways to maximize reading time with their kids, too!”
And the more I thought about it, the more I was sure this was something that needed to be shared. After all, twice a year at parent conferences, I found myself wishing parents could just sit down and do guided reading with their kids the way I did. Johnny was “approaching grade level standards,” and I made sure to work in small reading groups with him twice a week for 20 minutes each time, but MAN, if his parents could sit down with him every day for twenty minutes one-on-one and do the same thing with him, I know he would make TREMENDOUS progress.
So here is my mini training program for you, parents! Not just one post, but a whole series. Teachers, please feel free to share this as a resource for your parents! I certainly can’t cover everything about guided reading that teachers know and do, but I’ll do my best to give you the basic tools to up your reading game with your child. Hopefully you will find that this makes your reading time together more enjoyable and more beneficial for your growing reader!
I promise I’m not becoming a super health nut (har har). But a friend wrote glowing reviews about making cashew milk on Facebook, and curiosity got the best of me. Plus, the recipe was promisingly simple: 1) Soak cashews for 4 hours, then 2) Add water and some simple flavoring and blend.
As she wrote about various types of nut milk, all-capped words like “SO GOOD!” and “AMAZING” stood out to me, not to mention “It tastes like chocolate milk even without the chocolate!!” (hazelnut milk, that is). Well if that doesn’t pique your interest, I don’t know what will.
Plus, I had this huge tub of cashews I had bought at Costco to make these grain-free waffles (thanks to a tempting photo from a friend on Instagram) and had plenty to use up. So last week, I threw a cup of cashews into some water and the next morning, I whirred it up to make the lovely bottled concoction pictured above.
It was YUMMY! Creamy, cool, refreshing. It reminded me a lot of how I like to jazz up my vanilla almond milk, since I add honey, cinnamon, and vanilla extract to that, too. But much creamier. Although I’ve never attempted a nut milk from scratch before, it was a much easier process than I had expected. No straining or anything. That means few dishes, little hassle, and no waste! I thought my Vitamix had something to do with the super creamy and smooth consistency of the milk, but the original author of the recipe says any ‘ol blender will do.
I thought it’d be a one-time recipe experiment, but after I finished the last glass, I found myself craving more, so not only did I blend up another big batch and finish up the last of my cashews, but I got a WHOLE NOTHER TUB of the nuts so I could keep going! I’ve made several batches now. I’m kind of addicted to the stuff now. Who would have thought?? I feel healthy adding a glass to my morning breakfast– it’s easy protein and tastes darn delicious! I recommend. Try it and let me know what you think!
We all know it’s important for kids to read. I already made a push for you to get your kids in front of some books this summer, and I’m guessing many of you already do that… mostly because I’m willing to bet most of you are readers yourselves (you’re here reading my blog, aren’t you? :)). As I’ve shared before, one of my goals this summer is to teach you how to teach your child to be an even better reader! If you haven’t seen the introductory post to this series, please take a look-see over here before you continue. I’m going to continue building on previous posts, so there will be a lot of linking back to help y’all stay caught up if you’re just joining the party!
Today’s topic is an overview of the Reader’s Workshop model. Many schools are doing it, and understanding the model better will give context to the rest of my reading posts since this is the approach I used as a teacher. I really like the Reader’s Workshop model. Maybe it’s because that’s how I was trained to teach reading in my teaching program. Maybe it’s because I only applied to school districts that I knew were using it. Maybe it’s because that’s the only way I’ve ever taught reading. But I really, really like it! Good thing, too, because with the new Common Core standards, it looks like a lot of districts are moving in this direction. I’m happy to know that my children will probably be taught with this model, and that if I ever decide to reapply for a teaching position, I at least have this under my belt!
You’ve probably heard about the Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop model before, but do you know what your child actually does during this time? While specific activities and lessons will vary from teacher to teacher, day to day, I’d like to give you an overview of what this is all about. You can find a wealth of information about the program online, so for this post I’ll simply walk you through one typical day in my Reading Workshop period. Hopefully this will give you some context for what many of your children are experiencing in the classroom and also give you some helpful background for some of my upcoming posts!
I always thought it took one of those super healthy, super “crunchy,” super moms to do things like make your own granola.
BUT HEY GUYS I DID IT! And it was pretty easy!! I didn’t do it because I was trying to be that mom. I did it because I had greek yogurt and honey and nothing fun to go with it, so I thought I’d try to find an easy homemade granola recipe, cuz y’all know I love a little crrrrrunch in my food. There are a lot of recipes out there, so I was just trying to find something where I already had all the ingredients in my pantry. I narrowed it down to one winner winner, and the results were delicious! It was just crunchy enough, and had a complex sweetness that wasn’t cloying or too straightforward. Yum!
I brought some to share with friends and someone immediately commented on the complexity of the sweetness. This isn’t something I usually notice when I’m noshing on granola, so I think that makes this a recipe worth keeping. I’m not honey expert, but I find that darker honeys seem to taste more complex, so I use my darkest honeys (buckwheat, and one I got from Paris) for this granola. The almond extract, vanilla extract, and coconut make a lovely combination I would have never thought to try on my own! I’ve made this recipe twice now, and love that I know exactly what’s in my crunch-a-munch. Hope you like it, too!
In elementary school, there are two topics we focus on most heavily during parent conferences: reading and math. I can’t even count the number of times I have sat in a parent conference wishing with all my heart that I could spend just twenty minutes a day doing guided reading with their child. Give me twenty minutes a day with your struggling reader, and you will see tremendous progress and a rapid progression in reading levels in just weeks. Because when I sit down with one, two, or three kids and do focused guided reading, there is real progress. I can see where their weak spots are, coach them through it, and help them develop the strategies they need to become great readers.
The thing is, I usually have closer to thirty kids, and there is only about one hour a day allotted to teaching reading. Much of that is spent with the whole class, and the rest gets parceled out to reading tests, library time, individual conferences, and guided reading groups. My point is, I am not able to spend twenty minutes a day with your struggling reader. In reality, my struggling readers are lumped together in groups of 3-5, and we are lucky if I am able to spend twenty minutes once or twice a week with each group. Our guided reading times are productive, but not nearly as consistent or focused as I wish they could be. Students make progress over the year, but I always find myself wishing I had more time to spend with smaller groups of students on a regular basis. But I don’t have the time, and I can’t make as much impact as I want.
…BUT YOU CAN!!! Moms, dads, siblings, grandparents and caretakers: YOU CAN. You can do the guided reading with them every day that I can’t. You can spend the time getting to know your child as a reader that I wish I could, and you can seriously help them make leaps and bounds if you are willing to invest just 15-20 minutes a day reading with your child. Actually, even twice a week will make a huge impact if you make the most of your time. So here is my gift to you: I will show you how to read with your child the way a teacher would. That 20 minutes a day I wish I could get to work with your kid? Now you can do it. I will try to equip you to know 1) how to approach your child as a reader, 2) what to teach them, and 3) how to teach it.
Last updated 5/12/2021
Summer is here, and that means sunshine and outdoors and fun! Last summer, I offered you a series of fun math games to help keep your kids entertained while also sharpening their math skills. This summer, my focus is on reading. I know we could all use a break from school, and the last thing some of your kids want to hear is, “Time for READING!!!” But don’t cave in!! As a teacher, I have seen numerous children actually start the school year at a lower reading level than they finished at the previous school year. I literally see their report cards telling me the student finished “at grade level,” and yet they are unable to read through the exact same mini book they had mastered just a few months before. What is the cause of this unfortunate phenomenon??
A book-less summer.
Sad.
Maybe you want to give your child a break from working so hard over the school year and feel like reading is for homework and teachers. I hope you will try to instead see books as the gateway to adventure, imagination, and mental growth for your child! Summer is a great time to encourage your children to read (almost) whatever they want and to develop a love of reading. Allow them to just take pleasure in consuming books that will take them all over the world, into the future, or back in time. Many public libraries have great reading programs that encourage children to dig into books, so take a trek out sometime and see what strikes their fancy!
For every student who started off fourth grade at a lower level than they finished third grade, there were just as many children who entered fourth grade one or two reading levels higher than they finished third grade. It wasn’t because their parents sat by their side and read with them every day or sent them to tutoring programs. They simply had access to books and read them regularly over the summer! As I’ve shared before, simply consuming books at the right reading level is oftentimes all it takes to help young readers move to the next level in reading. So I urge you this summer to encourage your children to read. It could be the difference of falling behind, or starting with their best foot forward at the start of the next year!
Now that I’ve thoroughly hammered in that point, let’s talk about taking further steps to move your child to the next level. Maybe your child finished the school year a little behind in reading. Maybe they just barely met “grade level expectations.” Maybe you just want to continue to hone their love of reading and see where else you can take this.
Guys, this is my fourth post ever in the “homemaking” category. I’m not sure whether to celebrate that or be embarrassed by it. You may not have even realized I used to have “homemaking” as one of my blog categories, along with education, parenting, food, and marriage. That’s because one day, I realized that I had dozens of posts pertaining to my other passions, but only three– yes, 3– on homemaking. And that’s when I realized I’m nowhere near expert at making homes. But HEY, I got my craftsy on today, and I made the home look brighter and fresher with these new envelope pillow cases!! Isn’t that a remarkable face-lift?!
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