We will be starting the SNUGGLE UP AND READ program in our class in the near future. I will be sending home one appropriately levelled book with your child that you are encouraged to read to them. They might also wish to read it back to you. Please encourage tracking, (finger pointing to each word), as you read together. You may keep this book for as long as you need to. The students in our class are all at different places on the ‘road to reading’, so make sure you go at their speed to avoid feelings of stress or discouragement. When they bring their book back to school, I will let them read it to me and/or tell me about the story one-on-one. This will help them build confidence in their reading ability and give them the individual attention that is so valuable. They may even get to read their book to the whole class if they wish!
As role models for your children, it is important that you continue to guide them with their literacy skills. Studies have shown the extreme importance of reading to children when they are young. Please find the time to read to your child. Try to set up a specific reading time so your child can look forward to it every day or night before bed. Reading does not always have to be from a book. Different varieties of literacy can develop a child’s mind. You can read from a magazine, comic book, or even the newspaper. Ask your child questions, have them make predictions, but most of all HAVE FUN with what you read.
We are also learning about reading comprehension strategies during our read aloud, shared reading, guided reading and independent reading times. You can use these strategies when reading with your child at home:
1. "Eagle Eye" (using picture clues to figure out the words)
2. "Stretchy Snake" (stretching out the letter sounds in a word)
3. "Chunky Monkey" (finding smaller words or chunks that we know inside bigger words)
4. "Lips the Fish" (get your mouth ready; say the first sound of the word out loud)
5. "Skippy Frog" (skip the word, read to the end of the sentence, hop back to read it)
6. "Trying Lion" (try to reread the sentence, try a word that makes sense)
