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Archive for December, 2009

 “Why Can’t I Skip My Thirty Minutes of Reading Tonight?” 
Let’s figure it out — mathematically!

• Student A reads 30 minutes five nights of every week.
• Student B reads only 4 minutes a night…or not at all!

Step 1: Multiply minutes a night x 5 times each week.
Student A reads 30 min. x 5 times a week = 150 min./week.
Student B reads 4 minutes x 5 times a week = 20 minutes.

Step 2: Multiply minutes a week x 4 weeks each month.
Student A reads 600 minutes a month.
Student B reads 80 minutes a month.

Step 3: Multiply minutes a month x 9 months/school year.
Student A reads 5400 min. in a school year.
Student B reads 720 min. in a school year.
Student A practices reading the equivalent of over ten whole school days a year.
Student B gets the equivalent of only two school days of reading practice.
By the end of 6th grade if Student A and Student B maintain these same 
reading habits, Student A will have read the equivalent of over 60 whole school  days Student B will have read the equivalent of only 12 school days.
One would expect the gap of information retained will have widened 
considerably and so, undoubtedly, will school performance. How do you think  Student B will feel about him/herself as a student?

Some questions to ponder:

• Which student would you expect to read better?
• Which student would you expect to know more?
• Which student would you expect to write better?
• Which student would you expect to have a better vocabulary?
• Which student would you expect to be more successful in school….and in life? 

This is a brief presentation that answers many of the questions that a parent that is preparing to send their child to 1st Grade may have.

This is a brief presentation that answers many of the questions that a parent that is preparing to send their child to kindergarten may have.

Like most parents with multiple aged children I struggled with finding  time to cook dinner, help the older kids with homework, getting the kids bathed,  and still have time to teach my young child the skills I know they will need to be successful in school.  I have learned with a little bit of creativity you can use the following times during the day to work on skills your child will need to know to enter school.

• Car – Turn off the radio and talk to your child.  You can play games like “I Spy”.  I spy something red, I spy something that begins with the letter B, I spy something shaped like a circle.  Sing ABC songs; remember to slow down when you get to LMNOP so your child can hear each letters name.  Go to your local school supply store and pick up a CD that has different educational songs like the days of the week, months of the year, ABC songs, and color or shape songs.  Have an older child flash letter, shapes, colors or sight word flash cards to your younger child. Have your child count to see how high he/she can count before you reach your destination.  Teaching your child how to count by 10’s will help them learn how to count to 100 faster.
• Bath time – Go to your local store and pick up a package of foam letters.  You can usually find them in the toy deportment.  These letters will float in the bath and stick to the tile walls.  If your child does not know the letters names and sounds yet, float about 5 letters in the tub at once.  Have your child find a letter name it, give you its sound and place it on the tile wall.  Continue to add letters as your child learns them.  Once your child has learned all 26 letters and sounds you can start giving them simple 3 letter words to spell.  Sound the word out slowly as your child finds the letter and places on the wall.  Have your child count how many toys are in the tub.  Place a number of toys in the tub and ask your child questions like “You have 3 ducks, I give you 1 more; how many ducks do you have in the tub?” or “You have 3 ducks in the tub, I take 2 away; how many duck do you have in the tub?”
• Bedtime – Read to your child every night before they go to bed.  Read books that are predictable.  Reread favorite books and let your child join in on the parts they remember.  Stop during reading to ask your child questions about the story, let your child make predictions about what they think is going to happen next.  Make sure to ask questions at the end of the story to make sure that your child comprehended the story.  Create a simple word wall that can be place on your child closet door.  Have your child read the words on the word wall each night before they go to bed.  As your child learns the words on the wall add new words. 
• Dinner time – Let your child help you cook.  Talk to them about the way you are measuring the ingredients.  Go to your local store and pick up a place mat that has letters on it and a pack of magnetic letters.  Have your child match the magnetic letters to the letters on the place mat.  Your child can also use the magnetic letters on the refrigerator to put the alphabet in order, spell sight words or spell simple words you give them. 
• Store – When you go to the store with your child give them clues to what you would like to buy.  Like please put a can of vegetables in the cart that begins with P, cereal that’s in the yellow box, 3 packages of cheese, etc.  Talk to your child about the different shapes and colors of the containers that the food comes in.  Help your child learn about coins by letting them buy something little.  Give your child different coins and tell him/her to give the cashier a quarter, nickel, dime or penny depending on how much the item cost. 
• Summer – Make sure you take your child to your local library and sign them up for the summer reading club.  Most libraries offer incentives for reading books and have special programs that your child can participate in.  Take your child to the park, talk to him/her about the different things you see as you walk through the park.  Talk about how plants and animals are living things, and what they need to live.  Have your child play with the other children at the park; discuss with him/her the importance of taking turns with other children. 

Remember that you are your child’s first teacher, and that you are one of the biggest influences when it comes to his/her education.  Studies show that students that parent show an interest in their child’s education are more likely to succeed in school.   

by Brenda Hunt

This is a family oriented blog.  Make sure you keep it clean.