Why Can’t I Skip My Twenty Minutes
of Reading Tonight?
Let’s figure it out — mathematically!
Student A reads 20 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 20 min. x 5 times a week = 100 mins./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 400 minutes a month.
Student B reads 80 minutes a month.
Step 3: Multiply minutes a month x 9 months/school year
Student A reads 3600 min. in a school year.
Student B reads 720 min. in a school year.
Student A practices reading the equivalent of ten whole school days a year.
Student B gets the equivalent of only two school days of reading practice.
By the end of 5th grade if Student A and Student B maintain
these same reading habits, Student A will have read the equivalent of 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.
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?
Turn off the TV for 20 minutes a night and read….it’s worth it!
The following information is from the No Child Left Behind Website.
Simple Strategies for Creating Strong Readers
Without a doubt, reading with children spells success for early literacy. Putting a few simple strategies into action will make a significant difference in helping children develop into good readers and writers. Through reading aloud, providing print materials, and promoting positive attitudes about reading and writing, you can have a powerful impact on children’s literacy and learning.
1. Invite your child to read with you every day. (see above to see why this is so important)
2. When reading a book where the print is large, point word by word as you read. This will help the child learn that reading goes from left to right and understand that the word he or she says is the word he or she sees.
3. Read a child’s favorite book over and over again.
4. Read many stories with rhyming words and lines that repeat. Invite the child to join in on these parts. Point, word by word, as he or she reads along with you.
5. Discuss new words. For example, “This big house is called a palace. Who do you think lives in a palace?”
6. Stop and ask about the pictures and about what is happening in the story.
7. Read from a variety of children’s books, including fairy tales, song books, poems, and information books.
Here are a few things that you can do to help build your child’s literacy skills:
• Let your child gradually share some of the reading aloud. You read a sentence, paragraph, or page, then it’s your child’s turn. Take over if your beginner seems tired or discouraged to ensure that reading is always fun, not just hard work …
• If your child can’t sound out a word, suggest skipping it, reading the rest of the sentence, and deciding what word would make sense.
• Leave notes on the refrigerator or in a lunch bag for your child to discover and read.
• Take your new reader to the library to sign up for his or her own library card.
Try introducing the following types of books to your child:
• Read-aloud books with plots to follow and challenging vocabulary
• Easy-to-read books your child can read alone
• Books in a variety of genres, including nonfiction and poetry
Reading well is at the heart of all learning!