Comedy Club

Student's excitement and enjoyment of reading increased today by reading jokes and riddle books to celebrate April Fools Day.  Students practiced their favorite jokes to build fluency and expression, and then read their jokes aloud sitting in a director's chair.  We used an audience laugh recording that we found on YouTube to make the comedy club seem more realistic.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJfJTmfq2Q4

Happy birthday Dr. Seuss!!

Today we celebrated the birthday of one of the most popular children's book author of all times- Dr. Seuss!  March 2nd has been labeled "Read Across America" day in celebration of Dr. Seuss's birthday and to motivate children to read.  Getting students engaged and motivated in reading is an important factor for life long reading success. 

We held a "Camp out and Read" day today in Title I. Students read Dr. Seuss books inside a tent while eating S'more goldfish crackers.  The lights were turned off and students read using flashlights with night noises in the background (think crickets). The kids were so excited to go camping with many Dr. Seuss stuffed animal characters, too. 

Christmas Time Reader's Theater

Third grade Title I students were asking to do a Christmas Reader's Theater this year.  I chose Stan and Jan Berenstain's book "The Bear's Christmas."  This book is great for working on fluency, phrasing and expression because of the rhyming conversation between Papa Bear and his Son.  There was also high engagement from the students because of their excitement for Christmas.  Each of my classes only have three students, so one student chose to be Papa Bear and then two students rotated for the son. The students who were Papa Bear got a lot of practice.

The students highlighted their parts and practice reading using whisper phones.  Some even took their scripts home to practice.  I hope you enjoy the end results.  The kids worked really hard and enjoyed participating in this reader's theater.

Brayden and Carla

Brayden and Ava

Ethan and Hunter

Ethan and Boston

Making a Difference

Third grade students read a non-fiction book called Canstruction Creations.  They learned how making a creative structure out of cans can help make a difference in many peoples lives.  People enter the Canstruction Creations contest to help feed hungry families. Teams of volunteers decide what to build, make a plan, and then choose what types and colors of cans they will need to make and shape their structure.   The next step is collecting the cans.  It takes thousands of cans to make these big structures.  Teams receive help from food companies as well as other people in the community to purchase cans of food.  Teams can use cardboard, tape or wire to help keep their structure sturdy, but glue is not allowed.  Judges choose their favorite creations, but every team ends up a winner because they are helping to feed hungry families. Once the contest is over, volunteers take the creations apart and donate the food local food banks in their communities.  Students also watched a few videos of some of the 2015 Canstruction Creations in Kansas City. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ig-qtKRMzM  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzFyETpKgZ8

Celebrating READING Week!

The month of March starts off with a BANG- by celebrating two very important reading events.  March 2nd has been designated as Read Across America Day as we celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss.  Then on the first Wednesday of March we celebrate World Read Aloud Day.  Today in our Title I and Reading Recovery classes, students chose a Dr. Seuss book that they would like to hear read aloud to them.  Students also chose a Dr. Seuss character stuffed animal to snuggle with while listening to the stories inside a little tent.  While students listened to the stories, they munched on some s'more goldfish crackers.  Some of the most popular books to have read aloud were: Green Eggs and Ham, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut, The Foot Book, and Hooray For Diffendoofer Day!

All About Those Books

Check out this fantastic rendition of the pop song "All About The Bass" transformed to "All About Those Books" by the Mount Desert HS. We love it!

Reading is...