Welcome Families!

Did you know that both the author and the illustrator tell the story of a picture book? Does your child know that? Does your child know that SHE or HE can help tell the story even before s/he can read the words? This ongoing class will extend your child's comprehension skills, build confidence, and bring joy to his or her reading!

Each class will start with personal introductions. Next, we will talk about how to have “a polite conversation” around our book. During the rest of our class time, we will read and discuss one read-aloud, focusing our conversations on the main idea, the setting, the plot/problem-solution, the mood, and the character development. I will select books from a variety of authors and genres to provide rich exposure to literature. When applicable, other subject matter - science, geography, culture, history, music & art - will be layered into our discussions. Your child will be asked questions to build on his/her background insight and grow from there. Analyzing the story as we go, children will learn to take turns, speak up, and glean from the thinking of others. From time to time, we will implement drawing and writing to affirm our understanding of the story.

I will lean on literacy experts’, Fountas & Pinnell’s, teaching technique called Interactive Read-Aloud. This method of reading a story to a child promotes the growth of a child’s comprehension skills. Fountas & Pinnell’s forty years of research have proven that: “At all grade levels, students need to listen to texts in a variety of genres and increasingly complex texts within those genres.” This helps them examine ideas and think about narrative, expository, or poetic texts beyond what the author has written. In turn, practice using vital literacy processing systems in a read-aloud setting will be directly applicable to a child’s independent reading and writing as well.

Layout for this session:

Week of June 10:  “I Just Want to Say Good Night” by Rachel Isadora & “Dream Big Little Pig!”  by Kristi Yamaguchi
Week of June 17:  “Pirates Don’t Change Diapers” by Melinda Long & “Sara’s City” by Sue Alexander
Week of June 24: “A Splendid Friend, Indeed”  by Suzanne Bloom & “Knuffle Bunny” by Mo Willems
Week of July 1: “If I Built a Car” by Chris Van Dusen & “Keeping Watch” by Michele Dufresne
Week of July 8:  “The Tale of Peter Rabbit” by Beatrix Potter  & “Chester”  by Melanie Watt
Week of July 15: "Skippyjon Jones and the Big Bones" by Judy Schachner &  “Mammoths on the Move”  by Lisa Wheeler 
Week of July 22:  “Unspoken” by Henry Cole & “A Country Far Away” by Nigel Gray
Week of July 29:  “Duck for President”  by Doreen Cronin &  “Just a Few Words, Mr. Lincoln” by Jean Fritz   

One of my favorite things to do is read to a child, hear his thoughts about the story, and challenge him to dig even deeper into the meaning. Let's get lost in a book and learn to LOVE reading together!

See you soon,
:) Miss Lisa