Avoid the Summer Slump!

 Many journals on education talk about the Summer Slide or Summer Slump. This is known as a decline in reading achievement some children experience from being out of school over the long summer vacation.

Research has shown that consequences of reading loss can be long lasting. Children who fall behind over the summer find it harder to close the gap when they return to school.

In New Zealand a research project showed that some students who were reading at a below-average level suffered a 5.8 month summer reading slide.

Good News! You can make a difference and prevent Summer Slide for your child!

Here are some ways you can help this summer:

Take your child to the library weekly.

Allow your child to select books that interest him/her.

Keep reading fun.

Make a special time for reading every day.

Read aloud to your child.

Sign up for Two2Read.com, a parent/child reading program for only $19.95 for an entire year.

Two2Read provides you with simple, easy and fun lessons to help your child learn to read.

Two2Read includes 6 different learning levels from pre-school to 2nd grade.

Sign up for Two2Read and prevent Summer Slide for your child!

http://www.two2read.com

One of the best ways to reinforce reading skills is through writing.

Graves (1983) wrote children want to write.

They want to write from the beginning of school. Before school, he continues, young children write on walls and pavement. Children may seem like they are scribbling, but there is meaning behind it; the children need only be asked what the scribbles mean (Graves, 1983).

There are many ways to encourage your child to write.

1.  Allow your child access to alphabet stamps, stickers and stencils.

2.  Keep available stationary, lined and unlined paper, colorful paper, old cards and postcards. Find “Storytelling Paper” which gives your child lines to write on the bottom of the page and empty space on the top of the page for illustrating their stories.

3.  Make sure your child has access to pens, pencils, markers, pencil grips, etc.

4.  Have a designated space for your child to find all these supplies and a comfortable desk or table area on which he/she can work. Keep supplies handy and in containers so they are kept neat and organized.

5.  Provide prompts to encourage writing. These can be a batch of photographs from a recent family outing, interesting pictures cut from an old magazine or a bunch of words which you pre-cut out of a newspaper or magazine.

6.  Encourage your child to write by providing a journal or notebook which they can keep in a special place. Allow your child to select his/her own special journal or decorate a notebook which you provide.  Here is a suggestion of a great first journal”

My First Gratitude Journal

by Vivian Tenorio a

Jav Publishers

What other ways do you encourage your child to write?

April is national Poetry Month and there are many great ways to share poetry with your child.

Through poetry you can:

Increase your child’s vocabulary

Allow for your child’s creative abilities

Encourage your child’s self-expression

Stretch your child’s imagination

Some ways to share poetry with your child are:

A.  Read poetry aloud together

B.   Have your child dictate a poem to you and you write it down for him/her.

C.   Write an acrostic poem together with the letters of your child’s name.

        Example :  E is for everything sweet,  M is merry and mischievous,  I is  interesting and intelligent, L is loving and Y is for you!

D.   Write silly poems together.

E.    Cut out individual words from a magazine and help your child put them together to make a poem.

F.   Write poems about animals.

G.   Check out some wonderful books of poetry from your library.

        Here are some great suggestions:

1. PIZZA, PIGS AND POETRY: How to Write a Poem by Jack Prelutsky

2. FALLING UP by Shel Silverstein

3. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BOOK OF ANIMAL POETRY: 200 Poems With Photographs That Squeal, Soar and Roar! by J. Patrick Lewis.

4. POEMS TO LEARN BY HEART by Caroline Kennedy and Jon J. Muth

5. HERE’S A LITTLE POEM: A Very First Book of Poetry by Jane Yolen, Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Dunbar.

Here are some tips to help you to get your Struggling Reader to read for his/her enjoyment:

1. Find several books you think he/she may like and let them choose which one they want to read.

2. Take turns reading the book together. Either you can read a page and then your child can read the next page or you read a sentence and then he/she reads the next sentence.

3. Take index cards and write one word on each card that is found frequently in the book.  Select no more than 10 words.

Example: the name of the main character, or common sight words that your child may be having difficulty with. Go over these words together and practice them out loud.  When you get to the place in the book where you find one of these words, point to the index card to help your child remember.

Sample sight words: said, like, what, she, have, are, came

4.  Find books that are in a series that your child may enjoy. Having sequels to a favorite book encourages your child to want to read more books about the same character or by the same author.

Sample series or sequels:

Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish and Fritz Siebel

Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel

Little Bear by Else Holmelund Minarik

Big Max by Kin Platt

Henry and Mudge by Cynthia Rylant

5.  Keep a chart of how many books your child has read. Reward him/her for reading 5 books, or 10 books as a goal.  A reward can be a trip to the book store to find new books to read, a trip to the ice cream store, etc.

What ways to you encourage your child to read more books?

How do you help your child who is struggling to read?

Here are some guidelines that might help you become an Advocate For Your Child:

1. You know your child best. You spend the most time with your child and know his/her personality, weaknesses and strengths. You see your child in many different kinds of settings and know best what your child can achieve.

2. You have the best interests of your child in mind. You care the most for your child and your child’s future. You can put your child’s interests first and foremost above all else.

3.  You can best judge your child’s progress or lack of progress over time. You have seen your child grow from infancy and you can best judge what areas are your child’s strengths and also their weaknesses over time.

4.  You know your child’s temperment and personality. You know if your child is shy, or outgoing, quiet or active, passive or agressive. You know in what settings your child responds well, and in what situations your child can shut down and not produce at all.

5.  You know your child’s abilities in many different areas. You see the whole child, both in your home, among family and friends as well as in more social situations. You can tell if your child feels relaxed or tense, anxious or happy.

When you feel the need to meet with an adult caregiver, teacher, therapist or doctor on behalf of your child, remember you know your child best. It is up to you to represent your child and see that his/her needs are being met.

How do you advocate for your child?

In what situations do you feel most comfortable to be your child’s advocate?

What experiences have you had that made being your child’s advocate easy or difficult?

1. Talk about the many family traditions portrayed throughout the book. Make a list with your child of your family traditions. Think about the holidays and what your family traditions are that you do to celebrate each holiday. Pick a favorite holiday and write with your child -

Who comes?

What do you do?

Where does this happen?

When do you celebrate (month, time of day, etc.) ?

Why do you celebrate ?

2. Create a family tree. Talk about where did your family come from?

Who are your grandparents, great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins?

3. Create a quilt out of paper.

You could use tangram shapes to help you plan your quilt.

You can trace and cut out the shapes using these forms.

Use colored paper or cut up magazines to make your quilt.

4. Create a real quilt for your room.

Take fabric and cut into squares.

Have each member of your family decorate each square.

After you have created at least 12 squares, sew them together to make a quilt.

You might want to add pieces of fabric from things around your house that remind you of special times like your old baby blanket, an old tablecloth your family used for special holidays, an old tie from your Dad or Granddad, etc.

While working with my 8 year old grandson, I observed how he learned things I had taught him. When I saw he was having difficulty remembering his letters and sounds, I use my hands to teach him how to connect the two. For example, for the letter “I”

I would touch my nose and say “itch” for the short “I” sound.

For the letter “U”, I touched my chin and said the word “up” for the short “U” sound.

Now whenever he comes across a word he does not know,  he sounds it out.

He touches his hands to his nose for the “I” sound, or his hand to his chin for the “U” sound.

He is excellent in gymnastics and excels well beyond his age.

He is fantastic a lego, doing art projects and working with his hands.

In short, he learns best by touching or feeling in order to remember.

He is a KINESTHETIC LEARNER.

As defined on Wikipedia:

Give them a ball to bounce while studying math facts, or spelling words.

Write words on paper using texture to help them remember the words. (Example: use sand paper or glitter glue.)

Give clues using hand movements or by pointing to help them remember facts.

Allow them to participate in gymnastics, dance or athletics, where they often excel.

Provide opportunities for building, art projects, puzzles and/or working with tools .

I love to read a book before I go to sleep. I often would curl up with a blanket on the couch and read until I felt tired enough to go to bed. Now that winter is here, reading on the couch, even with a blanket was getting quite chilly. So on a recent shopping trip to the local mall, my husband bought a reading light for me to read in bed.

It is a simple LED light that hooks on to the side or top of my book and gives me enough light to read but is small enough that the light does not bother my husband who falls asleep right away.

As we were leaving the mall, my husband suggested to get 3 more reading lights, one for each of our grandchildren, ages 6, 8 and 10. After purchasing 3 more reading lights, each in a different color, we headed home. The next day we gave each grandchild his or her own reading light, along with a new book to read.

We hear glowing reports from their parents now that every night they curl under their covers and are delighted to read before bedtime.

One evening, my daughter borrowed one of the reading lights and read to her 3 year old at bedtime while tucking him under the covers. The next night he wanted the same special reading light, so off we went to the mall to buy another reading light for grandchild number 4.

What a great way to encourage reading for your child. Reading lights are inexpensive, but provide hours of reading light and help give your child the incentive to keep reading books before bedtime. Check Amazon for lots of different reading lights, all priced at around $10.00 or less!

under $10.00

Holiday gift shopping can be expensive. However, it is possible to be creative, educational and still keep to your budget if you have the right mind set. So here are my suggestions for great gift shopping that will not make a hole in your pocketbook.

You can still put a smile on your child’s face and not empty your bank account.

1. STICKERS:

You can buy stickers in all kinds of shapes and sizes. You can find stickers about animals, cars and trucks, butterflies and fairy princesses. You could even add a notebook with blank pages to allow your child to create their own sticker book album.

2. MARKERS & CRAYONS :

 You can never have enough markers and crayons around. No child can resist a new package of markers or large box of crayons. Markers come in many colors, shapes and sizes today so you can be creative. You could add a package of blank paper for drawing or even fun coloring pages which you can download for free on many web sites today.

3. BLACK BOARD or DRY ERASE BOARD:

It is possible to find a dry erase board with dry erase markers in fun shapes for drawing. You can also find small portable black boards with chalk and eraser. Either choice is a fun way to keep your child busy while creating their own designs or writing words and illustrating them on their own board.

4. DECK OF CARDS:

A deck of cards has endless possibilities for games. There are numerous ways to have fun with your child using cards. Cards come with various designs and shapes today and you can decide what kind your child may like. It is then up to you to teach a new card game or play old favorites like ‘War” or “Solitaire.”

5. BALLS :

Here is a category all children will love. From soccer balls, baseballs, tennis balls and footballs, you can find a ball that your child will enjoy. There are balls that bounce and balls that are colorful, balls that are covered with a funky design and balls that you can squish, endless choices for your child to have a good time.

6. HAIR ACCESSORIES & JEWELRY :

This category is only for girls but has so many exciting ways to expand her wardrobe. There are bows, hair clips, and head bands galore to choose from in any color or design. Fun necklaces, beads, bracelets and earrings are also abundant and can be inexpensive too. You can add a special box , gift bag or plastic bin where your daughter can store all her special items.

7. CARS & TRUCKS:

Okay, now for boys toys. In any dollar store or toy store they still sell small cars for under $1.00. Find unusual ones with a fun design or color and add them to your child’s collection. There are plastic boxes you could add where your son can store his car collection.

8. BOOKS:

Books can be expensive but it is possible to find great books at bargain prices. Check your local book store and find the “sale” rack. Go to your nearest used book store and search for some great treasures. Lots of times used books can be bought in excellent, “like new” condition. Another place to find books is at your local dollar store. You may include in this category workbooks, books with dot to dot designs, books with mazes, coloring books, etc.

9. BEDROOM SLIPPERS & SOCKS :

Another fun category that can be found for reasonable prices are new slippers for the winter or fun socks. These can be bought in countless colors, patterns or designs and will brighten any child’s holiday. There are plenty of places to pick these up for very reasonable prices.

10. FOOD :

My last category is fun food. You can fill a small gift bag or small box with a favorite snack. You can add a package of hot chocolate, a pack of gum, some holiday candy and then wrap them all up to surprise your child with a delicious gift to enjoy for the holidays.

Do you have any suggestions to add to this list? How do you budget for your holiday shopping lists?

As Thanksgiving is over, the days until the Christmas and Chanukah holidays begin to go very fast. Your children are excited and anxiously awaiting school vacation, holiday presents, and time with family and friends.

Here are ways to help include your child in the holiday preparations while instilling in them the spirit and meaning of the holiday season.

1. Books:

You can never read enough books with your child about the holidays. There are countless classics to share as well as many, many new additions being written each year. Get out the old classics and begin sharing them at bedtime with your child today. Go to the library and check out a bunch of new books for the holidays that you have yet to share together.

2. Gift Giving:

Include your child in making lists of gifts to give and to whom. Let your child suggest family or friends and what they think would make a good gift. Think together of ideas for gifts which you can buy or make together. Create a list of gifts for each special person on their list.

3. Arts and Crafts:

 Holidays are the perfect time to make crafts together to decorate the house and your holiday table. Giving gifts that are handmade are another way to make someone know how much they mean to you. Allow your child to gather art supplies and make holiday decorations. Think of other ways your child can be involved such as making holiday cards or holiday wrapping paper.

4. Giving to Others:

The holiday season is the time to teach your child how to share with others in the community. Find ways to include your child in charity soup kitchens, or gifts for children in hospitals, etc. Food drives are another way you can get your child involved in the act of giving to others.

5. Cooking and Baking:

One of the best places to celebrate a holiday is in the kitchen. Cooking and baking traditional family food brings helps create many happy holiday moments together. Let your child help bake holiday cookies or help with a favorite family dish. Include your child in preparing holiday menus and setting the table for guests.

6. Songs and Music:

One of the best ways to increase holiday spirit is through music. Find all your old holiday CD’s and play them together to help everyone get ready for the holidays. Sing together as you are working in the kitchen, or driving in the car. Listen to holiday classics as you drive to work or school.

7. Invite Guests:

Another way to teach your child to give to others is by inviting guests to your home at holiday time. It can be family members, neighbors, or friends who may be alone for the holidays. Teach your child the importance of welcoming guests into your home and sharing with others at this special time. Include your child in preparing the guest room, or setting the extra place at your holiday table.

What other ways does your family get ready for the holidays?