Reading Aloud to Kids!

Jen Robinson has a post about starting a read aloud to kids campaign (http://jkrbooks.typepad.com/blog/2009/01/how-can-we-encourage-reading-aloud.html)
This is an issue that is near and dear to my heart. I believe my own mother "created" an English teacher by reading to me constantly and never denying me that time. Even as a virtual non-reader herself, she still understood the importance of reading aloud to kids.

In my own classroom, I read aloud to my 7th and 8th graders every year and they love it! I even sneak in some "activities" for reading comprehension once in a while so I can judge their attentiveness and understanding. Believe me, that zeros in on possible reading issues much more so than any test I've ever seen.

Someone in the blogosphere clued me in to the website Vista Print http://www.vistaprint.com where teachers can make just about anything for their classrooms. Recently, I had a large magnet made for my car that reads "Please read to your kids everyday". It's on the passenger side of my van and I hope people read it and take it to heart. This is SUCH an important issue to me- and Jen Robinson writes that over 60% of kids under age 6 are NOT being read to on a daily basis! My kids think that their nighttime routine isn't complete without their books. And, my daughter twin has pushed me into the direction of now doing individual reading in each child's bed rather than "twin book time" in my bed. What this actually does is make mommy drop off to sleep by the end of the third read aloud. :) But, they love it and depend on this nightly.

Please, please read to your kids- your own and your students! No matter how old they are. EMU Professor, Mary Bigler, always says in her presentations that you should: "Read to kids from the time you get them until the time they leave your home." Wouldn't that be powerful if the whole country did that? Think about it- an end to poverty through reading? What a great concept.

Tomie DePaola Strikes Gold Again

Does Tomie dePaola ever write a bad book? I have loved his writing for decades now! I even used his books when I taught preschool, eons ago. This book also does not disappoint. When I saw him speak at NCTE this year, he mentioned this book (it's in my notes) and said he did the art as a collage with avery labels and prismacolor markers. What a beautiful result! The book covers the actual song of St. Francis in a shortened version for children. But, the pictures- they are clean and bright, almost giving the birds and St. Francis an illuminated quality. Sun and moon follow with their ethereal qualities. I may be biased because I love this author and St. Francis, but this is a real treasure for my family.

I also love the fact that dePaola dedicated the book to a Benedictine nun at an east coast Abbey (my Oblate status). Sometimes I think that Mr. de and I share a lot in common. He's really the "santa claus-y" kind of guy you want to sit down and enjoy a
good meal with. Happy reading all!

I'm reading... I really am!

January has always been a horrid time for me. The weather in Michigan is COLD (especially this year) and all I want to do is drink coffee and eat chocolate chip cookies, which makes for a less than desirable pant size. :) Oh well. Cream and sugar with that?

Okay, thanks so much to Rachel over at Penguin for sending me my first box of ARCs; it's awesome! Unfortunately, I am reading so much (in between finalizing grades) that I haven't been blogging! This upcoming book, 2030: A Day in the Life of Tomorrow's Kids(Dutton, March '09) was one of the upcoming picture books that was in my box. I just started a science fiction genre study today and this book was awesome! The whole premise is to let kids know what the future will be like after talking to "futurists" and scientists. They follow the "day in the life" of a typical (what looks to me like) teenager. From waking to sleeping and everything in between,authors Amy Zuckerman and James Daly have predicted an average day twenty or so years from now. The pictures are vibrantly colored with cartoon characters that look almost as if they stepped out of a manga, but not quite. My favorite possibility is the "Clean-a-rella", a robot that will vacuum and dust your home! Can't wait for that one! (Note to self: must get a Roomba) Because this book covered everything from going to the mall to skateboarding, all of my students were interested and it will give them a great jumping off point for starting some science fiction writing tomorrow.

Another viewpoint was from my almost 9 year-old who insisted that she read the book to me last night because she wanted to share "how cool" all of these future inventions were. She, of course, loved the talking dog. Overall, I think this book will have LOTS of appeal in many different age ranges. Teachers of the science fiction genre should definitely put this one on their list. As an added bonus, it will be published right on my daughter's birthday!