Roots of Learning » reading strategies

New PBS Site

admin — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:23:20 +0000

PBS has launched PBS Read – a site where kids, parents, caregivers can work together on reading! PBS already has some great reading and writing resources available for kids and adults, and it was great to see that they merged the two audiences with this website. In my mind it encourages families to take a more active role in education – which is what we’re all about at Roots of Learning, too!

Check out the new PBS Read site.

- Heather

Teaching the Brain to Read

admin — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 03:17:57 +0000

I just finished reading a book by Judy Willis entitled Teaching the Brain to Read: Strategies for Improving Fluency, Vocabulary, and Comprehension.

I highly recommend it for teachers and parents interested in how reading is learned and how we build meaning and gain comprehension.

Find out more at ASCD.org.

Musical Rhymes

admin — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 03:29:32 +0000

Do you happen to have an auditory / musically inclined learner who is learning to read? (I do.) If so, try using books with a lot of rhyme, rhythm, and alliteration in them. Auditory learners are ‘tuned in’ (literally) to sounds and patterns in sound. Plugging into this strength in their learning style can enhance their learning experiences when books are read to them, and when they are beginning to read books on their own. In addition to the auditory learner, tactile learners are going to be attunded to the way words ‘feel’ in their mouths, so using books that ‘play’ with language in this way can also help your tactile learners plug in to reading!

- Heather

What kind of Reading Resources are parents looking for?

admin — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 21:32:13 +0000

OK. So your child is past the ‘decoding’ phase of learning to read. He can sound out words and get through some books. What comes next? We’re creating a resource for parents of 2nd – 6th graders. The goal is to help them assist their children in the less obvious but important processes of reading comprehension – helping them to understand, analyze, evaluate, and sythesize what they read.

I’d love to get some feedback from parents. What are you looking for? (Of course sometimes you don’t know until you see it – so I’ll post a few “freebies/examples” soon). Please comment on this post and let me know what challenges you are facing with your child’s reading development!

Thanks,

Heather