Just Let Them Play This Summer for Optimal Learning!

It's summer, and my kids aren't spending their time working on bridge activities to be ready for next year. They aren't practicing math skills to make them smarter and ready for the next grade. They aren't learning anything in a formal sense. But they ARE learning, learning so much more than they would from any activities I could force upon them.

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Most Comfortable Spots to Make Summer Reading Fun

Making Summer Reading Fun

It's summer, and what do our kids do? If yours are like mine, they play, watch TV, play, and read, ReAd, READ! It takes some cajoling to get them to do it, but in the end, they all enjoy it. I have found that the best way to get them to actually spend quality time reading is to find the perfect places to read and keep reading. Here are some of their favorites!

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The Summer Book Fair is Here!

Each year I have made it a point to make sure the kids I work with have at least one book to read over the summer. Most summers I go through my books and get rid of them or purchase a book for each grade level, but this year I did something different ~ our first annual Summer Book Fair!

Last summer my friends at Literacy Land and I read a book by Richard Allington ~ Summer Reading. It had some great ideas, but the one that was most feasible for me was the Summer Book Fair. In the Summer Book Fair, students picked out several books to take home for the summer from a bunch of books. The books were relevant for students and were something they had interests. This summer intervention had the most impact on students and lessened the effects of summer slide better than anything else, including summer school.

 I decided this was something I wanted to try this year.

At the end of every school year, we are given an allotment of money to use for our classrooms. This year I really didn't need a lot, so I decided to use the money to purchase books and items for the students I work with. I was given a huge box of old books from a school that closed that I could give the kids. Then I spent hours looking for books at Scholastic and making sure I stayed within budget. I knew I wanted each child to take home at least 4 books. I was able to surpass that, giving each of the kids in grade kindergarten through fourth-grade 5-7 books each.

Here is how it worked.

I started out with books I had purchased and leftover books from an old reading series placed on a cart by grade levels.

I brought in each grade level to choose books and decorate bags.

Kindergarten and first-grade students got bags and books!

The funny thing about kindergarten and first-grade students is that they didn't really think about what they were choosing. They simply picked out books. A couple of students chose books that had puppies on it or such, but most of them simply picked up the number of books they could choose and put them in the bag.

The 2nd graders loved that I had included Fly Guy books, one they loved reading!

By third grade, I had run out of bags, so we decorated large envelopes.

A third grader searching for the perfect books!

The fourth graders really had fun choosing books!

I learned something interesting about the students as they chose books. The older students really looked at the backs and covers of the books to choose the ones they wanted. They even asked me for specific titles, which was interesting to me.

My favorite moment of all was when I delivered the bags of books. As I walked into the classrooms, each student ran up to me and grabbed their books, excited to remember what was in it.

I can't wait until next year when I see who actually read over the summer. I hope the results will show that the summer slide is lessened with these particular students. Stop by in the fall (later in September) to see the results of this little experiment. If it does, this will be an annual event with the entire school!

How do you help prevent summer slide in your school?

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Book Talk Thursday ~ Summer Reading

Hello, my friends!  I am back again for another edition of Book Talk Thursday!

Today I am sending you back to Adventures in Literacy Land to join in on another book study we are working through.  This book is a quick and easy read for all educators that has some practical ways to help students in poverty achieve reading success over the summer:  Summer Reading: Closing the Rich/Poor Reading Achievement Gap  by Richard Allington and Anne McGill-Franzen.

You can head on over to the blog and check out the chapters we have discussed so far and join in the discussion.  And the fun won't end until August 2nd!  If you want to jump on board and read from the beginning, just click on the images below to read the blog posts for each chapter.

And you can continue to link up with Book Talk Thursday through August!

   

    An InLinkz Link-up
   

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Book Talk Thursday ~ Switched

It's summer, and I am ready for some summer reading!

This week on Book Talk Thursday I am highlighting an ultimate summer read ~ Switched by Elise Sax.

This book was perfect for some mindless reading.  Debra has been jilted at the altar by her groom Jackson.  She goes into a funk and decides to try a home switcher program before he takes the swanky apartment from her.  She goes on a trip to Mallorca with all of her clothes and $40.  Mishap upon mishap occur, making this the perfect screenplay for a cheesy romantic comedy.

I don't normally enjoy books like this one, but I had to find out what was going to happen to Debra and couldn't put it down.

Bottom line, if you want something mindless to read for the beach or summer ~ this is it!

Don't forget to link up this summer with one of your favorite books or any book you want to highlight for us!

   

    An InLinkz Link-up
   

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Book Talk Thursday ~ Summer Linky!

It's here!  It's here!  The big event of the summer!

OK, for me at least!  But I hope all of you will enjoy it too!!

Check out my new button for Book Talk Thursday!  I love Michelle's (from The 3AM Teacher) work so much that I asked her to make me the awesome button!  She went beyond my wildest dreams and created a fantastic button for Book Talk Thursday! Yay!!

And thank you to everyone who voted on it!  I love the green chair, but it looks like yellow was the winning vote for summer.  So yellow it is!

Here is how the linky will work.  Write a book review about any book you would like.  It can be a kids' book, professional book, or one that is just for fun.  Insert the button above with a link back to the blog post.  Then link up with everyone else!

I will post the link each week too, so you can link up as many times as you like!  And every time you link up enters you into a drawing for a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble to buy some of those books that are listed {or whatever you want!}

So, I will start off with my book review for this week.  It is the ultimate summer book that my son has really enjoyed!  He loves all of the Judy Moody books and was super excited to get this one and read it!  And they are set in Virginia, which brings it close to home!The book for this week is Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer .

This one is based on the movie that came out a couple of summers ago, but I find this one is much more kid-friendly with nothing to really entice adults to make them want to read it, but it is really a cute and fun book. 

Judy Moody is always up to something, and this book is no different!  This summer, her friends and parents are all leaving her behind with her friend Frank and brother Stink.  And then her Aunt Opal enters the scene.  She is a fun-loving artist who adds fun to Judy's summer.  Judy wants to see who can get the most "thrill points" throughout the summer and seems to fall short every time. 

It all starts when she and Frank try to walk a tightrope between two trees and fail miserably.  They ride a roller coaster, try to watch zombie movies, and even try to put hats on the library's stone lions.  All the while, her brother Stink is looking for Bigfoot.  Finally, Judy realizes that the best way to get "thrill points" is to join the ranks of Stink and look for Bigfoot.  The best part is the surprise she gets at the end!

As always, the book has a wonderful lesson for children that will help them appreciate summer and their own talents.

This book is perfect for students to read over the summer to help them appreciate their own summers.  Children will laugh with Judy as she tries all of kinds of things to make her summer fun!  I laughed a lot too!  I gave these books to my third graders to read over the summer, since it is written on their level and geared toward them.  I sure do hope they enjoy it as much as Zack and I did!

So, what book do you recommend for reading this summer?  Remember to link up as much as you like with book reviews for a chance at a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble!  It will go from today through August 18th, so you have plenty of time!

Happy Reading!

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Summer, Reading, and Legos

Summer is right around the corner, and many of our students will not read over the summer.  We just have to face the facts that so many of them just don't read.  It is hard for them because there are so many super fun things to do all summer too!  But, reading can be so much fun!  Plus, the kids don't have the parental support to get good books and read at home.  But, who said the kids have to read traditional books to count as reading?  

My son is one who struggles with finding something fun to read after a couple of weeks.  Once he has read what he likes, we spend hours in the library looking for something new to read.  This summer will be different!  Here is one of the fun things he will be reading and using this summer!

Our school has a "Buy One, Get One Free" book fair in the spring.  This allows our students to get books at a great price.  It also allows me to get some great books for Zack and Ginny Beth!

Zack is eight and in the third grade, but we still read to him every night, or at least most nights.  We are on the second Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2).

One of his favorite toys in Legos, and he has quite the collection!  It all started with my husband's old sets that were handed down to him, and it just goes on from there!  Sometimes I think Legos are taking over my house.  So, this was the book he wanted me to get for him to read:  LEGO Harry Potter: Building the Magical World.

And, he didn't put it down ~ for days!  Then, he started asking for the sets.  And we said that he had plenty of pieces to try and make some of the things in the book.  After some complaining, we lost him for a couple of hours.  He tried to build Hogwarts but couldn't figure out the stairs.  So, he settled on the Quidditch field.  Here is the picture in the book and then his creation.

We did have to go on ebay to purchase some of the minifigures and brooms, but some of them he created from his own stash of minifigures!  Going on ebay was great because he was reading all about what he was looking at and the prices.  He could even tell you when the auctions ended!  I was impressed!

Just think of all of the reading he was doing!  We read with him to get him intrigued.  Then, he read all about the Harry Potter Lego sets.  He used the picture and captions in the book to create his own Quidditch field.  Then he read the ebay listings to find the other things he needed to complete his masterpiece!

There are endless possibilities to "fun" reading.  What kind of FUN things do your kids like to read over the summer?

I can't wait to hear your fun reading ideas!

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A Day of Fun

Yesterday my husband had a meeting in Richmond, VA, the state capital.  We decided to tag along and go see the sights.  We walked around the Capitol building, but it was really hot and humid.

Look at those columns!  Something he will learn about in third grade

Then we went to the Science Museum.  What fun!  The best part is that teachers get in FREE!  Everyone laughs at me because I carry my ID around with everywhere.  Well, this is why.  Many places either give a discount or allow teachers in for free.

Zack had fun looking at all the different activities.  He "played" with everything and learned so much.  On the way home, he asked if he had to read for school.  I said, "No, I think you did plenty of reading."  This was the first time we went to a museum where I did not  have to read everything to him.  As a matter of fact, I just had to explain some things.  It was so refreshing!  Summer reading does not always happen in books.  Sometimes it just includes the world around you.  Zack loved that idea!  And I love that he learned so much from it while having fun at the same time!

Working with magnets is the first step to building a motor.

His head on a platter!

At the "beach"

Digging for shark's teeth and shells

This was a cool fountain!  The ball rolled on the water.

We had a lot of fun.  The next time we go, we will probably hit up the Children's Museum, which was next door.  They have a splash ground, which looked refreshing on a day as hot as yesterday was!


While in the car on the three hour ride there and back, I got a lot of reading done.  I started reading Beyond Leveled Books.  Wow!  What an eye opener it is!!  I have a lot to blog about that next week.  If you haven't read it, I would suggest it to anyone.

Until next time!

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My Last Normal Day :(

Today was my last normal day with my students.  The rest of the week is full of testing and then awards ceremonies and Talent Show.  Next week is all Awards assemblies and slide show and all two-hour early dismissals.

So today, I had my students make their summer reading envelopes.  They just took a standard manila envelope and decorated it.  They personally put everything in it, which I hope will help them remember to do it over the summer.  I can't wait until next year to see who returns them and then have a "party"!

It is bittersweet just knowing that the end is here.  I am going to miss these guys over the summer, but I know that I will see most of them next year in some capacity.

So, on to a happier note ~ I am linking up with Jacque at Mommy and Me Creations for the Tuesday All About Hoo? Linky.

Here are this week's questions:

1) What are your favorite hobbies?

2) What is one of your best talents?
3) Are you right or left handed?

4) Are you a spontaneous person, or do you like having things more planned out?

And my answers:

1.  I enjoy finding good deals and taking advantage of them.  I also love shopping!!

2.  I am a pretty good dancer, um, well, maybe to the BeeGee's.  I teach reading pretty well too, but that is my job! Does it count?

3.  Right handed

4.  I like things planned out, but I also enjoy being spontaneous.  

So, head over and link up with Jacque!

Until next time!

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Shhhh....Testing, Do not disturb!

That is what I have seen and done all week long, and this is just the beginning.  We will be testing over the course of the next few weeks.  Needless to say, I have gotten a LOT of paperwork done that was looming over my head.

One thing I worked on today was getting my summer reading activities completed.  I ordered the books for the students based on their reading levels and will send them home along with the letter and activity based on the appropriate grade level.  Since I worked with students all the way from Kindergarten through 6th Grade, I had to do a little leveling.  Click on the guy reading below to grab the letter and activities.

It doesn't look right on Google Docs, but it should download correctly.  Let me know if it doesn't.

Have a wonderful weekend!  I know that mine is busy, but fun-filled!

Until next time!

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