K12 Reader » Parent Tips

Helping Your Gifted Reader

Joelle Brummitt-Yale — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 02:34:40 +0000

Some children seem like they are born to read. They devour books and seem to understand them with ease. They may even be able to read texts that are well above grade level. While parents and teachers may be inclined to “not worry” about these children because they are well above where they should be for their age, it is important to provide them with reading experiences that help them to continue to grow and flourish.

Characteristics of Gifted Readers

While there is no finite set of qualities a reader must have to be considered gifted there are several characteristics that seem to be consistent amongst many of those identified.

The child performs significantly above grade level on reading assessments
The child shows strong commitment to and focus on reading tasks.
The child is often highly creative or demonstrates creativity that is beyond that of their same aged peers.
The child often enjoys reading for pleasure.

Many times parents and teachers wonder if children can gifted readers when they do not enjoy reading or resist completing reading assignments. Since most school districts use intelligence as the primary measure for determining giftedness, it is very possible that a child may score well above grade level on a reading assessment or evaluation, but not “appear” to be a gifted reader. The child may lack confidence in his reading ability and therefore will not challenge himself to read more difficult texts. On the other side of the spectrum, there are children who become bored with grade level reading because it is too easy. They simply stop reading because they are not being challenged by what they are being asked to read.

Strategies for Supporting Gifted Readers

Because they are often able to read more quickly and at higher levels of difficulty than their same aged peers, gifted readers need different challenges in their reading experiences. One of the worst approaches those working with gifted readers can take is to give these children more grade level work. “More of the same” does not help gifted readers grow. In fact, it may turn them off to reading and learning entirely. Here are some effective strategies for supporting the development of gifted readers.

Differentiated Instruction

As the name implies, differentiated instruction is “different”. When teachers differentiate they tailor their instruction to meet the specific learning needs of their students. This means that those working below grade level read texts that are accessible to them and complete work that supports their learning. Those students who are identified as gifted and are able to read above grade level are given opportunities to read more advanced texts and complete activities that encourage them to engage in learning that goes deeper or further than the grade level curriculum dictates. Differentiation can take several different forms in the classroom. What is most important is that teachers provide learning experiences that meet students where they are at and take them to the next level. Gifted readers should be given opportunities to read and work with advanced texts and concepts.

Student Choice

While most students enjoy being able to choose what they will read, gifted students absolutely thrive on choice. Because they are often self-motivated and disciplined, gifted students are easily able to work on activities that allow them to choose their paths for learning. Teachers can give students choice in the texts that they read or the learning activities associated with those texts. They can also offer choice in topics that the students may focus their reading on. The choice offered to students can be as open ended as the teacher feels is appropriate for the particular students s/he is working with.

Curriculum Compacting

Because many gifted readers already know or have experienced their grade level curriculum through other means, they do not need the same level of instruction as their same aged peers. One method for helping these students move forward is to compact their curriculum. The first step towards compacting is to assess what students already know about the topic the class is studying. In the case of a literature study, this would mean that the student has already read the particular book the class will be reading and understands it fully. Any areas that the student is not versed in need to be addressed. The student can either “join in” with the rest of the class when they are studying topics where the student has “gaps” in learning or s/he can independently study these topics and demonstrate learning. For the areas where the student has already mastered the material, the teacher should provide different learning opportunities for him. This may mean that the student reads more advanced texts about the topic or materials that delve deeper into the topic. The teacher and student(s) can tailor this experience to fit the student’s specific learning needs and interests.

Boys and Reading: Strategies for Success

Joelle Brummitt-Yale — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 01:59:22 +0000

Over the last several years an alarming trend has developed regarding our children’s reading abilities. Nationally there is a significant discrepancy between our nation’s boys and girls reading scores. Boys routinely perform at much lower levels than girls on standardized reading assessments. This is especially true in the middle and high school years. Several researchers have attempted to understand why this trend is occurring while others have worked to devise strategies for combating this gender gap.

Why are boys underperforming in reading?

While there is no definitive answer to this question, a number of researchers have posited several reasons to explain why boys perform at lower levels than girls on reading assessments. Since this discrepancy does not widen significantly until the middle grades years, many of the thoughts are focused on developments occurring during adolescence.

Boys generally take longer than girls to develop comparable literacy skills. What is considered a grade level appropriate reading skill for a girl cannot always be considered the same for a boy.
Boys generally need more “teacher time” than girls do. In the larger, time limited classes of middle and high school teachers are unable to give boys as much one-on-one time. Therefore, they do not make as much progress in reading as girls do.
Boys of all ages generally read less than girls.
Middle school aged boys indicate that they believe reading is much harder than it was in elementary school.
Boys claim reading becomes less enjoyable as they become older.
Many adolescent boys fail to see real life applications in what they read. Literature read in Language Arts classes tells “stories” rather than providing useful information. Some boys stop reading because they think there is no practical value in reading.
As they reach adolescence more and more boys stop considering themselves readers. Research on the reading attitudes of middle school boys shows that many consider themselves “non-readers”.
Reading is sometimes stereotyped as a “feminine” activity. When boys reach adolescence their gender identification becomes more important. If they believe reading is not a masculine activity, they will abandon it in order to demonstrate their masculinity.

What can parents and teachers do to help adolescent boys become stronger readers?

Again there is no “silver bullet” that will help all adolescent boys become stronger readers. However, research suggests there are several strategies adults can employ to facilitate their reading development.

Use texts boys like to read. While boys generally perform lower than girls on reading assessments, there is one area in which they actually “outscore” the girls. Boys’ scores on sections of tests featuring informational texts are often higher than those of their female counterparts. This seems to indicate that informational texts are the boys’ forte. Teachers and parents should provide boys with informational texts to read and learn from. These can include magazine and newspaper articles, non-fiction books about topics boys are interested in (like hobbies or sports) and instructional manuals. Surveys of boys show they are not only interested in informational texts. They also like graphic novels and comic books, stories featuring male protagonists, humorous stories and works that allow them to escape (such as science-fiction and fantasy). Offering these texts to boys as instructional tools or for pleasure reading will increase their interest in reading.
Use shorter texts. Because adolescent boys often consider themselves “non-readers” they do not want to spend long periods of time sitting and reading a text. Provide them with short “chunks” or “episodes” of text to allow them the opportunity to read for a focused period of time that doesn’t feel like “too much” to them.
Allow boys to actively respond to texts. In the typical English Language Arts classroom students read a text and then discuss its meaning. Boys generally do not like to sit around and talk about literature. Research shows they want to actively and physically engage with a text. Teachers should provide boys with opportunities to actively respond to what they read. This can mean acting out portions of a story, creating visual or physical representations of the text or performing an activity outlined in the story.
Know your boys and appeal to their individual interests and preferences. Boys are more likely to become engaged in their learning when they feel like it has some application to their lives. When adults take the time to get to know what makes a child “tick” and then tailors their reading experiences to fit the child, he will embrace the activity. This is not only true for boys. Any adolescent, male or female, wants to see value in what they are doing. Take time to discover what your children are interested in and offer them texts that speak to their interests and preferences.
Provide opportunities to immediately apply what they have read. Adolescent boys generally do not like to focus on learning information that they might use later. Saying “you’ll need to know this in a few years” or “this will help you later in life” causes male students to tune an adult out. Instead, allow boys to immediately apply what they learn through reading so that they develop the understanding that reading has real life value. For example, if your class is reading an informational article about the effects of global warming ask students (boys and girls alike) to write a letter to their congressperson(s) or an environmental group stating their views on the topic and offering solutions to the issue.
Provide as much one-on-one time with boys as possible. Because boys seem to request and require more teacher time than girls do, teachers should try to structure their classrooms so that they can offer boys opportunities to have one-on-one time with the teacher. This does not mean that categorically boys should always have more access to the teacher than girls. Those that need teacher support, male or female, should be given opportunities to work one-on-one with the teacher as needed.
Offer good male reader role models for boys. Since some boys believe that reading is a “girly” activity it is important for them to see that males read in real life. Seek out good male reader role models for boys. These may be celebrities or men in the community who boys look up to.

Why Read 20 Minutes a Day?

Joelle Brummitt-Yale — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 02:53:05 +0000

Let’s face it…parents (and kids) are busy! It is difficult to “fit in” all that needs to be done in a day. We are often faced with having to make choices about what stays and what goes in our schedules. So, why is it so critical to include 20 minutes of reading in your child’s daily schedule? There is a wealth of research supporting daily reading with your child especially prior to and during the period when s/he is learning to read. Here are a few of the ways reading with your child for 20 (or more) minutes a day benefits him or her.

Reading is “brain food”

Our brains develop as we “feed” them with experiences. The experience of reading (whether you’re the reader or the one being read to) activates and “exercises” many of the areas of the brain. The visual cortex works as your eyes track the words on the page and look at the illustrations. Your memory makes connections between what you already know about the topic of the story and its content. You integrate new information learned through reading further strengthening and growing your network of knowledge. Reading provides one of the most enriching and complex brain activities available in life.

Reading improves listening skills

What parent doesn’t want their child to be a good listener? The experience of being read to helps children develop good listening skills by keying them into the components of language. Through reading they learn to recognize phonemes (the sound building blocks of language), learn new words to add to their oral vocabularies and connect written words to their real world applications.

Reading builds early literacy skills

Before a child can read independently she must have phonemic awareness and a basic understanding of phonics. Phonemic awareness or the understanding that words are made up of distinct sounds that affect their meaning is the precursor to reading. Reading aloud to your child is one of the main ways to help him develop phonemic awareness. Beyond this, in order to read, a person must understand that there is a connection between letters and sounds. Without this knowledge letters are just squiggles on a page! When you read with your child she learns that print is a representation of the words you say aloud. Repeated experiences with reading allow this understanding to grow. The single greatest factor in a child’s ability to read is early experiences being read aloud to.

Reading prepares children for kindergarten

In this day and age children are expected to come into kindergarten with a strong knowledge base. Today’s kindergarteners are expected to enter the classroom on day one with a knowledge of upper and lower case letters of the alphabet, the ability to recognize basic shapes and colors and the ability to count to ten. Reading books tailored towards youngsters with your child helps them develop these important and necessary skills.

Practice makes perfect

Generally, the more time you are exposed to something and the more time you spend practicing it, the better you’ll become at performing it. This is absolutely true for reading. Research shows that children who have repeatedly been exposed to books from birth generally exhibit strong reading abilities.

Reading improves academic performance

There is a strong correlation between a child’s ability to read and her academic performance. Because so much of our schooling relies on our abilities to read, children must have strong reading skills to succeed and thrive in school.

Reading just makes “cents”

For every year that a person spends reading (either independently or being read aloud to), his/her lifetime earning potential goes up considerably. For a time investment of approximately 87 hours a year (20 minutes a day for 5 days a week), you can increase your child’s ability to support him or herself in the future considerably.

Reading improves relationships

Because we are busy it is difficult to have “quality” one-on-one time with our children without distractions. Building 20 minutes into each day for reading together provides this important bonding time. There is nothing more wonderful than snuggling a young child on your lap while reading a few storybooks aloud. Even if your child is beyond the “snuggling” stage, spending 20 minutes reading independently provides you with quiet, uninterrupted time together engaged in the same activity.

How Do I Know a Good Early Reading Program When I See One?

Jerry Charles — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 01:53:27 +0000

The following article, published by the Department of Education, provides some good basic criteria for evaluating a particular school reading program:

Every teacher is excited about reading and promotes the value and fun of reading to students.
All students are carefully evaluated, beginning in Kindergarten, to see what they know and what they need to become good readers.
Reading instruction and practice lasts 90 minutes or more a day in first, second and third grades and 60 minutes a day in Kindergarten.
All students in first, second and third grades who are behind in reading get special instruction and practice. These students receive, throughout the day, a total of 60 extra minutes of instruction.
Before or after-school help is given to all students beyond first grade who need extra instruction or who need to review skills. Summer school is available for students who are behind at the end of the year.
Reading instruction and practice includes work on letters, sounds and blending sounds. Students learn to blend letters and sounds to form new words.
Learning new words and their meaning is an important part of instruction.
Students have daily spelling practice and weekly spelling tests.
The connection between reading and writing is taught on a daily basis. Students write daily. Papers are corrected and returned to the students. By the end of second grade, students write final copies of corrected papers. Corrected papers are sent home for parents to see.
All students are read to each day from different kinds of books. Students discuss what they read with teachers and other students.
All students have a chance to read both silently and aloud in school each day and at home every night.
Every classroom has a library of books that children want to read. This includes easy books and books that are more difficult.
The school library is used often and has many books. Students may check books out during the summer and over holidays

Reading at Home: 10 Simple Strategies for Parents

Jerry Charles — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 04:46:13 +0000

Reading with children is a proven way to promote early literacy. As most parents know however, it’s not always easy to carve out time each day for reading. Luckily, by putting a few simple strategies into action a parent can make a significant contribution to their child’s reading in as little as 20 minutes per day. Here are a few ideas you can apply when reading with your child.

When reading a book where the print is large, point word by word as you read. This will help the child learn that reading goes from left to right and understand that the word he or she says is the word he or she sees.
When you come to a new word, take this opportunity to talk about it in interesting ways that your child will enjoy and learn from. For example, “This big house is called a palace. Who do you think lives in a palace?”.
Read a child’s favorite book over and over again. This will provide positive reinforcement and your child will gain confidence as they are able to successfully recognize words.
Choose stories with rhyming words and lines that repeat. Invite the child to join in on these parts.
Stop and ask about the pictures and about what is happening in the story.
Read from a variety of children’s books, including fairy tales, song books, poems, and information books.
Set aside special reading time (and a special reading place). Setting a designated reading time helps in several ways. First, it allows a parent to plan their day more effectively and make time for reading. It also helps the child, especially reluctant readers, to think of reading as a normal scheduled daily activity.
Read with emotion. Reading with emotion draws a child into the story in a way that is much more memorable and enjoyable. It also helps them to better understand how words can describe something sad, happy, or exciting.
Let your child turn the pages. Besides, being enjoyable, this activity helps more active children stay focused on the book.
Take your child to the library to check out books. Most popular Children’s books are available at the local library. This is an affordable way to give your child access to a wide range of books. Taking your child to the library also turns reading into a special occassion.

The Five Essential Components of Reading

admin — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 10:59:11 +0000

Reading is an astoundingly complex cognitive process. While we often think of reading as one singular act, our brains are actually engaging in a number of tasks simultaneously each time we sit down with a book. There are five aspects to the process of reading: phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary, reading comprehension and fluency. These five aspects work together to create the reading experience. As children learn to read they must develop skills in all five of these areas in order to become successful readers.

Phonics (view articles about Phonics)

Phonics is the connection between sounds and letter symbols. It is also the combination of these sound-symbol connections to create words. Without phonics, words are simply a bunch of squiggles and lines on a page. If you think about it, letters are arbitrary. There is nothing innately bed-like about the written word “bed”. It is simply the collection of letters and corresponding sounds that we agree constitute the word “bed”. Learning to make that connection between the individual sounds that each letter represents and then putting those together is essential to understanding what that funny squiggle means.

There are a number of ways that phonics can be taught because there is a variety of ways to apply this aspect when reading. Each approach allows the reader to use phonics to read and learn new words in a different way. Synthetic phonics builds words from the ground up. In this approach readers are taught to first connect letters to their corresponding phonemes (sound units) and then to blend those together to create a word. Analytic phonics, on the other hand, approaches words from the top down. A word is identified as a whole unit and then its letter-sound connections are parsed out. Analogy phonics uses familiar parts of words to discover new words. Finally, phonics through spelling focuses on connecting sounds with letters in writing. All of these approaches can be taught and used independently or in combination to help young readers learn to identify new words.

Phonemic Awareness (view articles about Phonemic Awareness)

Phonemic awareness is closely related to phonics because both involve the connection between sounds and words. While phonics is the connection between sounds and letters, phonemic awareness is the understanding that words are created from phonemes (small units of sound in language). These may seem like the same thing, but there is a subtle difference in the two. Phonics is used only in written language because it involves letters. Phonemes are sounds only. While they can be represented using letters, they can also be simply the auditory sounds of words. Phonemes are most often learned before a child begins to read because they are centered on the sounds of language rather than written words.

Just like phonics, phonemic awareness can be taught and used in a number of ways. Phoneme isolation involves the reader parsing out the individual sounds in a word in order to determine its meaning. Similarly, phoneme segmentation asks the reader to break words into their corresponding phonemes (which may involve one or more individual sounds) to figure out the new word. Both of these approaches are very similar to synthetic phonics. Phoneme identification relies on the reader’s general knowledge of phonemes (usually developed through speaking) to identify sound patterns in words. For example a reader would identify the phoneme /d/ he knows from the words “dog” and “dad” to help him learn how to read a new word “doctor”. Finally, phoneme blending requires the reader to connect a series of phonemes together to create a word. This strategy is always used in conjunction with one of the others.

Vocabulary (view articles about Vocabulary)

In order to read words we must first know them. Imagine how frustrating and fruitless it would be to read this article if all of the words were unfamiliar to you. As children become stronger, more advanced readers they not only learn to connect their oral vocabularies (the words we know when they are spoken) to their reading vocabularies (the words we know when they are used in print) they also strengthen each of these areas by adding new words to their repertoires. Vocabulary development is an ongoing process that continues throughout one’s “reading life”.

There are two primary ways of teaching and learning new vocabulary words. The first is explicit instruction. This involves someone telling you how a word is pronounced and what its meaning is. That “someone” might be a teacher, a dictionary, a vocabulary guide or any other resource offering definitions and pronunciations. Context clues provide another method for discovering new words. Context clues are the “hints” contained in a text that help a reader figure out the meaning of an unfamiliar word. They include other words in a sentence or paragraph, text features (ie. bold print, italics), illustrations, graphs and charts. Context clues are basically any item in the text that points to the definition of a new word.

Fluency (view articles about Fluency)

Fluency is a reader’s ability to read with speed, accuracy and expression. Thus it requires him to combine and use multiple reading skills at the same time. While fluency is most often measured through oral readings, good readers also exhibit this skill when they are reading silently. Think about the way a book “sounds” in your mind when you are reading silently. You “hear” the characters “speak” with expression. Even passages that are not written in dialogue “sound” as if the words fit the meaning. A particularly suspenseful action sequence moves quickly through your mind creating a palpable sense of tension. Your ability to move through a piece of text at a fluid pace while evoking the meaning and feeling of it demonstrates your fluency.

Fluency is intimately tied to comprehension. A reader must be able to move quickly enough through a text to develop meaning. If he is bogged down reading each individual word, he is not able to create an overall picture in his mind of what the text is saying. Even if the reader is able to move rapidly through a text, if she cannot master the expression associated with the words, the meaning of it will be lost.

Reading Comprehension (view articles about Reading Comprehension)

Comprehension is what most people think reading is. This is because comprehension is the main reason why we read. It is the aspect of reading that all of the others serve to create. Reading comprehension is understanding what a text is all about. It is more than just understanding words in isolation. It is putting them together and using prior knowledge to develop meaning.

Reading comprehension is the most complex aspect of reading. It not only involves all of the other four aspects of reading, it also requires the reader to draw upon general thinking skills. When a reader is actively engaged with a text, she is asking and answering questions about the story and summarizing what she has read. Like vocabulary, reading comprehension skills develop and improve over time through instruction and practice.

K12 Reader » Parent Tips

Helping Your Gifted Reader

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