Read to Me
I got in trouble! Ok, maybe not trouble, trouble. One of my drop-in teaching evaluations happened to be during a 6th grade language arts class – and I was reading aloud to my students!! My principal was not amused. You see, I used to read aloud to my 6th and 7th graders – it was presented to the kids as down time, but it really wasn’t. They still had quizzes and activities or assignments on the readings, but they were unconventional. It helped build their auditory processing skills and the best part – it improved their writing skills – it was a series of auditory examples of good sentence structure, voice, flow, plot, etc. I saw improvements in my students’ writing and vocabulary skills and that was more important to me than a mark on my evaluation.
The same concepts can be applied in your homeschool. Reading to each other in your family helps develop a sense of belonging among pre-teens and teens at a time when they really crave that sense of belonging (even if they don’t always act like it.)
It may sound odd, but children can perceive an entirely different story if it’s read to them than they would if they read it themselves. You can read books to your children that are two grade levels above the books that they read independently and they’re likely to still be able to comprehend at their independent reading level.
When you read aloud or read together, let the lesson become part of your life. It’s not so much a lecture as it is a conversation between the two of you. You go through the story together, like a team, and you evaluate the parts of the story together.
One of my favorite aspects of reading aloud to children is the enrichment in vocabulary that this activity provides. They are hearing new words being used in context which helps them not only understand the word, but have the confidence to use those words in their own writing or conversations.
If you’re looking for a place to start, Goodreads has a great list of books that work well for reading aloud to your children.
http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/328.Best_Read_Aloud_Chapter_Books Have fun and Happy Reading!
Crystal Pratt is an independent contractor with Calvert Education Services. She has been involved in education for 20 years. Crystal is a certified teacher, a writer, and a lover of all things that sparkle.