Since today is my last day posting on this blog, I thought it would be appropriate to share the idea of popcorn reading. Popcorn reading isn't affective for everyone, but for some it truly is. When you do popcorn reading choose a text that is a little longer and make sure to have a group of four or more students.
WHAT TO DO... One student begins reading the text until they decide to stop. They can stop at the end of a page/paragraph/sentence or even in the middle of any of those. When they stop, they are to call out a name of someone else in the group to begin reading where they left off. It is a fun listening activity and a great way for teachers to see how students are improving in their reading skills. If they do a good job reading, maybe you could reward them with a tea party or something!
Thank you so much for looking at my blog! I have learned a lot this year and hope to some day use all of these ideas. Check out my new blog I have started with my sisters at the following website: http://sevenflakesisters.blogspot.com/ .
Enjoy!
Since I will only be posting one more day on this blog, I thought I would share five awesome ideas that I found blog hopping. All of these ideas can help your reader with sight words or high frequency words:
1. Where's the Bear?- Get about four Dixie cups and write a sight word on each one. Then hide a plastic bear under one of the cups. Each student gets a turn lifting a cup, reading the word, and trying to find the bear. You can read more about this game here.
2. Rotten Apple Sight Word Game- This game is played with a paper tree that has cut out apples on it. Each apple has a sight word written on it. A few of the apples have worms in them. Your student is to "pick" each apple off the tree and read the word on it. If your student can't read the word, the apple goes back on the tree. If your student gets an apple with a worm, ALL of their apples go back on the tree. You can read more about this game here.
3. Sight Word Island Jumping- Write sight words on index cards and tape them to pillows that are neatly placed in a circle. Say a sight word to your student and then they are to jump to the pillow that has that particular sight word. You can read more about this game here.
4. Sight Word Flip Books- Check out these awesome sight word flip books to help reinforce some of those tricky words. You can download the books for free here.
5. Clothespin Words- Write one letter on each clothespin. Then give your student a bunch of sight word flashcards. Have them match each letter of the sight word with the correct clothespin. You can read more about this game here.
I hope you enjoy these great games!
It's time to have fun learning sight words! Go to your local Lakeshore Learning store and invest in Sight Word Tracers. The tracers help children practice writing and recognizing sight words. They include dots to help children know exactly how to write and form each letter. Students write the letters with a dry erase marker, which allows them to write the words over and over again.
I like to lay the tracers out on the table (about ten of them), say a sight word, and then have my student find the correct word. Once they have found the word, they trace it with the dry erase marker. This is a great way to test your student's sight word knowledge and help them practice the spelling of each word. You can find these sight word tracers here. Enjoy!
If your student is a tactile learner, you should invest in some sight word tactile cards. Tactile cards can help your student see, touch, and trace each sight word. Your student will love practicing their sight words with a more hands-on approach.
Lakeshore Learning has a tactile card set that comes with 75 different sight words. There are three levels included in the set. Each level has 25 words. Once your student has mastered the first level of sight words, go on to the next! You can see what the cards look like here. Have fun!
I remember as a kid I loved getting kid magazines in the mail. It made me feel so grown-up! Magazines can be a great way to promote reading at home. Find something your student really likes (animals, sports, Disney princesses, etc.) and most likely you will be able to find a kid magazine that focuses on that. Maybe you have heard of some these kid magazines: Highlights, National Geographic Kids, American Girl, Time for Kids, Discovery Girls, Kids Discover, and Yum Food & Fun for Kids. These magazines are geared towards a young audience and include topics that your student may find interesting. Check out a list of kid magazines here. I hope you find one that your student will enjoy!
I really enjoyed reading this list about making reading fun for your child. I found it in the Reader's Digest. My favorite ideas were: find a cozy place to read together and talk about the book when you finish it. What great ideas to help promote reading! Sometimes it is the simplest things that can help get our students reading more. Have fun checking out the list. You can find it here.
Time for another fun sight word game. Try playing the game Spill and Spell. This game is for up to 4 players. All the players do is draw sight word cards, roll the dice, and try to spell the words on their cards. When the players spell the words right, they record them on their scorecards. Then they draw new cards and go through the process again.This game is super easy to play and is fast paced. Kids who are competitive would really enjoy playing this game. This game includes 100 cards and 2 levels. You can take a look at it here. Have fun!
I just googled beginning reader activities and found this great website. Although the website is mostly geared towards babies, there are wonderful ideas listed. The list is even organized into ideas for auditory learners, visual learners, and physical learners. Some of the ideas listed that I particularly liked were: great your child a library card, write a letter to your child's favorite author, go to a book signing party, make a reading fort, turn a book into art, leave notes for your child, and buy a big book. Check out this website to see what would be best for your student. Enjoy!
Spot books are great for beginning readers. Spot books have a lot of repetition and he is a fun character to read about. Check out the Fun with Spot website here. You and your student can read up on the author, buy Spot books, download Spot activity worksheets, and even play Spot games online. The games force your student to read in order to find where Spot is hiding. After your student has read a Spot book to you, they will love exploring this fun website. You can find a list of Spot books here. Have fun reading!
Looking for fun books for your student to read? Try the I Can Read book series. These books are geared towards beginning readers. The books have fun characters and interesting plots. Maybe you have heard of some of the characters: Pinkalicious, Biscuit, Fancy Nancy, Berenstain Bears, Amelia Bedelia, Splat the Cat, and more! Take a look at the following website to order these books as paperbacks or e-books: http://www.icanread.com/index.cfm. This website also includes fun worksheets and reading tips you can download on your computer. This website also has online games you can play that have to do with the characters found in I Can Read books. Have fun seeing all that this website has to offer!
Today I found yet another wonderful literacy website. Just check out http://www.abcya.com/ for some excellent reading games. On the website you will find:
-Grades K-5 leveled activities
-Easy to navigate games for young learners
-ABC games
-Stories
-Sight Word games
-Spanish Word games
-Spelling Word games
-Vocabulary Word games
You will love this website. Have fun!
Everyone loves playing and watching Jeopardy! Try playing Sight Word Jeopardy with your students. They will enjoy playing. You can make your own or go to this website to play it online. In Sight Word Jeopardy a player gets more points if the sight word is more difficult to read. What a fun way to practice and find out what sight words your students know. Have fun!
If you love to watch or play Wheel of Fortune, you will love the game Word Reveal. Get your student excited to practice sight words by playing this fun game. This is all you do:
1. YOU WILL NEED: Word Reveal Game Board found here (make sure to print it on legal paper), fine tip dry erase markers (or pencils if you choose not to laminate), page marker post-it notes, laminator (optional), and a list of six sight words.
2. PREPARATION: Once you have printed the Word Reveal Game Board and have laminated it, get your sight word list. Write the sight words (with one letter in each box) with the dry erase marker. Then place a post-it note page marker over the top of each letter. Don't use yellow post-its because your student will be able to see through!
3. TO PLAY: Ask your student to guess letters.
4. Uncover the letters as your student guesses them.
5. Encourage your student to guess which of their sight words are on the game board. Once they have guessed correctly, have them spell the word, peeling the post-its off as they say each letter. This will help them know they are right and have won!
You can check out this fun game here. Enjoy!
A fun way to see how well your student is reading or comprehending is to give them a Following the Directions worksheet. When students do a Following the Directions worksheet, they either listen or read directions and then do them. In this case, your student would read the directions.
Find or make a worksheet where the directions are written right on the page for your student. Look over the words in the directions to make sure they are not too difficult for your student to read. If your student enjoys more hands-on activities, you might try a Following the Directions cut and paste worksheet. Here are a couple that I found:
1. http://www.teachervision.fen.com/tv/printables/TCR/1576901106_34.pdf - This one is really simple. Your student reads the words and then colors the items on the page.
2. http://millertooth.blogspot.com/2010/09/following-directions.html - This one students actually cut out items and then paste them on a new page after reading the directions.
3. If you want to make your own worksheet to better fit your student's needs, try using a sight word list or other familiar words to write the directions. For example:
1. At the top of the page write your name.
2. Put a sun up in the sky.
3. Draw a girl and boy playing.
4. The girl has a red flower.
5. The boy has an orange ball.
If there are any tricky words in the directions, make sure you go over them with your student first in order to reduce frustration. Have fun!
A fun way to get your student reading a book is to watch the movie. Tell your student that after they finish reading a particular book, they can watch the movie. I know what you're thinking, do picture books have movies made about them? The answer is yes. Most Disney movies are picture books. You can find a pretty complete list here. Your student may never stop reading now!
Try reading with your student every moment that you can. Below is a fun idea to do while grocery shopping. Just keep in mind that you will spend a lot more time in the store, but it will be a great opportunity for your student to practice reading. Here's the idea:
While at the grocery store, give your student your grocery list. Then give your student a letter of the alphabet. Your student then must tell you the items on the list that begin with that particular letter. For example, if you said C, your student might read: Cheerios, cupcake mix, cheese, crackers, cantaloupe, carrots, etc. Let them help you get the items (obviously your student will need assistance finding the items). Then go on to a different letter until your list is finished and you have everything on your list. As a reward let them pick out a treat that begins with the letter of their choice!
I found this idea here. Grocery shopping was never so much fun!!
There are so many great educational websites out there. I just found another great reading website called Mighty Book. You can see it here. This website includes:
-Stories and Songs (with the words at the bottom of the screen)
-Games (word recognition, coloring, counting, and more)
-Jigsaw Puzzles
-Coloring Pages
-Flashcards
-Fun with Art
Have fun checking out this great website. Your student will LOVE it!
Have you ever played the game Crazy Eights? If not, you should, but put a word family twist to it. Here is what you do:
1. Make a set of cards that can be divided into four different word families. For example: -an (fan, can, ran), -et (bet, let, set), -it (hit, fit, lit), and -og (hog, log, fog).
2. Pick an equal number of words from each word family and write them with one word on each card. Mix up the colors in a word family because you don't want any one word family to be all of the same color. So, use four different colors to write on the cards.
3. Make a few Wild cards, Skip cards, and Reverse cards.
4. Give each player seven cards. The remaining cards should be face-down in a neat pile.
5. Flip one card over from the stack.
6. Try to match either the color or word family that appears. For example, if you saw the word can being played and it was green, you would put down a card that was either green or was part of the -an family. If you didn't have a card to play, you would draw a card from the stack until you got a card that you could play.
7. When one of the players only has one card left, they must say "Hop!" If the player neglects to do so, the player will not be able to go out that round.
8. The first player to run out of cards is the winner.
You can download this game here. Have fun!
Check out this awesome website called Primary Games. The games are free and cover the alphabet, sight words, simple sentences and more. There are crossword puzzles, hangman, word scrambles, and even word searches. You will love all the fun games this website has to offer. Check it out here.
Ready to get your student excited to read more? Get your student started on Smart Tutor lessons. The lessons focus on Phonics, Phonemic Awareness, Vocabulary, Sight Words, and Reading Comprehension. Your student will love the bright and fun pictures on this exciting website. Check it out here. Enjoy!
Check out some really cool reading and spelling games here. You will find games where you have to put words in alphabetical order, crossword games, vowel games, word scrambles, word searches, and more. You will love having so many reading games to choose from. Take a look!
Trying to find books to read with your student online? Check out Johnny's Story Page. On this website you will find links to interactive stories and also reading activities for kids. There are stories for beginning readers, classic stories, and stories for older readers. You will love all that this website has to offer. Check it out here. Have fun!
Looking for more reading opportunities with your student? Try doing a reading pocket. I read about it here. All you do is throughout the day gather random things with written words and slip them in your pocket. It could be a comic strip, a card, a fortune, or even your horoscope. At the end of the day, find a special time to share what you gathered in your pocket throughout the day. Your student will be so excited to read with you what you encountered during the day. Reading was never so much fun!
Just thank me later, okay? I found this wonderful website that lists TONS of interactive reading websites for young readers. By each website is a brief description of what you will find on the website. Not only is there a list of Reading websites, but there is also: Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, and Assessment. Take some time and check out this wonderful website. See which links would be most beneficial for your student. Just click here. Enjoy!
It's time to check out yet another great reading website! Children's Storybooks Online include books for younger children, older children, and even young adults! Some books include the audio, others do not. The pictures are cute and enjoyable. Some of the books you can just scroll down to see each page, other books you have to click next to get to the next page. This website also includes: Phonics Links, Riddles, Quizzes, and Award Links. Check out this great website here!
I just found this really cute idea today on the web called a Passport to Reading. What a fun way to motivate your student to read!
Inside the passport the students write down how many minutes they read each week. Kids can even glue in a self portrait and sign their name, like a real passport.
A fun way to get students to fill in their minutes is to have them only record the books they have read that take place around the world, like they are really traveling! You can check out these really cute Reading Passports here. Happy reading!
When I was a kid, the Pizza Hut Book It Program was a big deal. If your student loves pizza, you should look into getting them signed up for the Book It Program. Here is what you do:
1. Go to the following website: http://bookitprogram.com/
2. Scroll down to the bottom of the page under the Teachers category.
3. Click on How to Enroll.
4. Click on the school type, then your zip code, and lastly find your school! If you are not a teacher, go here: http://www.bookitprogram.com/parents/documents/enrollflierparent.pdf
5. Once all of the information is filled out, you will be sent all the forms needed to participate in the program.
Look through the website and you will find other great resources to help your child with their reading. This program is fun because students keep track of their reading and in the end get free pizza. Have fun getting your student started!
Do you remember playing the game Telephone as a kid? For me, it was a usual recess activity. Why not try putting a sight word twist to it? Here is what you do:
1. You will need sight word flash cards for this game.
2. Put your students in a line.
3. Have the first student in line pick a sight word flash card, read it to himself, and then whisper it to the next student in line.
4. The next student then whispers what they hear to the next person in line, and so on.
5. Once the word has gotten to the end of the line, the student says the sight word outloud. Then the first student says if it is the correct sight word or not. Usually it will two different words!
6. When the round is completed and everyone is done laughing, choose another student to have a turn being first and drawing a sight word.
Have fun!
Time to make reading really fun! Try playing the Sentence Game for Juniors with your student. This board game has two options of how to play it:
OPTION #1: On one side of the board there are pre-made sentences. This is the easier version. Each player takes a turn reading two of their tiles and placing them on top of the corresponding words on the game board. Each time a player completes a sentence, he earns a point. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.
OPTION #2: On the other side of the board the spaces are blank in order for players to create their own sentences. This is the more advanced version. All of the tiles are divided evenly between all of the players. On your turn, you place two or more tiles on the board to make a complete sentence. You can also add one or more tiles to a sentence that is already on the board. Points are received for each tile that is placed on the board.
As the teacher, decide which option is the most appropriate for your student to enjoy the game.You can buy this game here. Have fun!
If you're looking to practice sight words or spelling words, you should try the game Step N Spell. It is super easy to play:
1. Put the large plastic Step N Spell mat on a flat surface (the mat contains all of the letters of the alphabet).
2. One player calls out a spelling/sight word to the jumper.
3. The jumper jumps on the letters to spell the word.
4. Then the players switch roles as a caller or jumper. Keep playing until you have practiced all of the spelling/sight words.
You can find Step N Spell mats here. Make sure to have your students watch closely as fellow classmates jump from letter to letter on the mat to spell words. I hope your students enjoys this active game!
On this blog I have given lots of ideas for board games you can play to practice reading. What about card games? Try playing the game Quiddler. This is how you play:
1. This game is for 1-8 players and the game consists of eight rounds.
2. In the first round each player is dealt three cards. In the second round each player is given four and so on until the final round being a total of ten cards.
3. Each card has one or two letters on it with a certain amount of points.
4. Player 1 draws a card from the top of the deck or discard pile. Then Player 1 discards one card. When the player is able to use all of the cards in his hand to spell words, he may go out by putting the words on the table.
5. The other players then get to drawn one last time and must play as many cards as they can.
6. The scoring is done by adding up the points on the cards used in the words on the table and then subtracting the card value points not used. The player with the most words and the player with the longest word each get 10 bonus points.
You can buy this game here. Have fun playing!
Ready for another awesome reading practice board game? Try the game Wingo. Here is how you play:
1. Each player puts one or two boards in front from them.
2. On the player's turn, he spins the spinner and chooses one of the blocks that matches the color of the spinner.
3. If the player can play the piece he selects on a matching color spot on either of his boards to make a real word, he gets to keep it there. If the player can't use that block to make a real word, he must discard it.
4. The first player to fill up his board wins!
You can buy this game and find out more about it here. Have fun!
I just found out about a great reading practice game called Chip-O! This is how you play:
1.Deal four cards to each player.
2. Player 1 selects one card to play, reads it, and puts a colored marker on top of its picture on the game board. All players get a turn doing those three things (selecting one card, reading it, and putting a marker on the board). Each picture is found on the board twice.
3. The point of the game is to get four of your markers in a row, diagonally, vertically, or horizontally, while preventing other players from getting four in a row.
4. The winner is the person who gets four in a row first!
You can buy this game here. Have fun!
Looking for a fun way to practice long and short vowel sounds? Try out this fun online game called Color Short and Long Vowel Sounds. Here is what you do:
1. Go to the following website: http://www.turtlediary.com/grade-1-games/esl-efl-games/color-short-and-long-vowels.html
2. Click play.
3. Student chooses a long or short vowel sound color and paints all of the words that make that particular sound. For example, if your student clicked on Long A, they would click on the word plate and the other long A words.
4. When your student chooses the correct word, the computer makes a magic sound and then reads the word to reinforce it to your student. If your student chooses the incorrect word, the box will not be painted in.
5. Once your student has completed the game, they will have the option of playing the game again or a different educational game that pops up on the website.
Have fun!
Remember listening to books on tape as a kid? Now kids listen to books on CD. Even better, Lakeshore Learning has created a Phonics read along kit. It is perfect for students just starting out on their reading journey. The kit includes books that focus on short vowels, long vowels, and vowel combinations. Kids love reading about Patty Cat and Tiny Tiger, along with other fun and interesting characters. Each kit has 4 copies of each book (perfect for a small group) along with a CD that reads the text. Kids love following along to the stories and learning just how one uses expression and becomes a fluent reader. You can check out the Read Along Books here. Have fun!
Time to try out a new website! Click on this to get to EZSchool. On this website you will find over 3,000 worksheets and 800 online drills. This website has e-books with reading comprehension and over 100 educational games. It also includes over a dozen tutorials and a year round spelling program. The activities range from Preschool age up through high school. English, Math, Science, and Social Studies are covered on this website, along with some languages as well. Go ahead and take a look!
It's time to practice reading blends! Take a look at this website to get your student excited to read blends. The website includes the following types of worksheets:
-blend word lists
-fill in the blanks
-configurations
-cut and paste
-crossword puzzles
-Scrabble word fun
-alphabetical order
-word slides
-blend word books
-blends stationary
-word searches
-word wheels and more!
This website has a lot to offer. Have fun checking it out and utilizing the activities that best meet your student's needs!
Looking for a website to help you teach Phonics to your student? Try ABC Fast Phonics. Here is what you do:
1. Go to: http://www.abcfastphonics.com/
2. Click on the topic you would like to teach your student. Topics on the website include: Sounds and Letters, Words, Consonants and Vowels, Blends, and Common Words.
I like the website because first they explain the concept and then they give great examples to help the student understand it. Some of them even include a short game to go along with it.
Have fun checking it out!
Time to practice vowel digraphs! Try out this great game called Rolling for Vowel Digraphs. This is what you do:
1. PREPARATION: Go to the following website: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_rA_RSZDbdOOTg2YTcxOGYtNWRhZS00NDcyLTk4YTItODg1OWNmOWNmMjYz/edit?pli=1
2. Print off the game.
3. Put your students in pairs.
4. Give each companionship two recording sheets, a die, and a set of word cards.
5. TO PLAY: Player 1 rolls the die, then Player 2 has to read that amount of word cards to Player 1. If all of the word cards are read correctly, then Player 2 gets to write them on his record sheet.
6. Switch roles so Player 2 gets to roll the die and Player 1 reads.
7. The first person to fill up their recording sheet is the winner.
Have fun trying out this new game!
A fun way to practice digraphs is to use digraph puzzles. I found an awesome one on www.lakeshorelearning.com. You can check it out here. It is a perfect hands-on activity! The puzzles include a picture on top that gives a clue as to the letters needed below. Students must fit the puzzle pieces together to build the word using a digraph and other letters. Each piece of the puzzle represents a different sound in the word. The game comes with 12 puzzles. Have fun watching your student put these fun puzzles together.
Teaching digraphs can be tricky, so why not try making it fun with a board game! This is all you do:
1. Go to the following website: http://www.kayedstudio.com/1/post/2012/06/freebie-5-initial-digraph-board-games.html
2. Pick one of the board games and download it.
3. You will need a die and game pieces.
4. TO PLAY: Player 1 rolls the die and moves that many spaces on the board. Player 1 then makes the sound of that particular digraph and says a word that begins with that sound. If Player 1 lands on a star, he gets to roll the die again.
5. After Player 1 finishes his turn, Player 2 goes. The first person to make it to the end wins.
Have fun learning those digraphs!
It's time for some more great worksheets that can be found online. When practicing vowel sounds with your student, try using this worksheet. I like it because it not only helps your student with fine motor skills, but also with relating the vowel sounds with pictures that go together. For example for the short and long a sound you will see an ape that wants to eat an apple. For the short and long e sound you will see an eagle wanting to be by its eggs. I think your student will enjoy the pictures and be able to remember the vowel sounds by thinking of these simple pictures. Have fun checking it out!
When I was a kid our elementary school did the Ice Cream Challenge. The way it worked was the last month of school every student was given a page to write down the books they read. There was a space on the page for parents to sign off to verify that their child actually read the book. If you read 100 books by the end of the ice cream challenge, you got to put an ice cream scoop or ice cream toppings on the school principal. As a kid everyone wanted to participate and contribute. It was a great way to get kids reading. Maybe you could try something similar in your own classroom.
Get your student excited to read more with fun incentives. Give your student a chart where they keep track of how many books they have read. At the end of the month, rent a dunk tank and let your student dunk you once for every ten books that they read. You will have kids reading so many books. What a creative way to get kids reading...even if you do get a little wet!
To help your students understand the role vowels play in the words that they read, share this short LeapFrog clip with them. It explains just how sticky vowels really are. They HAVE to stick to letters. You might even print vowels off on paper and tape them on glue bottles, as seen here. Once students have those vowel sounds down, it will be that much easier for them to take off in their reading! Every word has at least one vowel! Have fun helping your students succeed!
When you call a silent e, magic e instead, it brings some excitement to the concept. Kids like thinking that a letter is magic. On this website there is a magic e worksheet available. In one column there are pictures of cvc words, the other column is blank. There is a magic wand just above the blank column with several empty squares. Your student is to add a magic e to the end of the of cvc words, making a new word. Then there is room for your student to draw a picture of the new word. It is amazing how one letter can change an entire word. This worksheet allows your student to do some reading practice and even draw and color. How fun!
There are so many ways to make practicing silent e words fun. Go to this website to check out a Silent e Sound Sort. After printing the two pages off, have your student put a silent e at the end of each word where there is a blank provided. Then have your student cut the words out on the dotted lines. Once the words are cut out, your student is to use page 2 to sort the words. Each word is either a real word or a nonsense word, your student has to figure it out and then glue them in the correct column. Have fun reading and watching your student learn those tricky silent e words!
I just found another really fun way to practice silent e words. Try doing a canned sort. You can read about it here. This is what you do:
1. PREPARATION: Get/Make/Buy silent e flash cards and CVC flash cards.
2. Get two cans (soup cans are fine). Label one of the cans 'Silent e'. Label the other can 'CVC words'.
3. TO PLAY: Mix the silent e and CVC flash cards together and put them in a stack face down. Player 1 chooses the card on top, reads it, and puts the card in the correct can. For example, if the card said note, Player 1 would put the card in the 'Silent e' can.
4. Player 2 then has a turn reading and putting the card in the correct can. Players continue taking turns until all of the cards are sorted.
5. At the end of the game, the teacher dumps out the cans and checks student work. Teacher may ask students to read each word as she goes through the cans.
Have fun practicing!
