Resources for Parents/Families

Select books that are of interest to your child. You can select together or let your child select books that are of interest to them.

Repetition is great – read, read, read…again and again!

Read through the text one time with expression – act out parts, exaggerate tones of your voice and make associated sounds when possible. For example, Car sounds, animals sounds, fun expressions “wow”.

Read the story again, this time stopping to discuss and share observations. For example, as you point to the picture say, “I see the dog sleeping in the doghouse.”

Look for cues from your child - if they are pointing or looking towards something, point to the item and talk about it. For example, “Wow yes, I see those animals too.”

Ask simple questions – use the wait time noted above. Be sure any communication supports your child may use are readily available. Model the response using words or any visuals or resources that are used.

Select books that are of interest to your child. You can select together or let your child select books that are of interest to them.

Repetition is great – read, read, read…again and again!

Read through the text one time with expression – act out parts, exaggerate tones of your voice and make associated sounds when possible. For example, Car sounds, animals sounds, fun expressions “wow”.

Read the story again, this time stopping to discuss and share observations. For example, as you point to the picture say, “I see the dog sleeping in the doghouse.”

Look for cues from your child - if they are pointing or looking towards something, point to the item and talk about it. For example, “Wow yes, I see those animals too.”

Ask simple questions – use the wait time noted above. Be sure any communication supports your child may use are readily available. Model the response using words or any visuals or resources that are used.

Together with your child find articles, magazines, and books they are interested in. Bring reading material with you wherever you go. You can read together with your younger readers and allow your older readers to read independently.

With your supervision encourage your child to find articles online on topics of their interest.

Help them understand perspectives of characters in the story or book.

Ask them what they read about. Ask them questions that require explanations:

• Who and what was the story about?

• What was important in the story?

• Why was it important?

You can use the resources below to find articles:

• www.timeforkids.com - allows you to select articles by topics of interest and grade level

• www.newsela.com - website allows you to select a topic of interest and the grade level

Help you child write about their experience or topic of interest. Assist them in creating a clear beginning, middle and end of the story.

Keep a daily journal.

For your older students, begin discussing how their interest can foster a career. Research various careers and find ones that incorporate their interest. Talk about this, chart out some pros and cons or plans on how to achieve this goal.

Start writing a personal essay or resume including interests and experiences.

Create crossword puzzles about various topics in ELA, Social Studies, Math, Science or articles and books they read. For example, you can help your child create a crossword puzzle about a recent topic they learned in Science such as DNA, moon cycles, plant structures, etc.

Help you child find crossword puzzles on topics of their interest online and assist in completion as needed. You can use various websites to help you create crossword puzzles on www.puzzle-maker.com