Mr. Carlson's Awesome Reading Program
"Those who don't read have no advantage over those who can't."
-Mark Twain
Embedded Files
Welcome to THINKING, DOING, CREATING, MAKING, BUILDING, BREAKING, AND FIXING! Welcome to LEARNING in LPS Room B-15!
PVSD uses standards-based marks in assessing student understanding.
The Progress Report/Report Card and Reading Progress
In regards to each student's reading, any assignment that carries a score of "1" indicates it has not been turned in yet, not completed at all, or the student did not understand that standard, yet. If this is the case, please encourage your student to up their game.
REDO-Marked Work:
In regards to redo-marked work, make sure that every assignment marked "Redo" or with a score of a "1" is improved and returned.
Reading Incentive Programs
Students/Parents/Guardians,
Once student reading levels have been determined (usually in the first weeks of school) reading towards their weekly goals should become a high priority. Students will be given a printout indicating their 1-book-per-week reading goal shortly after the first weeks of school. Regardless of their reading levels, a good pace would be a chapter or two per day, depending on the size of their reading selection. Students may read more than their 1-book-per-week goal, but if they read less, their reading grade will be seriously affected, and they may lose out on the field trips and class reward parties planned for this year. The following are the guidelines for the reading program in this classroom:
Students may only log on to their own BookTaco.com account to take quizzes. No student will log on to any other student's accounts.
Students may only take quizzes on stories they read during this school year.
Students may only take BookTaco.com quizzes on books that are in their reading range or above and are encouraged to read more challenging materials.
Students may only take BookTaco.com quizzes on books that they read, listen to, or are read to -no movies.
Only passing quiz scores will count towards weekly reading goals.
Student participation is mandatory (required). Every student must participate by actually reading.
If at any time students do not appear to be pacing themselves for their BookTaco.com reading goal, they will be invited to a makeup reading cougar period. This period is usually during their recess or lunch periods or a 15 minute after school period.
It is impossible to pass the subject of Reading without full participation in this reading reading program.
All students’ BookTaco.com books must be at least 50 pages in length.
Students must read a mix of fiction and nonfiction books.
Students may take reading quizzes both in class or out of class.
If students are not taking their reading seriously enough and find that they do not pass their reading quiz with a minimum score of 70%, they will get no credit for their weekly reading.
*Since students are required to read for at least 30-minutes in addition to their homework, they should make this a part of their daily BookTaco.com reading time. Each student's parent or guardian is asked to help enforce this policy by actually asking their student to pick up a book and read it each evening for 30-minutes or more. They can not become stronger readers unless they read. The phrase, "Practice Makes Perfect," is incredibly true in regards to reading proficiency.
*Students will be given occasional in-class reading periods throughout the year. They must bring their reading book to class every day so that they can participate in this period. In fact, I ask that you make it a requirement for them to have their reading book with them everywhere they go.
*As a reward for their diligent reading, at the end of each trimester, they will be invited to our celebrations. They will also earn much praise and reward. In addition to this, the high-point/quiz earner/s will be recognized.
In-Class Reading:
Each student needs to read in class every day on ReadTheory.org. Once they have read, they are required to take and pass a quiz on what they have read. The results of these quizzes are used to guide my and each student's instruction/learning. These scores may end up in our class grade book under classwork in the subject of Reading. They need to put their best efforts into reading so that they can answer the questions via their Chromebooks and give me accurate feedback on their learning. This is a daily activity and counted towards their in-class Reading grade.
*Their will be a high point competition each month. The student earning the most points each month will earn a free book from our classroom Scholastic Book Club orders-valued at $5.00 or less.
*They may use ReadTheory.org while at home to earn more points, help reinforce their reading practice, and support their studies. I ask that they complete no more than two ReadTheory.org quizzes per day.
Under Construction:
My Favorite Authors and...:
Jack London
Carol Dweck
Reading Resources
Used for Fluency passages by Lexile.
Prompts for Text-Dependent Questions
How to Encourage Students to Read
All of these methods may not work with every student, but some may be the key for some students. These are geared toward parents, but apply well to teachers. But don't take our word for it; check out this Encouraging kids to read PowerPoint template that reinforces what we are asserting on this page. Great minds think alike (and idiots seldom differ). We're constantly scouring the public domain for material you might find useful, so don't be surprised to find other PowerPoints referenced here.
Research on reading generally agrees that the most critical aspect of reading is how a child feels about reading. Positive reinforcement from parents and teachers helps. Children need to know that adults in their lives care about reading.
Research also agrees that in most cases, forcing a child to read will yield no positive results. Most children should not be REQUIRED to read each day, especially if it's forced reading for pleasure. Some families find that having a reading time when the whole family reads works. Even if the child is reluctant, he knows that the time is reserved for reading. Let him choose to read light material, if nothing else.
A book allowance is a good idea. In addition to whatever other allowance a child may receive, provide an allowance for books. Even if the allowance allows for the purchase of one paperback book or magazine a week, you've helped encourage reading.
Regular visits to a good magazine rack, coupled with purchases, provide reading material. Parents will probably want to exercise some judgment on reading purchases, but magazines your child shows some interest in and which you approve are a good way to provide material and encourage reading.
Subscriptions to a magazine or magazines for your child or student are a good idea. There's a certain amount of excitement in "ownership" and a for many students it's very exciting to receive mail.
Model reading. Children who see their parents reading, often become readers and come to accept that reading is a matter-of-fact activity.
If your child is willing, whatever his or her age, don't be afraid to read aloud. Reading to children is one of the best ways to encourage interest in reading. Older brothers and sisters can read to younger children. If you're child is too old to be read to (some would suggest that no one is too old to be read to), just read articles aloud from the newspaper from time to time.
Establish a place in the child's room for his or her books. A feeling of ownership, again, is important.
Schedule regular family visits to the library--even if your child doesn't seem interested in taking out books.
Introduce your child to the librarian. Librarians are anxious to help children look for interesting reading material. Make sure your child knows the school librarian too.
By all means recommend books to your child. Tell the child how difficult the books are (or are not) and let the child decide if he or she wants to read them.
If your child starts a book and doesn't want to finish it -- ok. Hasn't that happened to you? Some advice I've heard recommends that you abandon books that don't "grab" you in the first 60 pages... because life is too short. My threshold is lower than 60 pages.
Buy books for yourself and let your children know you do it.
If your child decides to read something to YOU...be patient and let him or her read to you.
Don't forget book browsing on the World Wide web. Try Amazon.com as a great starting point.
You might find that kids will read pages on the world wide web. Help them find pages with content that fits their own personal interests.
It's important that children have hobbies or interests. Help your children develop such interests and make sure they have or seek reading material about their interests.
Praise your child for his or her reading when appropriate. For example, praise the child when a long or difficult book is completed.
When a topic of interest develops which involves the whole family--an upcoming trip or vacation, for example--bring home some books on the topic to share with the family.
Attend used book sales at libraries and other places where good books can be had inexpensively.
Discuss with your child any book he or she is reading for a class at school. Read the book yourself.
When you and your child are working on something together have him or her read the directions. Many models and construction kits turn out better when a child reads the instructions aloud.
Discuss ideas in books your child reads. For that matter, where appropriate, discuss ideas in books you read. For that matter, read the books your children read.
Display good books somewhere in your home. Let children know that books have an important place in the home. And don't limit the books to a few essentials...have a generous selection of a wide variety of books.
Look for computer programs which encourage reading.
Check out text adventure games...an old computer game genre which required a lot of reading and thinking. A search on "text adventure games" on a major World Wide Web search program should yield many choices. Check the Creative Teaching Links page for good places to look.
Have your child put his name in his books. Ownership is important! Some parents even recommend bookplates or custom bookplates.
Help your child develop a non-sports hobby. Then provide him with books on the hobby. Hobbies help develop curiosity.
Complete the interest inventory to help select the high-interest materials that are right for your student or have your student do it. Click here to complete the Find a Book form.
Read to Succeed Six Flags Program- Earn FREE Tickets
Read to Succeed Six Flags Program- Earn FREE Tickets
The Seven Rules of Close Reading (beyond the Common Core)
The Common Core reading standards promote close reading of text,
and they provide learning goals that “outline what a student should
know and be able to do at the end of each grade.” What they don't
do, however, is describe what close reading is.
While the standards outline the learning goals so students properly
identify and understand “key ideas and details” or “craft and structure,”
the authors of the standards note that “The Standards should be
recognized for what they are not as well as what they are.” Among
those things the standards are not, “The Standards define what all
students are expected to know and be able to do, not how teachers
should teach.”
So how should teachers teach close reading, given that the
Common Core and other standards provide the learning goals? I submit
we need to teach students how to read closely by highlighting and
modeling the seven habits of expert readers. To help you do just that,
here are Seven Rules of Close Reading, which you can use to teach
your students what they need to do to read closely and to learn more
from text.
1. Limit distraction.
Be disciplined about reading to learn, which means shutting down
the distractions before they distract you. Sit in a quiet space and turn
off or silence all the things that are going to try to steal away your
attention. Of course, this has become increasingly difficult as technology
advances, since more immediate gratification is almost always close at
hand, possibly even on the device on which you are reading this right
now. In my experience, even listening to music with vocals while
reading makes it more difficult to learn.
At the same time, the source of possible distraction is also the source
for more information to promote understanding and learning (See
Rules 2 and 4 below), but only if a reader is disciplined about remaining
focused on reading and researching to learn.
2. Take your time.
Your goal is learning, not finishing, and you can’t rush learning. This
is because it takes time to understand what an author means and to fill
gaps in your knowledge. Looking up words and references you do not
understand is critical to understanding, and it will add depth and wonder
to the reading experience. Anything you skip is a missed opportunity for
real learning, and you’ll likely run into that word or reference in the near
future anyway, so you might as well sort it out now.
3. Do not multitask.
Multitasking really is a myth. If you need confirmation, try to hold
two simultaneous and meaningful conversations. Though it seems we
are multitasking successfully when we glance away briefly from the
book or article we were reading to answer a text message or to check
the latest stock prices or scores, we are actually breaking our connection
with the book or article. It takes time to rebuild this connection--to
wade back into the sea of names, ideas, and references the text holds
and to remind ourselves of what it all means. Reading to learns involves
juggling a small universe of names, references, and ideas. If you reach
for your phone while your mind is juggling all this information,
everything that was connected in your short-term memory falls apart,
and it takes time to get started and organize all of this information
again. A moment of multitasking takes many moments to recover from,
so even an instant of distraction will interfere with comprehension,
retention, and analysis.
4. Think about why this text is important.
You have to ask yourself questions as you read, and the best way to
ask yourself questions is to take written notes, in the margins of the
actual or electronic text (see Rule 5). Here are a few questions you can
ask as you read:
Get your kids reading and earn free tickets to Six Flags! This usually happens once throughout the year, usually around March. I will let students know when the competition is running. Students who complete six hours of recreational reading earn a free ticket to Six Flags!
If you are new to the program, registration is now open so you can sign up today. Once you login to your account, you can download everything you need to get started from your Teacher Toolbox in your online account.
**For a more detailed or complete report containing your student's reading progress, please contact me @ dcarlson@pvsdcamarillo.org
Student Resources:
Ventura County Public Library Card Application
Camarillo City Library
Stories We May Read In Class:
Why am I reading this text? What’s the goal of this exercise?
What words, references, or concepts in the text do I not know,
and what’s the best way to fill these gaps?
What’s the main point of this passage?
What do I know about the author to explain why she wrote this
passage in this way?
Have I seen this idea or argument before?
For informational texts, what evidence does the author offer in
support of her claims?
5. Write when you read.
You can’t learn deeply from text without writing about what you’re
reading. Take notes about the most important points in the text, and
why they are important, what they remind you of, how they connect, and
what questions they raise in your mind.
Be organized about your notes, so you can read and understand
them when you go back to them, and so you can write some more
about them after you go back to them to wrestle again with the same
points, their importance, connections, and what they reveal. The more
often you send this information back through your brain, and the more
you assemble and disassemble it in your mind and in your writing, the
more you will learn.
6. Read for sustained periods of at least 15 to 30 minutes.
Reading in a sustained way enables you to think about how what you
are reading connects to what you just read, what you already know from
other sources, and what you need to learn, as you read. Reading with
stamina means better thoughts, notes, and meaning making. To go
deeply into a text, and to take the text deeply into your mind, requires
your full attention for an extended period of time, as the mind will only
search long-term memory, seek to fill gaps, and successfully build
connections if the text has time to penetrate and occupy the mind. To
commit one’s full attention for an extended period of time requires not
only discipline but also stamina, which comes from practice and the
belief that reading will reveal important things that you will remember
and find useful.
At the same time, to stay fresh it is important to take short breaks
between your 15 to 30 minute reading sessions, to let your mind cool
down.
7. When possible, practice reading as a social activity.
You learn more when you ask yourself questions while you read
(Rule 5). You also learn more when you have an opportunity to discuss
what you have read, and what you have written about what you have
read, with others who have also read about the same subject, or have
read the same author or text.
In conclusion, this is how great readers read to learn. And this is
how your students can become great readers. It is time-consuming
and effortful, but once they start reading this way, they’ll never again
be happy with simply skimming.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
I Survived The Battle of Gettysburg, 1863
Nick and Tesla's High Voltage Danger Lab
Three Tales of My Father's Dragon
There's a Boy in the Girl's Bathroom
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle
You Never Heard of Willie Mays?!
Cool 4th grade links we use in class:
Search the full text of over 10 million books.
International Children's Digital Library
Learn to read with phonics!
Interactively helps students improve math skills!
Free educational games, activities, quizzes, and articles for everyone!
What parents can do to help in reading
Want to read faster? Click here.
Not sure what to read?
Not sure what your student should read? By following the link below to Book Adventure, creating a free account, and clicking on the Book Finder link on the left side of the page, you will have your choices presented to you after answering few questions. It really works and is highly recommended!
If you think a book may be too hard for you, try the "five finger test!"
Readers can use the five finger test to check the their understanding of a book. To check the reading level of your book, take this simple test:
Here's the Five Finger Guide:
As your student reads a page from the middle of the book that they are interested in, have them stick up one finger for each word they don't understand. If the book is:
1 Finger: This book is o.k. for you.
2 Fingers: Still good.
3 Fingers: Could be a bit hard for you to understand.
4 Fingers: Will be too difficult to read and understand.
5 Fingers: Choose another book.
WHY THIS CLASS IS DIFFERENT:
There are many opportunities for success in this 4th grade class. First, I give up my recess and lunch recess to offer a makeup period for students. I allow them to redo, makeup, or finish any assignment that they need-with assistance. I also allow students to redo any assignment that they did not pass-as many times as they need to be successful-also with assistance. Lastly, I also offer a daily review period of concepts. Yes, that's right; I actually spend between 30-minutes and 1-hour reviewing
materials from the previous day's lessons. If this is not enough for your student to be successful, in this class, then please call or e-mail me so that we can discuss this further.
REQUIRED:
All students are required to read a certain number of books each trimester. This means that by the end of the year they need to have read quite a few books with a mix of fiction and nonfiction. If their decisions prevent them from reading the required number of books, they risk failing the subject of Reading as well as not being able to participate in any of the planned activities (Trimester Parties, Year-End Party, field trips, etc...) planned for this year.
Questions, comments, or to report broken links:
dcarlson@pvsdcamarillo.org
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