This newsletter discusses the importance of reading, especially for children. It recommends starting early by reading to children from infancy. Reading helps with educational and life success by improving vocabulary, attention span, social skills, and more. It suggests creating a loving environment for reading through book clubs, reading spaces, and making it a daily routine. Resources are provided for parents and teachers to help children develop an enjoyment of reading.

1. READING IS 'FUN'DAMENTAL
Volume 1, Issue 1 March 2012
Introduction Embedding a Love for
By Regina Powers
ISU-Graduate Student
Reading.
Why reading is important at all ages.
W elcome, Welcome. Thank you for taking the time
to read my newsletter. The audience for this newsletter Start early! It is never too late to start reading but
was prepared for parents, teachers, and readers. I am the sooner the better. I recently attended PBIS
excited to share research with you about the importance Family Night at Chiddix Junior High School.
of reading and the impact of starting early. This Suggestions were given for building a love for
newsletter is a compilation of research that has been reading. These suggestions are for all strong
done to find out just why, parents should start reading readers. When finding out about students reading
to their children even while still in the womb. My abilities, do a reading interview with the child to
philosophy is that children should have books identify interests. Start a book club with students
surrounding them as they grow. Books should be age and try to get friends involved. Read books and
appropriate and children should be read to daily for at watch movies and have book and movie talks.
least 20 minutes. I also believe students will benefit Allow children to write about what they are
greatly from this time to read, and this newsletter will reading. Have a reading space or a place where
contain the research to prove it. My hopes are that by children can read exclusively.
reading this newsletter (hopefully you are reading it to
your young one), parents will find resources to support
them in this rewarding adventure. So grab your specs, a
warm blanket and tea and enjoy.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
1 Introduction
1 Embedding a Love For Reading.
2 Why Read?
2 Reading Can Enhance Children’s Social Skills.
3 Information and Research Corner
3 Resources for Reading.
When my five year old daughter reads to me, I tell
her, her reading is “music to my ears”. She smiles
and reads as beautifully as she can.
Regina Powers
Reading is 'Fun’damental 1

2. Why Read?
Reading sets the stage for success. I remember as
a young child being read to by my parents. It did Reading can enhance children’s social
not matter what was going on in my entire world, at skills.
the end of the day, they read me a story and that meant
the world to me. There were certain educational In this day and time with technological advances
standards that my parents valued and instilled in me on the rise it may seem like a daunting task to get
and being able to read was one of them. I am excited to children to pick up a good book. Research has
learn more about the process of reading and how to shown that students are having a very difficult time
help children and adults learn how to read. This is very sitting still in class. Students with ADHD, ADD
rewarding because in my eyes, reading is freedom.
Reading is freedom because when one can read, they
and other disorders where they are not able to sit
gather information for life. By gathering information for long periods of time can greatly benefit from
for life, they are able to keep current on events in the “sit quietly and read time”. The missing key is that
news, what their rights are, and just basic living. they must have consistency and uninterrupted
Research compiled by Jim Trelease establishes that attention. This must be a chance for them to sit
sharing books: Conditions the child to associate reading with someone in close proximity and share a
with pleasure, as association that is necessary in order wonderful story. The students who are struggling
to maintain reading as a lifelong activity. with being able to sit in class, need to be
demonstrated to on how to behave appropriately
1. Contributes to background knowledge for all and not yelled at constantly because they are not
other subject areas, including science, history, following the rules.
geography, math, and social studies.
2. Provides the child with a reading role model.
3. Creates empathy toward other people, because
Here is a section of a great article I recently read
literature values humanity and celebrates about the impacts of reading and how important
human spirit and potential, offering insight reading is to build much needed social skills
into different lifestyles while recognizing among our youth. “Although reading is thought
universality. of as the quintessential solitary activity, in certain
4. Increases a child's vocabulary and grammar, circumstances reading can be a socializing activity.
and has the potential to improve writing skills. For example, a parent or grandparent reading a
5. Improves a child's probability of staying in story aloud, whether from a traditional printed
school. book or from an eBook, can be a great
6. Improves future probability of employment opportunity for adult and child to share some
and higher quality of life. quiet, relaxed quality time together away from the
7. Increases life span by virtue of correlated
education, employment, and higher quality of
rush and stresses of the business of daily living.
life. They share a few minutes of precious time, plus
8. Lowers probability of imprisonment. they share the ideas that are contained in the story.
9. Improves problem-solving and critical-thinking In addition, older children can be encouraged to
skills that are fundamental and transferable to read aloud to younger ones as a means of
all other areas of learning. enhancing their relationship.
10. Offers information.
11. Offers laughter and entertainment and an At school or at a library story hour, books can
alternative to television. bring children together and can be part of a
12. Improves attention span. positive shared experience. For some preschoolers
13. Stimulates the imagination.
this may be their primary opportunity to socialize
14. Nurtures emotional development and
improves self-esteem. and to learn how to behave around other children
15. Reading skills are accrued skills that are bound or how to sit quietly for a group activity. Make the
to improve over time…a countdown to most of this experience by encouraging children to
academic success. talk about what they've read or heard”. As
children’s social skills become enhanced they
- Author Esmé Raji Codell summarizing author Jim Trelease's become socially stable and more empathetic.
book, ‘The Read-Aloud Handbook'
Reading is 'Fun’damental 2

3. Be sure to check out these
sites for reading resources:
http://www.totsites.com/help/fun/reading-
books.php
www.rif.org
www.kidscount.org/Reading
www.starfall.com
www.storyplace.org
www.justreadfamilies.org/kids
www.magickeys.com/books/links.htm
“Not only teach to read the word
but teach to read the world”
Paulo Freire
INFORMATION Ten Features of the Illinois seamless assessment system with
AND RESEARCH Partnerships in Comprehensive multiple measures for evaluating
Literacy (PCL) Model success.
CORNER: 6: System Interventions include
COMPREHENSION 1. Framework for Literacy uses a Reading Recovery and small
workshop approach for meeting group interventions in grades K-3
STRATEGIES the needs of all students within an and classroom and supplemental
integrated, inquiry-based group interventions in grades 4-12.
Comprehension Strategies-Students curriculum. 7. Collaborative Learning Teams
must use strategies for comprehension 2: Coaching and Mentoring – using (Professional Learning
contingent scaffolding, coaching Communities) --Uses authentic
in order to experience text and be
cycles, and a gradual release model contexts for learning, including
successful interpreters of the text. for increasing teacher efficiency. study groups, book clubs, peer
Here are strategies for success: 3. Model Classrooms--Creating observations, cluster conferences,
Predict-search the pages of the text. constructivist settings where and demonstration lessons.
Predict what will happen within the teachers meet together to 8. Well-Designed Literacy Plan
text, the beginning, middle and end.
apprentice one another in includes short and long-term goals
implementing the literacy with specific benchmarks for
Question-ask questions throughout framework. continuous literacy development
the text to make connections. 4. High Standards are based on the 9. Technology for Learning Uses
Clarify-clarify terms, understanding, Common Core Standards and technology to learn about the
and information between the lines.
professional standards that align world, including searching for
with specific benchmarks along a information, communicating with
Summarize-summarize the literacy continuum. others, and creating new products.
information that has been read and 5. Comprehensive Assessment 10. Spotlighting and Advocacy.
interpreted. Talk about prediction and System – includes a school-wide
answer questions that were previously.
Reading is 'Fun’damental 3