Curriki

Three Simple Ways to Increase Literacy in the Summer

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Summer is the time of year when parents wonder if and how they can include activities for their children that will help close any achievement gaps in the upcoming school year. Summer enrichment, camps, and tutoring programs can all cross parents’ minds at some point or another. Improving literacy has been supported as a key for giving a strong foundation for academic success and improving student achievement. However, increasing literacy skills in reading and writing don’t necessarily mean children have to feel like they are in school during the summer. Don’t panic. Supporting your child’s literacy over the summer doesn’t have to be costly or stressful. We offer three easy suggestions for increasing literacy skills in the summer that are fun!

Read for pleasure

During the hectic school year, it can be easy for children to not making reading for pleasure a priority. However, summer is the perfect time to encourage kids to dive into a good book on vacations, road trips, lazy days at the park, inside during summer showers, and when relaxing before bed. Need ideas? Here are some K-12 summer reading lists. Publisher’s Weekly has a 2019 reading guide for picture books, middle grades, and young adults. The Association for Library Service for Children has their own summer reading list. Going on vacation? National Geographic curated a list of vacation and travel-themed reads for children!

Make writing a part of summer exploration

Getting children to read and write at home show benefits for improving future academic success and improved executive functioning skills. There are multiple opportunities for writing in the summertime that can be fun including journaling, travel scrapbooking, thank you notes, letters to relatives, and creative writing. Make sure the content of the writing is meaningful for the child. Making children write aimless reports or essays for the sake of practicing writing skills is an easy way to turn them away from writing in the summertime. Take a cue from this Express Yourself lesson plan making journaling an independent and free thinking activity. For those visually creative children, here are some tips on Scrapbooking 101. 

Visit local educational tourist spots

Taking a trip to a local educational attraction is the perfect opportunity for children to immerse themselves in a topic and inadvertently learn. Museums, aquariums, historic monuments, battlefields, and nature trails all have opportunities to read and engage. These learning opportunities expands every child’s prior knowledge of the world which in turn helps solidify their literacy skills.

We hope you are having a great start to summer and are using the time to enrich your lives through fun and literacy!

#1 Weapon Against Summer Slide: Reading

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By Janet Pinto, Chief Academic Officer & Chief Marketing Officer, Curriki

Children are at high risking of losing some of the learning they gained during the school year once summer comes. And yes, we get it, children need a break from learning now and then. But we don’t want to lose that hard-earned knowledge acquired during nine months of homeschooling or going to school. So what to do to keep the kids’ brains fresh?

The top solution – and the easiest – is the make sure your children keep reading. Whether a child reads during the summer is the #1 predictor of summer learning loss or gain.

And there are so many fun ways to do it!

Tap the Library 

PBS-summer reading.

Source: PBSkids.org

Your local library is your best resource. In addition to a wealth of books of every type to lend, they have Read-a-Loud times, Summer Reading Clubs, and other literary activities for kids of all ages. If there’s a popular teen movie out this summer whose source material was a book, chances are good your local library will have an activity to attract teens. And when you go on vacation, visit the local library for reading material while you’re there. (Ok, they have videos, too.)

Visit Bookstores

The neighborhood bookstore should be a top destination no matter where you travel this summer. Make it cool in your family to visit a bookstore no matter where you wander. Buy a book or two to encourage literacy while supporting a local business.

Read in Fun Places

Model reading for enjoyment on the beach, in a hammock by the lake, in a porch swing at the summer cottage, in a tent n the woods, out loud to the whole gang of cousins.

Why Summer Reading Matters

Julie Wood, a literacy expert and an educational consultant, says children need to engage with books every day so they can maintain, and ideally strengthen, the literacy skills they learned during the

A Little Princess – Wikimedia Commons

school year. She says if children read just six books over summer vacation, they will likely avoid summer reading loss.

 

Wood shares some other suggestions for how to do this on PBSkids.org:

  • Take books with you and your child everywhere you go
  • Let your child choose the books she wants to read
  • Support his reading experience by talking about the books and helping him understand and interpret what he reads.
  • Read aloud to your child, even if he can read on his own. It helps build vocabulary and listening comprehension skills.
  • As you’re reading aloud, be sure to interact with your child by asking questions about the book.
  • If you are more comfortable reading to your child in a language other than English, by all means do so.
  • Encourage your child to participate in a summer reading program. Many libraries and some bookstores host them. For an online reading challenge, check out the PBS KIDS & Parents Reading Challenges.

Summer Reading Tips

PBS.org has more Summer Reading Tips for school-age kids, noting that summer’s more flexible schedule gives kids time and opportunity to read more and participate in a wide array of literacy activities, including:

  • Be a reader and writer yourself.
  • Set aside a consistent time each day for reading.
  • Read aloud to your reader.
  • Connect read-aloud choices to summer activities, reading about camping, fishing, etc.
  • Help your child select books at a comfortable level.
  • Don’t limit summer reading to books – check out Ranger Rick magazine or the sports page of your local paper.
  • Read a book and watch the video together.
  • Pack books when you go on outings.
  • Encourage your child to write this summer, whether it’s sending a postcard or keeping a journal.

Curriki has a list of classics that will keep your children happily entertained on a warm summer afternoon. Happy reading!

Photo of Janet PintoJanet Pinto, Chief Academic Officer & Chief Marketing Officer, leads and manages all of Curriki’s content development, user experience, and academic direction. Learn more at Curriki.org.

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Keep Students Learning Over the Summer

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Lani deGuia, Guest Blogger and Curriki Member

The long days of summer usually mean relaxation, free time and a deserved break from homework, tests and projects. Children and parents welcome the change of pace from daily schedules and school responsibilities.But too much free time can lead to boredom if children don’t have options for expending their energy. You don’t have to reintroduce structure and a schedule to avoid summer slide. Summer is the perfect time to explore interests and skills that can keep students’ minds sharp and ready for school in the fall! Here are some of our favorite ideas:

Join the Maker Movement

K-8 Makerspace Playbook – This curriculum guide from Massapequa School District lays out how to set up a maker-friendly environment in the K-8 classroom that can easily be applied to the home! Get lists of supplies to stock up and ideas for activities for getting kids creating, inventing, and thinking outside of the box!

Fun with Literacy

Summer slide infographicReading has proven to significantly prevent summer slide in children. This infographic shows how reading over the summer prevents a loss of reading skills and improves reading test scores. Scholastic offers several high-quality reading lists for kids ages 5-7, ages 8-10 , and ages 10-12 .

Mad Libs – Who didn’t love Mad Libs as a kid? This free iOS app brings the fun childhood activity into the hands of kids through their mobile devices!

SparkleFish – Teach kids to be storytellers! This free iOS app allows you to record creative words in your own voice for playback inside surprising, ad-lib stories.

Career Exploration

Discovering Careers – Do you have teenagers? They can begin career exploration as young adults. Students will discover their personal goals, interests, and aptitudes as related to career concepts. Technology skills will be developed as well as personal skills, decision-making skills, and employability skills.

Science Buddies:  Careers in Science – Have a future scientist? Help them explore a wide variety of careers in science and get to understand education requirements, nature of the work, and possible real-life projects they could work on.

iON Future – Projections show that by 2018, there will be more available STEM jobs than qualified candidates. Get your kids to explore STEM careers, find the ones that best match their interests and then play their way to their dream STEM future.

Explore Their Inner Spielberg

Summer is a great time to document a variety of experiences. Why not package it into a creative movie? Start off having your child create a phenakistoscope, an animation tool to make mini movies. When you spin a phenakistascope, the pictures move so quickly that your eyes and brain can’t separate the images. Use this activity to explain how movies work!

Create Time-Lapse Movies – This is especially handy during rainy summer days, or break times between outings. Your child can get creative in observing the small details of what is around them!

Kizoa Slideshow and Movie Maker – Looking for movie making software? Kizoa is free web-based software and allows you to create slideshows with special effects, text, and even music. You can also edit photos, create collages and e-cards, and share them via your favorite social networking sites.

The possibilities are endless, and there is so much learning to be done. We at Curriki hope you have a productive and educational summer!

LaniLani deGuia is a Norfolk, VA-based Educational Consultant with experience writing and developing curriculum and managing school technology.

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Celebrate Dr. Seuss’s Birthday in the Classroom

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By Janet Pinto, Chief Academic Officer & Chief Marketing Officer, Curriki

In Katroo, every year, on the day you were born
They start the day right in the bright early morn
When the Birthday Honk-Honker hikes high up Mt. Zorn
and lets loose a big blast on the big Birthday Horn.
And the voice of the horn calls out loud as it plays:
“Wake up! For today is your Day of all Days!”

— Happy Birthday to You! (Dr. Seuss)

Dr. Seuss, a.k.a. Theodor Seuss Geisel, was born on March 2, 1904. While he is no longer with us, Dr. Seuss’s legacy lives on in the pages of his whimsical, unforgettable books. From Horton Hears a Who to The Cat in the Hat to The Lorax, Dr. Seuss revolutionized the way children’s books were written and continues to inspire generations.

Source: photosforclass.com (Creative Commons)So this month, celebrate in your homeschool or classroom by reading Dr. Seuss’s amazing books and taking advantage of Curriki’s Seussian Collection of creative, fun activities. Oh, the places you’ll go!

First, the Educational Stuff …

Reading

First … Read as many Dr. Seuss books as you can during March!

Math

  • Dr. Seuss Math Printables – Nothing makes math as much fun as Dr. Seuss, even for math haters!
  • Green Eggs and …Economics? – Economic concepts are often found in places students have never considered, like children’s literature. In this lesson, students will explore the various economic concepts addressed in five of Dr. Seuss’ most popular books: The Cat in the Hat; Green Eggs and Ham; The Lorax; Oh, the Places You’ll Go! and Horton Hears a Who! This lesson assumes the students already have some knowledge of basic microeconomic concepts. Therefore, it would be best utilized as a review or unit summary to reinforce the concepts you have already covered.

Both

If I Ran the Zoo – Economics and Literature – Welcome to the Zoo! In this two-day lesson, you will use Dr. Seuss’ If I Ran the Zoo book to introduce the economic concepts to your students. You will also get the chance to use actual zoo criteria to help a zoo “choose” new animals.

Just for Fun (with some learning snuck in)

Seussville-logo

(Source: Seussville.com)

Here are some other fun suggestions:

Got any other great ideas? Please share!

Photo of Janet PintoJanet Pinto, Chief Academic Officer & Chief Marketing Officer, leads and manages all of Curriki’s content development, user experience, and academic direction. Learn more at Curriki.org.

Sign up for Curriki’s enewsletter!

Promote Worldwide Reading on International Literacy Day

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Literacy Day posyterBy Lani deGuia, Guest Blogger and Curriki Member

Did you know that 1 in 5 people in the world can’t read?

It’s true – the World Literacy Foundation says close to 20% of the world’s population is illiterate. Literacy skills are essential for lifelong learning, and can help elevate global education and progress for the future.

On Sept. 8, United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) celebrates the 50th anniversary of International Literacy Day. The day will be marked by a two-day conference in Paris on Sept. 8 and 9 where experts in the field, private business, learners, and educators will meet to discuss the progress of promoting literacy as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

But worldwide, schools, communities, and organizations are also encouraged to help spread awareness and increase accessibility to education in developing nations.

How can you help?

There are many opportunities for teachers, homeschoolers, parents and students to get involved in promoting literacy.

Put Up a Poster – UNESCO provides a downloadable poster to celebrate the 50th anniversary and spread awareness around your classroom and school.

Join the Campaign – The World Literacy Foundation is hosting a 2016 International Literacy Day campaign themed “The Sky’s The Limit”  If you register your school by Sept. 7, the Foundation will provide materials to help your school run a school community fundraising campaign toward global literacy.

BooksPromote Literacy Within your Classroom and School – Start the movement for strengthening reading and writing skills by participating literacy activities right in your classroom and school.  Here are some ideas from the Curriki community: http://www.curriki.org/oer/Kindergarten-Literacy-Centers/)

  • Do your students need a reference card for themselves or posted in the classroom?  Here’s a Reading Strategies Poster that covers the eight reading strategies and offers phrase starters to get students started on creating meaning from text.
  • Karen Fasimpaur offers collections of fiction and nonfiction decodable reading passages for early readers that include PDFs, PowerPoint presentations and interactive Voicethreads for students to record themselves reading.
  • Anna Batchelder offers this collection on Literacy Resources for Early Childhood Educators filled with reading lists, early readers suggestions, and activities reading comprehension.
  • ReadWriteThink offers ideas for your class to celebrate International Literacy Day, including a class read-a-thon, creating a cross-grade reading buddy program, or making original books to share with community members.
  • Wonderopolis can help get students start thinking about literacy with activities on the different ways to read and exploring why we read from left to right.
  • Literacy Tips for Parents offers strategies for parents and families to promote a literate household.
  • Teach Kindergarten or early primary grades?  Here are ideas for creating literacy centers in your classroom .

How do you plan on celebrating International Literacy Day?

Share your ideas! Don’t forget to follow along on social media (#LiteracyDay and #50ILD) with your students and children to find out the latest on events and activities!

Lani

Lani deGuia is a Norfolk, VA-based Educational Consultant with experience writing and developing curriculum and managing school technology.

Research and Instructional Resources for Teaching English Language Learners

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By Guest Blogger Lani deGuia

As the population of students who are English Language Learners (ELL) continues to rise in the United States, teachers of both English as a Second Language (ESL) programs and general education are in need of resources that can support instruction. These students are unable to communicate and learn effectively in English. National policies are enforcing the need to teach ELL students basic proficiencies in learning the English language while at the same time meeting academic standards. Because standardization of curriculum and limited access to ESL programs and support are leaving many of these students mainstreamed, it is becoming more critical for all teachers to be prepared for minimizing learning disparities. The following is a compilation of research and resources for supporting English language learners from K-12 and adults to help them gain proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

The Newly Arrived ESL/ELL Student

It may be difficult to know where to start for a newly arrived ESL/ELL student. Beginning ESL-Secondary (http://www.curriki.org/oer/ESL–Newly-Arrived/) offers supporting resources and instructional units for when the communication and learning disparity may be at its greatest.

English Language Literacy and Skills

Grammar and structure provides the fundamentals for language acquisition. Whether you are an ESL teacher or general education teacher, you may be in need of instructional resources to help meet a literacy gap for understanding or applying your content. Althabasca University (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Athabasca-University-ESL-Course/) provides a full ESL course curriculum that includes thirteen units of instruction on sentences, structure, form, purpose, reasoning, and more. If you want to increase your students’ ability to recognize commonly used English words, here is a collection of Dolch sight word lists (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Sight-Word-Lists/) for classroom and home use. Are your students having trouble conjugating verbs? Kent Uchiyama compiled a comprehensive reference, English Verb Tenses, specifically for ESL students (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Verb-Tense-Book/).

Listening and Speaking is essential ELL student success. Donna Price of San Diego Community College provides a list of Game-Like Activities to Practice ESL Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Listening-and-Speaking-Games/) and Jane C. Miller from the Colorado Department of Education offers Listening and Speaking Instructional Activities (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Listening-and-Speaking-Instructional-Activity-Packet/) Collection of activities for teaching listening and speaking to ESL adult learners.

If your students need extra assistance with pronunciation, check out Pronunciation Practice (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Pronunciation-Practice/) Games, activities, suggestions, and word lists for improving pronunciation. Teaching Pronunciation to Adult English Language Learners (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Teaching-Pronunciation-to-Adult-ELLs/) gives an overview, instructional strategies, and checklists for improving pronunciation for adult ESL students. Teaching Pronunciation (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Teaching-Pronunciation/) provides research and instructional strategies for teaching pronunciation for ESL students using the Prosody Pyramid. Specific American English Pronunciation Challenges for ELL’s : How to Meet These Challenges (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Pronunciation-Challenges/) is a reference guide for research, theory, strategies, and challenges in pronunciation for English language learners that includes specific challenges for specific first languages.

Are your students ready for conversation? Conversation Questions and Activities to Aid in the Learning of English by Prof. Mark McDowell, M.A (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Listening-and-Speaking-Free-Talk-Handbook/) is a handbook of listening/speaking free talk activities and questions.

Writing effectively can be one of the biggest challenges for English language learners. ESL Writing Resources (http://www.curriki.org/oer/ESL-Writing-Reources/) provides a collection of resources to teaching writing to ESL students including newspaper activities, a review of common student errors, and worksheets. Teaching English as a Second Language: Chapter Twelve Teaching Students How to Write (http://www.curriki.org/oer/ESL–Teaching-Students-How-to-Write/) is a slide presentation that includes strategies for ESL teachers to use for writing instruction.

Cross-curricular ties to other content areas is a great way to engage ELL students. EL Civics ESL Worksheets (http://www.curriki.org/oer/EL-CIVICS-for-ESL-STUDENTS/) offers a collection of worksheets to teach civics to ESL students including cloze activities, short stories, crossword puzzles and more that can enhance social studies instruction.

ESL Worksheets, Downloads, and Printables

ELL students may need routine and repeated practice to acquire literacy skills in grammar and writing. The following sites offer a variety of student worksheets and activities to supplement instruction.

Learn English Feel Good ESL Worksheets (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Learn-English-Feel-Good-ESL-Worksheets/) Collection of worksheets on writing skills, parts of speech, and assessments for advanced and native speakers

ESL Kids Stuff (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Lesson-Plans-for-ESL-Kids-Teachers/) Collection of lesson plans for ESL teachers that also includes flashcards, activities, and crafts

ESL Printables (http://www.curriki.org/oer/ESL-Printables/) Resource exchange for ESL worksheets, lessons, activities, and more

Using English: ESL Teacher Handouts (http://www.curriki.org/oer/ESL-Teacher-Handouts/) Collection of teacher printables, handouts, and worksheets on grammar

U.S. Department of Education Office of English Language Acquisition (http://www.curriki.org/oer/US-Department-of-Education–The-Office-of-English-Language-Acquisition/) Resources for both parents and students for English language learning.

Grammar Practice Worksheets (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Grammar-Practice-Worksheets/) Grammar worksheets from ESL Library

Instructional Technology

Looking for a mobile app or technology tool to increase learning with ELL students? ELevate Success offers a list of iPad Apps for English Learners (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Elevate-Success–iPad-Apps-for-ELs/). This directory of iPad apps can be used for ELL and ESL instruction for K-12 and adult learners.

Apps for English Language Learners (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Apps-for-ELLs/) provides a list of technology tools (including iPad and SMART technology) based on Common Core and ISTE Standards.

Research and Theory

On a final note, understanding the ESL/ELL learner and language instruction will provide the greatest benefit for instruction regardless of what subject area you teach. Whether you have one ELL student or an entire classroom, being knowledgeable of research-based instruction will empower you with effective strategies. Here are several guides and research-based articles on effective approaches to helping children and adults improve their English language proficiency.

Krashens Second Language Acquisition Theory and The Teaching of Edited American English

(http://www.curriki.org/oer/Krashens-Second-Language-Acquisition-Theory-and-The-Teaching-of-Edited-American-English/)

Supporting English Language Learners: A Practical Guide

(http://www.curriki.org/oer/Supporting-English-Language-Learners/)

Implementing Effective Instruction for English Language Learners (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Implementing-Effective-Instruction-for-ELLs/)

Equity Matters: From English Language Learners to Emergent Bilinguals (http://www.curriki.org/oer/From-ELLs-to-Emergent-Bilinguals/)

Assessment of English Language Learners: The Bridge to Educational Equity (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Assessment-of-English-Language-Learners–The-Bridge-to-Educational-Equity/)

Visual Aids in the ESL Classroom (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Visual-Aids-in-the-ESL-Classroom/) Collection of articles and research on effective use of media, audio, and visual elements for ESL learners

Sheltered Instruction: Best Practices for ELLs in the Mainstream (http://www.curriki.org/oer/Sheltered-Instruction–Best-Practices-for-ELLs-in-the-Mainstream/)

 

 

 

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