Hello Again Readers,
Even though the New Year is only hours away, it's not too late to talk to your little reader about a New Year's Resolution, or to make one for yourself to help your little reader grow! The trick with New Year's Resolutions, however, isn't just to light a tiny motivational match that will burn out within a week or two, but to think of a way to build a routine that will help you to ignite a long lasting fire within yourself and your little reader. As I'm sure many of you can attest to, the gyms and fitness centers are certainly at their busiest in January, but rarely do people attack their weight loss regimes with the same zest come February 28th. My goal for this post is to not only give you some ideas for some awesome reading resolutions, but also to give you some routines to help you and your little reader achieve your goals! So, without further ado...
The 3 Reading Resolutions
- In 2016 I want to read (insert number) of new books.
The wording in this resolution is PERFECT for our readers from as early as Kindergarten, and reaching through college (not to mention yourself ;-) ). The best part about this resolution, is you can help your reader set the total number, and then divide them up by month. So for example, a Kindergarten student might want to read 48 new books (a reasonable number when thinking of picture books) and this would mean 4 a month for them. Look below for other reasonable numbers to suggest:
- 1st: 48 books
- 2nd: 42 books
- 3rd: 36 books
- 4th+: 24 books
As you notice, the number of books decreases as our readers get older, this is because the length of books (from picture to chapter) and the complexity of the text increases. It's important to help them make good choices with their books too. Let them know it's not just the number of books, but the quality of books to accomplish. For example, a 5th grader reading a Clifford book to "get in" their book for the month, has missed the point of the resolution, and you might want to help him to find a book he would enjoy, and talk to him about how we want to feel completely good about ourselves when we reach the goal.
How do we make this happen again?
- Sticker Charts: For our younger readers, sticker charts are very motivational. You can make one with enough spots to hold all of their books for the year, and then give them a sticker to put on their chart once they've achieved them.
- Calendars with Stickers: To expand on the idea, you could give them stickers to put on their calendar to break down their reading by month. This makes the goal more manageable for our little ones, and as a bonus, it helps you to see how often your child is finishing a book!
- Frequent conversations about reading: For both our younger and older students, ask them how their reading is coming, make visits to the library a family outing, and read along with them as well. This will not only help them to develop those strong reading habits and help them achieve their goal, but also it will give you some special one-on-one time with them, which will give them positive feelings toward reading!
2. In 2016, I want to read a new genre every month.
For our purposes, genres of books are basically different types of books, and many times, our readers find one genre and cling to it, without trying others. For boys, it's typically nonfiction or graphic novels, and for girls it's fiction or fantasy. Although it's by no means "the end of the world" if our student prefers one genre over all others, it can stunt their growth in genre knowledge, which is important for them to develop as they get older and are required to read different genres in class. By making a resolution to explore many genres over the course of the year, not only will our readers gain different genre knowledge, but they will also be able to compare the genres, and perhaps find a new favorite! There are many lists on genres abound, but I've included 12 below perfect for this resolution:
- Fantasy: talking animals, magic, completely unrealistic events
- Mystery
- Realistic Fiction: A text about something that COULD happen, but either the events or characters are not real
- Historical Fiction: A text about a historic event that did happen, but includes fictional characters (the I Survived series)
- Science Fiction: A text about fictional events in space or time, usually includes aliens, technology, etc.
- Poetry
- Nonfiction: A text about a topic that is real
- Biography: A text about a person's life who really lived
- Autobiography: A text written by someone about their own life
- Graphic Novel: A text written to include pictures alongside of text (commonly known as comics, but has completely morphed into it's own genre such as Big Nate books)
- Plays
- Traditional Literature: Folktales/Fairytales that typically teach a lesson at the end of the story
By taking a year to sample all of these genres, your reader will truly grow by leaps and bounds!
How do we make this happen again?
- Theme the months: Let your reader choose which genre they want to read on a given month, and write it on their personal calendar. At the beginning of each month, take a special trip to the library, and find books to fit into that genre! Make sure to keep it fun, and encourage your reader to finish at least one book for that month within that genre, even if they are reluctant to read it at first.
- Read along with them: A great way for even you to understand more about the genre, is to pick your own book in the library and read it too! This will give you even more items to talk about with your child as you can share with them your impressions about the genre as well!
3. In 2016, I want to read (insert number here) minutes each day.
In the spirit of "saving the best for last," I most certainly did on this one! Encouraging your child to read every day is the best thing we can do for their reading development at home, and this is supported by multiple studies! The best part about this resolution, is it works for all ages! From birth-college, our children greatly benefit from daily reading and daily reading routines. For our little ones (birth-PreK3) this resolution may be more of yours, and making sure to do it with them, but for PreK4 and older, they can easily take ownership of this time, and start to show independence in their reading habits. Here are some suggested time ranges to suggest to your children as they are setting their resolutions:
- Birth-PreK3: 10-15 minutes a day
- PreK4-Kinder: 15-20 minutes a day
- 1st-2nd: 20-25 minutes a day
- 3rd-4th: 25-30 minutes a day
- 5th+: at least 30 minutes a day
How do we make this happen again?
- Set aside a specific time to read each day: By specific, I mean super-specific! For my schedule with Charlotte, I might block off 5:15-5:30 JUST for reading. The more specific we can be, the more consistent we will be, especially when balancing work, practice, school, and other little ones! If she is old enough, let your child pick her reading times. This gives her ownership over the time, and helps her to make it part of her routine. It's commonly cited that it takes 21 days to develop a habit, so by keeping your children reading at that specific time each day for 21 days, they'll soon be doing it on their own!
- Get a timer: You can easily buy a timer for your child's reading, and let them control it. Or even just use the one on your phone! This will help them get excited about their reading. Additionally, for our readers who are just starting off on their bigger block of time, it gives them the freedom to divide the time up. For example, for a 1st grader, you might have them read from 5:10-5:20, and then after dinner from 7:20-7:35. This gives them their 25 minutes, and their timer will ensure that they did all 25.
- Read along with your child: You can listen to your child read, or model good reading yourself. Can you imagine how powerful it is for your child to see everyone reading at the same time? Think of how much we get into sports, and how our children get excited for it, because everyone's gathered together. That same energy could be transferred to reading by having everyone read at once.
I hope this post helped you to both round out your resolutions with your little ones and gave your practical ways to do it! May your 2016 be filled with new adventures in reading and growing with your child! Have a wonderful night, and a Happy New Year!
Until next time readers...
Yours in Literacy,
The Reading Specialista
