Personalized Childrens Books

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Developing Reading Comprehension

By Sharon Oberne

I was working with the maximum number of elementary students my job description allowed and I did not have any room to include a student named, ‘Chrissy.’  Chrissy was placed on a waiting list.  However, I did assess Chrissy to determine her current reading comprehension level.  Her tests indicated a year below grade level in reading comprehension.  Her assessment certainly caused a problem with Chrissy’s mother and the classroom teacher.  Chrissy’s weakness in reading comprehension affected her performance in reading her social studies and science books.  She was consistently failing her tests in both of these two subjects.  Naturally, Chrissy’s mother was very angry and blamed the classroom teacher.  Actually, Chrissy’s problem began before she entered kindergarten.  Chrissy learned to be a word caller.  Her primary focus was to recognize words, letter sounds and blending sounds into words.

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 on how to foster a childrens reading comprehension

 

Like any parent, you want your child to be a proficient reader.  This means having not only the capability to recite the words on a page, but also the cognitive skills to reach into the depth of a text.  Proficient readers are analytical thinkers while they are actually reading and not simply after they finish.  Yet, when many parents sit down to read a book with their children, valuable reading strategies are often overlooked.  Instead, most of the emphasis is placed on “sounding out” when the child pauses at a challenging word. While phonemic awareness – the conscious
understanding of the spelling-to-sound correspondence – is a vital component of reading, it should not be the only focus. 

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Home Schooling - is it right for you?

by Jennifer Cartwright

          It is important for a parent to understand his or her specific reason for choosing home schooling and to be aware of the work involved in home schooling.  It is not a choice to be made lightly or in the heat of the moment.  This article will explore rationales for a decision to home school and look at the ramifications of the choice to home school.

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The Best Gift of All…

by Brenda Rollins, Ed.D.

 It is never too early or too late to begin reading books to your children. There is evidence that babies waiting to be born respond vigorously to the rhythmical tones of nursery rhymes as they are read aloud. Newborns may even stop crying when their moms or dads be-gin-to-speak-in-light-heart-ed-rhymes. Toddlers are fascinated (but not for too long) with repetition and silly, made-up words; and young school children will listen to favorite tales over and over again..... Personalized childrens books are educationally sound because the writers and publishers understand the stages of childhood. When reading a personalized book about a five-year-old boy, we see that he may be a little scared in an unfamiliar situation such as the three pigs moving to another house, but he finds that with his own friends and with the pigs’ support, being happy while going through a change can be fun. Personalization found in personalized music and books, also reinforces a positive self-image and helps to build self-esteem.

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Summertime..ahh. After a long winter, it's a great to finally be able take the kids and head out for a relaxing hot day at the beach, pool or a water park with big slides- the bigger the better!
While it may be tempting to just grab the kids, stuff bathing suits and towels and head off for a day full of aquatic fun, taking time to plan ahead can make the difference
between a happy, joyous and free or a horrible summer memory................

Summertime Splash


 

It was a beautiful spring morning last Tuesday. What started out as a routine walk to the park with my daughter turned out to be somewhat of a life altering experience, one that I won’t forget for a while.  As we approached the park, we saw two young children – a boy around 3 years old and a girl of about 2 – crossing the main road alone. They looked dazed and confused in their socks and pajamas, wandering about. Here’s the frightening part: there was no adult with them. In fact, there wasn’t a grown-up anywhere in sight......................

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