As talked about on November 30th posting (refer back for complete discussion on how to fomat, purpose and scope of CADERS), here's another posting. This one, too, is meant for the earliest of readers:
So Big
Dad is so big.
Mom is so big.
Sis is so big.
Ted is so big.
My cat is so big.
My dog is so big.
I am so big!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
CADERS (Early Readers): Posting #1
For a couple of years, I've been writing playful, simple books for my students who are just learning to read. These are very basic books -- booklets, actually -- all of eight pages, most with only a few words on each. This is what early readers need. Each booklet focuses on one or two phonics (sound) skills.
They are also child-centered, or so I hope. These books complemented a testing program I developed I call CADERS (Computerized-Assisted Diagnosis of Essential Reading Skills). They were first dubbed "Berenson Books."
Now I don't claim to be any type of illustrator, but it occurred to me that the children are, by far, excellent illustrators, so when I presented these stories to my students sans any illustrations, they were delighted. They read, they illustrate -- and if I write the book correctly -- they laugh.
I will start posting some of my early readers here. On my own computer I have them formatted into 8-page booklets with the 8 1/2 x 11 paper in landscape format so that one face of the paper holds two pages. Two sheets of paper, printed back and front, turn into the eight pages.
Unfortunately, though, I cannot yet figure out how to upload that format onto my blog. So for now, I'll simple give you the story (as basic as they are), and you'll need to either write or type them for your child. If your child attends my reading classes, don't worry about having them read these books before or after we do in class -- children thrill simply with the ability to read.
And remember, these are for beginning readers. Even Dr. Suess's books (Ach, I should even use his name in the same line as mine!) are for more "advanced" beginning readers.
Don't forget -- part of the joy is the illustrating. To our kids, illustrating is a type of play. And always, always, we want to make reading "play."
And now for one of the simplest ones: Dog Dog.
Do note: These books are only meant for your use with your child or students in the classroom. Any other use of these must first be approved by me.
Booklet (meant for readers who are mastering the simplest of words, CVC, or consonant-vowel-consonant):
Dog Dog
Dog dog
Cat cat
Pig pig
Bug bug
Rat rat
Hen hen
Me me!
They are also child-centered, or so I hope. These books complemented a testing program I developed I call CADERS (Computerized-Assisted Diagnosis of Essential Reading Skills). They were first dubbed "Berenson Books."
Now I don't claim to be any type of illustrator, but it occurred to me that the children are, by far, excellent illustrators, so when I presented these stories to my students sans any illustrations, they were delighted. They read, they illustrate -- and if I write the book correctly -- they laugh.
I will start posting some of my early readers here. On my own computer I have them formatted into 8-page booklets with the 8 1/2 x 11 paper in landscape format so that one face of the paper holds two pages. Two sheets of paper, printed back and front, turn into the eight pages.
Unfortunately, though, I cannot yet figure out how to upload that format onto my blog. So for now, I'll simple give you the story (as basic as they are), and you'll need to either write or type them for your child. If your child attends my reading classes, don't worry about having them read these books before or after we do in class -- children thrill simply with the ability to read.
And remember, these are for beginning readers. Even Dr. Suess's books (Ach, I should even use his name in the same line as mine!) are for more "advanced" beginning readers.
Don't forget -- part of the joy is the illustrating. To our kids, illustrating is a type of play. And always, always, we want to make reading "play."
And now for one of the simplest ones: Dog Dog.
Do note: These books are only meant for your use with your child or students in the classroom. Any other use of these must first be approved by me.
Booklet (meant for readers who are mastering the simplest of words, CVC, or consonant-vowel-consonant):
Dog Dog
Dog dog
Cat cat
Pig pig
Bug bug
Rat rat
Hen hen
Me me!
Sunday, October 10, 2010
RELUCTANT READER? PERCY JACKSON, YES, BUT FOR RIGHT NOW...
Okay, I know the major boy series out there right now is Percy Jackson and the Olympians, but I haven't read those yet. My next review will be on at least one of those, I promise. But I did just finish the first three of Anthony Horowitz's eight Alex Rider books. (Okay, so I'm a bit late with discovering these. Am I the only one?)
And what a ride these books are. A fourteen-year old British schoolboy turns into a reluctant-yet-highly skilled government spy after the mysterious death of his uncle. Unlike Bond, Alex does not want this life, but M16 threatens and bullies him enough to get Alex on these missions. Alex breaks away from his school routine just long enough to stop deadly computers from killing all the country's school children, to destroy Project Gemini and its goal to develop a racist world, and to save Russia from a nuclear attack. Along the way Alex must outrace crazed brutes, fly down mountainsides, step behind a crane's controls to outmaneuver others, escape a shark, live through the Cribber -- and, of course, much more. And as with Bond, Alex is supplied with tech master gadgets for his espionage, though his gadgets are zit cream, yoyo, Game Boy, CD, book, others.
I raced through the three books, and I am not driven by action-based books. I found the boys in my classes, too, couldn't get enough of the books -- that is, if their reading ability was strong enough (about a fifth grade level).
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
MOTIVATION WEDNESDAY: CAN WE INSPIRE OURSELVES TO CHANGE?
I've followed a fascinating blog, synthesis, by Shafeen Charania, a Microsoft engineer-turned-advocate-for-educational-change. (Okay, he has some other interests, too.) Other education blogs -- including my own -- should be so insightful.
Some of you who are reading this blog do not know of a former time when it was believed we could make huge changes in schools. I was an undergrad at the University of Wisconsin, and I learned of Kozol. Kohl. Holt. Herndon. Perhaps it is that I am in the Midwest, but what I've basically seen since then -- definitely in the elementary classroom -- is what we've had for so long. Basals (or whatever their name of the day is -- anthologies? They are still basals). Worksheets. Some excellent novels and poems. Other excellent projects. But our basals still structure and rule the day.
And the NCLB testing looms over us most of the year.
Charania writes in his February 21 post of an education system that actually serves the public, not just offers shallow promises, a place where children from all levels educate together. He refers to the founder of a unique educational setting in California, a school that teaches by doing, by experiencing, by "becoming." This is no new theory -- I heard of it when I studied at the University of Wisconsin -- but then it was just talk and promises. In most places, it still is. Except at this High Tech High band of schools, from what Charania says, and a few other places.
"We've made education complex -- it isn't," says Charania. I wanted to shout in agreement. "We've created a system whose rules require a book that's several inches thick...[Here he speaks of how school staff only cares about passing No Child Left Behind testing, and boy, is he wrong, but I doubt he has a clue as to what NCLB demands really are, so I'll forgive him.] We've forgotten that it is about graduating children whose future is profoundly more brilliant than anything we might conceive." Who could say it better?
I call this post "Motivation Wednesday." I think I just motivated myself to change my reading classroom, to try to recapture why I came into education in the first place.
I'll start right after we finish -- and pass -- NCLB testing.
Some of you who are reading this blog do not know of a former time when it was believed we could make huge changes in schools. I was an undergrad at the University of Wisconsin, and I learned of Kozol. Kohl. Holt. Herndon. Perhaps it is that I am in the Midwest, but what I've basically seen since then -- definitely in the elementary classroom -- is what we've had for so long. Basals (or whatever their name of the day is -- anthologies? They are still basals). Worksheets. Some excellent novels and poems. Other excellent projects. But our basals still structure and rule the day.
And the NCLB testing looms over us most of the year.
Charania writes in his February 21 post of an education system that actually serves the public, not just offers shallow promises, a place where children from all levels educate together. He refers to the founder of a unique educational setting in California, a school that teaches by doing, by experiencing, by "becoming." This is no new theory -- I heard of it when I studied at the University of Wisconsin -- but then it was just talk and promises. In most places, it still is. Except at this High Tech High band of schools, from what Charania says, and a few other places.
"We've made education complex -- it isn't," says Charania. I wanted to shout in agreement. "We've created a system whose rules require a book that's several inches thick...[Here he speaks of how school staff only cares about passing No Child Left Behind testing, and boy, is he wrong, but I doubt he has a clue as to what NCLB demands really are, so I'll forgive him.] We've forgotten that it is about graduating children whose future is profoundly more brilliant than anything we might conceive." Who could say it better?
I call this post "Motivation Wednesday." I think I just motivated myself to change my reading classroom, to try to recapture why I came into education in the first place.
I'll start right after we finish -- and pass -- NCLB testing.
Monday, June 21, 2010
GREAT NEW YA READS (AND ONE DISAPPOINTMENT)
I just finished three middle grade/YA books. Two I'd highly recommend; one Iw suggest you ignore:
Collins's The Hunger Games is about a futuristic America -- not exactly doomsday, but might as well be. Excellent, clever, creative -- good development of character, excellent sense of setting and intrigue -- each time I thought I knew what would happen next, up to the very end -- well, I didn't.
Brown's Hate List, the story of a school shooting, kept me riveted; I read until my eyes wouldn't focus, but I continued on until I finished the book. Characters very realistic and full of unique voices. I was also impressed that Brown didn't focus on the violence or (any) sex but rather the emotional turmoil and events both before and after the shooting.
Now Grisham's Theodore Boone, Kid Lawyer was a major disappointment. As tightly woven as many of Grisham's novels are, I was unhappy -- and concerned -- about his first venture into kids' books. He apparently underestimates the intellect of young readers; he brought in characters/events/ideas, then dropped them with little or no development. If I could get my money back from Barnes and Noble, I would.
Collins's The Hunger Games is about a futuristic America -- not exactly doomsday, but might as well be. Excellent, clever, creative -- good development of character, excellent sense of setting and intrigue -- each time I thought I knew what would happen next, up to the very end -- well, I didn't.
Brown's Hate List, the story of a school shooting, kept me riveted; I read until my eyes wouldn't focus, but I continued on until I finished the book. Characters very realistic and full of unique voices. I was also impressed that Brown didn't focus on the violence or (any) sex but rather the emotional turmoil and events both before and after the shooting.
Now Grisham's Theodore Boone, Kid Lawyer was a major disappointment. As tightly woven as many of Grisham's novels are, I was unhappy -- and concerned -- about his first venture into kids' books. He apparently underestimates the intellect of young readers; he brought in characters/events/ideas, then dropped them with little or no development. If I could get my money back from Barnes and Noble, I would.
Monday, March 8, 2010
RAINING FISH IN AUSTRALIA
Now if anything will encourage creative writing and discussion, credible tales of fish raining down on Australia last month ought to do it.
The fish were alive.
Objects crashing down from the heavens apparently has its place in history. Spiders, hard boiled eggs, mice, frogs, crosses, blood, and more have been reported by reliable sources. Villagers in one town in Honduras take out pails each year to collect the fish that fall during the rainy season. Scientists guess why this occurs, but every answer has problems.
It's a fascinating read for your students and children. Even more fascinating might be the stories they create to explain this phenomenon.
The fish were alive.
Objects crashing down from the heavens apparently has its place in history. Spiders, hard boiled eggs, mice, frogs, crosses, blood, and more have been reported by reliable sources. Villagers in one town in Honduras take out pails each year to collect the fish that fall during the rainy season. Scientists guess why this occurs, but every answer has problems.
It's a fascinating read for your students and children. Even more fascinating might be the stories they create to explain this phenomenon.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
KIM: FOCUSING HER PARENTS, TOO?
https://www.google.com/reader/view/?tab=my#stream/feed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fzenhabits.net%2Ffeed%2F
Kim*, one of my younger students, lights up whenever she sees me.
Okay, it doesn't take much to get most little ones to like you. Smile a lot. Tell a few jokes. (They don't even have to be funny.) Hold their hand -- if they want to -- as you walk down the hall. Show them you care. (How could you not?)
No wonder people like to work with the primary grades. Such unconditional love.
Kim, however, misplaces her assignments, her classroom teacher tells me. She loses books. And her reading lags far behind that of the other children.
I listen to Kim as she reads. She skips words, misses others I just gave her, reverses the letters of "slap." Sight words she should know she doesn't.
As soon as Kim joins my class, I see what the teacher has reported. Kim checks out a book from me but has excuse after excuse why she doesn't bring it back. "It's on my table," she says, or it's on her bed, or it's in the car. When she does finally return it after three weeks and checks out a new one, that, too, takes over a week to return. Meanwhile, the students talk in class, and I hear Kim is in dance class and something else, either Scouts or baseball.
I try to set up a time to meet with her parents. One meeting is missed. A second one never quite materializes. Phone calls are exchanged, but her mom can talk but a moment. I run into her in the hallway, and I can tell she is frazzled. "I'll call you," she says, stretching her fingers into that unmistakable handset shape. Of course I don't get the call.
Everyone today, it seems, is overloaded. This certainly seems to be Kim's family. But I'm afraid that by trying to do more for their daughter, her folks may actually be doing less. What Kim needs now is structure. A bit of playtime when she gets home. Chores. Homework. Reading. Dinner and family time. Packing her book bag for the next day. Bath. Storytime. Bed. Other activities saved for the weekend.
And filling up with stories. Learning to read well.
This prescription isn't for everyone. But for Kim, yes, Kim needs this. Her other things will wait while she catches up on her reading, while her life organizes a bit saner.
Then it will be time for her to go out and conquer the world.
*Name changed
PHOTO CREDIT:
Kim*, one of my younger students, lights up whenever she sees me.
Okay, it doesn't take much to get most little ones to like you. Smile a lot. Tell a few jokes. (They don't even have to be funny.) Hold their hand -- if they want to -- as you walk down the hall. Show them you care. (How could you not?)
No wonder people like to work with the primary grades. Such unconditional love.
Kim, however, misplaces her assignments, her classroom teacher tells me. She loses books. And her reading lags far behind that of the other children.
I listen to Kim as she reads. She skips words, misses others I just gave her, reverses the letters of "slap." Sight words she should know she doesn't.
As soon as Kim joins my class, I see what the teacher has reported. Kim checks out a book from me but has excuse after excuse why she doesn't bring it back. "It's on my table," she says, or it's on her bed, or it's in the car. When she does finally return it after three weeks and checks out a new one, that, too, takes over a week to return. Meanwhile, the students talk in class, and I hear Kim is in dance class and something else, either Scouts or baseball.
I try to set up a time to meet with her parents. One meeting is missed. A second one never quite materializes. Phone calls are exchanged, but her mom can talk but a moment. I run into her in the hallway, and I can tell she is frazzled. "I'll call you," she says, stretching her fingers into that unmistakable handset shape. Of course I don't get the call.
Everyone today, it seems, is overloaded. This certainly seems to be Kim's family. But I'm afraid that by trying to do more for their daughter, her folks may actually be doing less. What Kim needs now is structure. A bit of playtime when she gets home. Chores. Homework. Reading. Dinner and family time. Packing her book bag for the next day. Bath. Storytime. Bed. Other activities saved for the weekend.
And filling up with stories. Learning to read well.
This prescription isn't for everyone. But for Kim, yes, Kim needs this. Her other things will wait while she catches up on her reading, while her life organizes a bit saner.
Then it will be time for her to go out and conquer the world.
*Name changed
PHOTO CREDIT:
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