Building Strong Readers
There are few times that are sweeter than feeling a soft, warm baby snuggled up against you. The close tenderness of those moments can stay with you for a lifetime.
A baby comes attached to a parent's hopes and dreams of what they wish that baby's life could be. Whether the parent thinks about it, or not, the success of most of those dreams hinges on whether that little baby grows up to be an effective reader. What makes a baby love reading?
One lesson a parent figures out is that children learn to love reading by being read to. You need to read to them at a young age. Babies love the closeness of being held and hearing their parents' voices.
Reading should be pleasurable for all of the participants. Relax. Breathe. Read. Choose something that you want to read that is appropriate for the baby's mood.
Hold the baby closely in a comfortable position. Read with expression. Read for as long as the child is enjoying the experience. When the baby gets restless, bring the reading to a sweet ending. That's the beginning of building a strong reader!
HELPING KIDS LOVE TO READ-A TRUE STORY
My husband and I always showed our kids that reading is fun. We had books everywhere in the house—like a mini library! From the day they were born, each kid had their own collection of books. They had hundreds of books on their shelves.
Because of that, they learned to read easily when they started school.
They knew how to read and liked books, but they didn’t want to read just for fun by themselves. Not even with money as a reward! They preferred watching TV or playing video games instead. Then, our elementary school started a program called "Cold Turkey" at the beginning of the school year. It was a big challenge! If our family promised to go a whole month without TV, video games, or computers, we could win a turkey for Thanksgiving. I was all in! Who wouldn’t want a free turkey?
We explained the rules gently to the kids. They didn’t believe us at first. Then they started to cry—really cry! They asked, "No cartoons?" "No Ninja Turtles or Power Rangers?" "Please, Mom," they begged. "No Mario Brothers or Duck Hunt? Are you joking?" The kids could still do all their favorite things—playing outside, riding bikes, street hockey, building with LEGOs, pretending with figures—but no electronics at all. This also meant we, the adults, couldn’t watch our favorite shows either. For about two weeks, the house was pretty sad because the TV went to stay in the basement. Slowly, something surprising happened. With no screens to entertain them, the kids started to explore their books. That year, our family was one of the few to finish the Cold Turkey challenge successfully. And yes, we got that tasty Thanksgiving turkey!
Winning that challenge made us feel great! Our boys kept reading, and so did my husband and i. Over the years, our kids read thousands of books. Being good readers made college much easier for them. Now, in their 30s, they’re still passionate about reading. I truly believe they wouldn’t have become such avid readers if we hadn’t turned off the screens and put the electronics away.
What are your favorite books to share with children? Tell us about them on the CONTACT page. Who knows? Your book information could be published on our website!
Here are a few of my favorites!
*Aubri's Story: Rising Above Bullying by Crystal Ellison
*Ella Autie by Catlaina Vrana
*Harry the Happy Mouse by NGK, illustrated by Janelle Dimmett
*The Great Gilly Hopkins and *Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
*Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
*Pass It On: African-American Poetry for Children
POEM BY MAISIE
ESSAY BY CECE CHICA
Our Readers Write!
BUILT BY SCARS
They called me
unlucky.
I called it training.
While others inherited
a staircase,
I gathered broken
stones
and built my own.
Success is not the
crown on my head
It is every scar
that refused
to become my excuse.
Maisie is a young digital creator from the Philippines. She reflects on the world around her as she writes nuanced and sensitive poems about the human condition.
LIVING MY MOST INDEPENDENT LIFE
When I graduate from CONNECT, I want to continue building my best life. My goal is to be as independent as possible, even though I will more than likely always live with someone. A major area of my independence is being able to financially support myself; therefore, I will need a stable job. Socially, I need to work on hanging out more regularly with friends and family.
Even though I may live with someone, that does not mean I will be dependent on them for things I can do myself. I see my living situation as living with someone always. Financially, it’s nice to share living expenses. Besides financial help, I enjoy the company of having someone at home. Living with someone has its challenges, but overall, more benefits. We can do things and share chores to maintain our home in order.
To be independent, I will need to establish some structure, a schedule, and a list of do’s and don’ts for myself. For instance, not going to bed until the kitchen is clean, picking one or two days to do laundry so it doesn’t pile up, having a scheduled bedtime, especially on work nights, and making sure I have a healthy diet by reading the ingredients on food labels. Being independent means learning how to cook for myself. Cooking at home should be healthier, cheaper, and cleaner than going out too often.
It will be important for me to have job security. One way I can accomplish that is by being a dependable employee. I will make sure that I am always on time, always do a good job, be honest, and help my co-workers when needed. I will need to create a budget so I don’t overspend. I hope to be able to save a little bit of money each month.
Socially, I will probably need to schedule outings with my friends and put it on the calendar; otherwise, I may not schedule anything. Sometimes, hanging out with people can be easy for me, but there will be times when I am at my limit, so when I get home, I like to be alone in my room. My family will be important because I will want them to support my independence and help me find resources as needed. My family can help me problem-solve situations and decide what to do.
Being independent requires planning, working toward my goals, asking for help to reach my goals, and having a safe person to go to when I don’t know what to do. I am grateful to be in the CONNECT program because it’s helping me gain independence in all areas of life. These include my best life experiences, how to handle my living situation, and how to balance work with my social and family life.
CeCe Chica is a young neurodivergent woman learning to live her best life. She does crafts, spends time with her family, and does meaningful volunteer work for several agencies. She loves dogs, sushi, and gardening. She is a fidget toy expert!
Readers' Corner - exploring reading for pleasure.
Reading for Pleasure - a reading strategy that changes lives
When I was in my grad school program, I learned a reading strategy called "Reading for Pleasure." It is an amazing program that can improve the lives of struggling readers. It's easy! Have the reader select a book of their choice at their reading level. How can you tell if the book is appropriate? You don't need to be a reading teacher. If they can easily read a random passage of about 100 words from the book, it's a good choice for them. If they stumble over words and hesitate while reading, then it is too hard. They need to find another book.
Reading for Pleasure is done daily, at least five days per week. Once the reader has their book, they need to read it for at least 20 minutes per day. After the 20 minutes of reading, the reader writes in her journal. The journal can be a notebook or she can use a computer. She puts the name of the book (the first time she writes about the book), the date, and which pages were read. Then, the student paraphrases what they have read. They tell about the story in their own words. They do not copy any sentences from the book. In fact, it helps them learn to retain information when they seldom look at the book after they finish reading. I discourage, but do not forbid, looking back in the book. One thing that helps is if they can discuss what they read with somebody else. That helps them get their thoughts in order. Then, they write in the journal. Have the reader share with another person what they wrote in their reading journal . That's it!
I have known middle and high school students to increase their reading scores 2-3 grade levels in one semester, when they are doing this program daily. Their academic lives improved greatly!
Words Bring Wisdom!
"It does not matter how slowly you go, as long as you do not stop."~Confucius
"I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying."~Michael Jordan
"Believe that you can and you're halfway there."~Theodore Roosevelt