Read-Aloud every day to get children excited about reading!
When you read-aloud, you demonstrate pitch, tone, expression, pace, volume, fluency, and how to properly use language. 'Read-alouds' help children increase and develop vocabulary, reading comprehension, speaking skills, and background knowledge, such as information about the world around them. The read-aloud process allows for interactive discussions, including critical thinking Q&As, wherein A LOT of learning takes place. It may just be the most important part of your teaching day, so read-loud as often as you can - several times a day.
Since 'read-alouds' are so important, it is a sound idea to plan ahead thoughtfully about the books you will read. There is certainly nothing wrong with pulling a book from the shelf and reading it, but being intentional with the read-aloud process is highly valuable. There are myriad ways to extend a simple 'read-aloud' to make it more purposeful, including: vocabulary, phonemic awareness & phonics, and reading comprehension activities.
Vocabulary Activities:
Use specific thematic/weekly vocabulary alongside books, as well as, High Frequency Words (HFW).
Keep (large-sized) books on a reading stand so children have better visual access.
Find, highlight, & research words. *Use highlight tape for non-digital books!
Discuss, explain, and reuse words, such as: "Give me a new sentence for the word _____."
Match/sort words to pictures alongside a pocket chart or Promethean board, etc.
Incorporate movement exercises, such as: "Wave your hands in the air every time you hear the word _____."
Demonstrate vocabulary alongside other circle-time interactive activities.
Phonemic Awareness & Phonics Activities:
Use specific books alongside specific (weekly) phonemic awareness/phonics lessons (i.e. books about balloons, bats, & bears when learning the letter Bb).
Keep (large-sized) books on a reading stand so children have better visual access.
Find, highlight, & research letters, sounds, & phoneme patterns. *Use highlight tape for non-digital books!
Identify and discriminate letters, sounds, & phoneme patterns, such as: "What word rhymes with _____?"
Match/sort letters, sounds, and phoneme patterns to pictures alongside a pocket chart or Promethean board, etc.
Incorporate movement exercises, such as: "Stomp your feet every time you hear the sound _____."
Demonstrate phonemic awareness & phonics alongside other circle-time interactive activities.
Reading Comprehension Activities:
Use specific books in order for children to practice different reading comprehension strategies, such as: story elements, compare & contrast, classification, visualization, making predictions, brainstorming, etc. *Introduce the specific reading comprehension strategy before beginning the read-aloud.
Keep (large-sized) books on a reading stand so children have better visual access.
Find & highlight words or phrases that denote specific details, evidence or information. *Use highlight tape for non-digital books.
Incorporate "retelling" cards/pictures alongside a pocket chart or Promethean board for better understanding of the story. *You can even make a permanent "retelling" activity for your literacy center! (Note: I will be adding retelling activities to my store soon. For example, I will have Goldilocks and The Three Bears retelling cards.)
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