Come Read With Me

November 18th, 2007

Here is a continuation of  questions from page 39 that are intended to show and share how mental images (and there might be many) are crucial to building comprehension.

• Good for you! You’ve found a spot where you paid attention to the description of the scene in the story. Can you describe the image these words brought to mind? What did you learn today as a reader that will help you as a writer?
• How is this working for you? Turn your paper over and tell me what you remember about your reading today. What do you notice about how your sensory images help you remember what you read?
• What advice would you give someone about how paying attention to visual images helps you as a reader? How would you explain how to create and use sensory images? What do these images do for your reading?

Madame Rugg and I have developed a fun, interactive workshop for families. ‘Come Read With Me!’ is a fun way for you and your child to come together and bond with reading. This workshop elaborates on the reading strategies that are being taught at our school. Participants will learn how to nurture developing readers and will help ensure that reading is a life-long journey for our kids. This workshop has been developed from my readings of ‘7 Keys to Comprehension’ by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchings. It will be offered throughout the 2007 and 2008 school year.

The book does offer some practical tips that are targeted for a home reading setting. I will be posting some major ideas in this page once a week. I hope families from room 10 will have a chance to try them out and to offer me feeback from your experiences. These ideas are meant to be applied in an apprenticeship based learning environment.

Chapter 2: Motion Picture of the Mind

This chapter focuses on sensory images- what are they and what do they look like. This process may not be happening for your child so please spend time showing them your process to building mental images, what they look like, why they are important and how you did it. Ensure that your child has an opportunity to do this and to show you what their mental images are, what they look like and how they made them. Celebrate when your child ‘gets-it’!

Here are a few questions from page 39 that are intended to show and share how mental images (and there might be many) are crucial to building comprehension.

• What did you see when you read those words? Does having this picture in your mind make reading more fun? How?
• Where is that picture in your head coming from? What words in the text helped you make that picture? How did your background knowledge add to the details of this mental image?
• Have your sensory images changed as you read this story? What words added detail to your mind pictures? Yes, one image does lead to another. How do these sensory images help you understand what you read?

Updates for families |