Already Ready
Reading books aloud to young children is very important. Children should have books read to them several times a day. These experiences should be meaningful, and when they are they will act as an important literacy tool. It is important for teachers to not only read books but to create conversations from those books, talking about the cover, asking questions, and encouraging children to think. Children are learning from books and from their teacher during read alouds. Children are looking at important ideas such as, what books are. They are comparing print to the pictures, discovering different types of books, finding different meanings of books, and much more. It is important for teachers to discuss the idea that people make books. Teachers can talk about the different authors of their favorite books. They can also discuss the idea that people draw or take pictures for a book. Talking about illustrators can also inspire creative thinking from children.
The Castle In The Classroom
Children are exploring the different components of a story. Children see how stories are taking place somewhere and sometime. They are exploring the idea that stories have a setting. Teachers can do different activities and ask questions to promote further thought about this idea. Children also view different types of characters within books. Children are seeing how these characters are similar and different from each other. They may even make connections from one character in a story to a different character in a completely new story. Showing children that stories have problems in them allows children to think about ways these problems can be solved. Children can use their creativity when reading a book. Children can also use this creativity to make stories of their own, using ideas that they have learned about.
These two articles are so connected - both exploring the ways in which children make meaning out of stories and apply them to their own work. In the same way, children's reading and writing are very connected. As they read, they pick up on how authors write good books, and they use these ideas later in their own writing or storytelling.
ReplyDeleteGood post. It is easy for students to just write, but I feel it is important for them to know the concepts that go into it as well. It will help the children comprehend what they are doing and maybe produce material that their full potential can offer.
ReplyDeleteThe familiar reading process that you mentioned also inspires the children to think as a writer. An important point of Already Ready is that the children are already capable of transmitting thought into beautiful pieces of literature. Also, you mentioned that children can use the ideas they have learned about to practice their own creativity. I agree; it is important to open children up to the world of literature and literacy in order to inspire them to become authors themselves.
ReplyDeleteYes! Children should be read to many times a day, and during these readings, some of them should be rereadings of familiar or favorite texts. Rereading allows children the opportunity to notice new things in the book, and to begin to see the book as an equal, and not something they do not understand. Both of these thoughts in children can create confident writers.
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