Tag Archives: literacy

Phonics, Whole Language, and Teaching Literacy

Warning: if you’re looking for the definitive step by step instructions on how to teach a child to read, you won’t find it here. However, if you’re at the beginning of your schooling journey, and you’re at a loss as to what to teach for reading, this might be the place for you to start. Decades ago, phonics used to be all the rage. Phonics is the systematic instruction of the sounds of the alphabet. Kids who study phonics memorize blends and learn things like “Two vowels get together and they play a game, the first vowel speaks, it says … Continue reading →

Your Book Club Meeting

Yesterday, we talked a little bit about book clubs – why you may want to belong to one, how to start one if there isn’t one in your area. Today I’d like to talk about the actual book club meeting and what it ideally entails. You’ve chosen your date, time and place, hopefully ones that coincide with the schedules of the majority of the members of the club. Now what happens? It all depends on the type of club you’ve established. The first is the more traditional – the members have each read the book and come prepared to discuss … Continue reading →

Book Clubs

Book clubs have become “the thing” to do over the last few years, and I think they’re a great idea. Whether you meet together as neighbors, church members, or friends, you’ll find the experience to be rewarding. Education – as you read together in your group, you’ll be exposed to books you might not have thought to pick up on your own. You’ll learn things about other cultures, other religions, other styles of writing – you will find yourself more well-rounded. Enlightenment – when you discuss the books with the other people in the group, you will hear their thoughts … Continue reading →

Christmas Shopping: Give the Gift of Literacy!

Radio stations are already playing Christmas music and the stores are stocking the shelves with everything from ornaments to candy, cards to jewelry. Even though we haven’t made it to Thanksgiving yet, the yuletide season is upon us and many shoppers are working on their lists now, to avoid the rush later on. As you look over your gift-giving needs and contemplate what to give Aunt Gladys or little Johnny, may we here in Media Reviews suggest that you give books this year? The ability to read is one of our most choice blessings. Of all the skills we can … Continue reading →

The Anti-Review

I take my responsibility as a media reviewer very seriously. Keeping in mind the goal of this site, which is to strengthen families, I look for books that are uplifting and do not contain offensive material. Unfortunately, as I carry out this search, I run into a lot of books that, in my opinion, do not live up to the aims of the site and so I do not review them. I thought I would take a moment to mention some of the books that I’ve had to put down, in hopes that you can avoid running head-long into them … Continue reading →

Stella LouElla’s Runaway Book – Lisa Campbell Ernst

This book is slightly ironic to me – I have a children’s book on a claim return at the library right now. I know I returned it, but they haven’t found it yet. Amazing how those books just run away! In “Stella LouElla’s Runaway Book,” we read about her experiences with a frisky book. Just like magic, her book disappears, and it’s due by five o’clock. She races through the house, looking everywhere she can think. It’s not in the tub, or by the cereal boxes, or in her toy box. Her dad suggests that she look the last place … Continue reading →

Literacy Links

Who can argue that literacy is one of the greatest blessings we have, one of the most important skills we need to learn, a gift that we give ourselves and to our children, and that helping someone else learn to read one of the most satisfactory experiences we can ever have? The written word is an astonishing thing. You can become educated and entertained with a book, you can learn new skills, escape to another place, receive spiritual enlightenment, find friendship when you’re lonely — I can think of no other medium that can give us all these things. As … Continue reading →

Not All Fiction is Fluff!

It’s been a little while since I’ve gone off on an editorial-type rant, and after being good for so long, I’ve decided to break my silence in honor of Literacy Month. As a huge supporter of literacy, I talk to scores of people about the importance of being literate and how literacy can change lives. We all essentially agree that nonfiction is a valuable resource to help us to become educated, but there is a broad range of thought and feeling when it comes to fiction. For some, they’ll read anything voraciously and love every minute of it, others are … Continue reading →

Games for Reading – Peggy Kaye

September is National Literacy Month. In celebration of that, I thought I’d tell you about a great book for encouraging good read skills and for making reading fun and. The book is Games for Reading: Playful Ways to Help Your Child Read by Peggy Kaye. Games for Reading is divided into four parts that cover Games for Learning Words, Games for Learning Sounds, Games for Understanding, and Games for Reading Every Day. The reader will find all sorts of simple, homemade games that parents and teachers can make that will encourage the skills for successful reading. Most of the games … Continue reading →

Are You Participating in Read for the Record?

Here’s an interesting tidbit I ran across. On September 20, Jumpstart’s Read for the Record takes place. It’s billed as the largest shared reading experience. The national campaign encourages kids and adults to read the same book on the same day. This year participants are reading, The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. The campaign’s aim is to raise public awareness about the importance of early childhood education. By reading the official book, participants are showing their support for early education programs. Last year, 150,000 people participated during the inaugural campaign. The organizers are hoping to break last year’s record. … Continue reading →