Greene County Schools reading specialist Julie Neal provided the following brief narratives focusing on examples of activities students are involved in to grow their reading skills.
Free Books for Students: Before winter break, kindergarten through third grade students were provided the opportunity to pick out a book to take home at no cost to them. The funds to provide these books came from School In Need of Assistance (SINA) funds from the NCLB (No Child Left Behind) regulations for reading and math.
The students also have the opportunity to receive four more books through the RAM Reader program that is funded by organizations in the community. Michele Hardin volunteers her time to do this for the school. The school appreciates all she does for this program. She has book distribution times in the fall, one before winter break, winter, and then again in the spring.
Superpowers-Super Readers! Pictured is Mrs. Wilkening’s kindergarten class dressed in Superman capes, using their “superpowers” to help them soar in reading! Some of those superpowers are: pointer power (pointing to words as they read them), picture power (using the pictures to match the words) pattern power (where students recognize patterns in books to help them read), and sound power (saying the sounds in each word). As reflective and avid readers it’s important for students to know which of their “powers” are developed and strong and which “powers” need greater focus and development . Teachers help students master these skills by grouping students according to similar reading needs. A strong literacy program measures student skills, targets areas of need, and helps to set challenging but reasonable goals for improvement and mastery.
Jingle Read, 2016: Jingle Read took place on Dec. 22. This activity started four years ago based upon parent/community involvement and recommendations through SINA.
Greene County Elementary had more than 150 parents, grandparents, and other family members attend for over an hour during the late afternoon. The first activity the students did was sing two songs related to reading books. After the students sang, the teachers and Mr. Johnson performed the song Twelve Days of Reading Books. The faculty performance was entertaining and enjoyable for all in attendance.
After the singing, the students brought their reread boxes and free books they received that day to read to their families. A surprise visit from Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus provided candy canes for all as they returned to class. This last assembly before break brought some energy and enthusiasm to students and teachers centering on enjoyable reading.
Fourth graders read with kindergarteners: December’s reading field trip took the Greene County Intermediate fourth graders to Jefferson care centers and the Greene County Elementary to read with kindergarteners.
The fourth graders first read their books to the kindergarteners, and the kindergarteners then were able to read books to their 4th grade partner. Fourth grade students also helped pick out books for the kindergarten RAM Reader distribution. This multi-grade activity provided students with an opportunity to purposely practice good reading skills and to perform in front of an audience. It will be valuable to have the fourth graders at the elementary building next year to provide additional opportunities for purposeful reading with diverse audiences, according to Neal.
