Hello Book Bums families!
This week in the newsletter Dr. Christy talks about No Guess Zones. We also share a February craft, a winter word, some American history, and some comic relief about the English language.
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Word of the Week
apricity (uh-priss-ih-tee) noun/person, place, or thing - the warmth of the sun in winter
Cats and dogs, and sometimes people too, choose a sunny spot in their house to soak up apricity on a cold day.
*Apricity does not appear in modern dictionaries. Read what Merriam-Webster has to say about how it came to be a word in this short article.
Literary Calendar
February 1 is the birthday of writer and activist Langston Hughes.
Born in Joplin, Missouri; Hughes is famous for his part in the Harlem Renaissance movement in American literature.
His poetry often reflected the structure of the jazz music thriving around him.
Pause for Poetry
Freedom
by Langston Hughes
Freedom will not come
Today, this year
Nor ever
Through compromise and fear.
I have as much right
As the other fellow has
To stand
On my two feet
And own the land.
I tire so of hearing people say,
Let things take their course.
Tomorrow is another day.
I do not need my freedom when I’m dead.
I cannot live on tomorrow’s bread.
Freedom
Is a strong seed
Planted
In a great need.
I live here, too.
I want my freedom
Just as you.
From our Bookshelves
The Small and the Mighty, by Sharon McMahon was SUCH a great book! I learned about it through a podcast my husband shared with me, and I devoured every page.
Sharon McMahon (pronounced /McMann/) is evidently known as “America’s Government Teacher” because she makes history engaging and enjoyable. In The Small and Mighty, McMahon shares twelve of America’s unsung heroes who’ve made significant contributions to our nation. My favorite was probably the story of Gouverneur Morris. Ever heard of him? Me neither.
Morris, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, was the one who penned the famous phrase, "We the people of the United States." I was truly captivated as I learned about this. If you did a Google search about Morris I bet that you’d be unimpressed, but when you hear McMahon tell his story, you’ll be absolutely inspired! And after that, you’ll want to keep on reading to be inspired by the other eleven Americans you never knew you wanted to learn about.
Seriously. So good.
Tips for Families
If you have some old, damaged books around, invite your kids to help add some heart-y holiday cheer to your home using book pages, scissors, and glue. This image is from Book Bums several Valentine’s Days ago. You can see that we cut out hearts to make one part of the décor and then used those cutout pages to add a bit more charm.
To make these heart-y decorations, you’ll fold a book page in half, so the top of the page is at the top and the bottom flips under and to the back. You may crease this fold. Next, gently fold that page vertically (so it’s now in fourths) with the writing right-side up. Teach your kids to cut a half heart shape along the uncreased, gently folded edge in the lower half of the page.
Unfold the page to reveal the two cut-out hearts, one on each side of the paper. Add a thin line of glue to the top of one side, and carefully fold it under so it flips down and adheres to the top of the back page. This will create the heart-shaped tube. Add a bit of string in the center, before securing the glue, if you’d like to hang your hearts from the ceiling.
The heart cutouts may also be hung. To make 3-D hearts, simply cut the two hearts halfway, one from top to bottom and the other from the bottom to the top, and then slide the hearts together to make one four-sided heart.
Begin gathering the supplies now, and plan to do this sweet project before February 14th!
Tips for Raising Readers and Writers
At Book Bums, we say again and again that we don’t guess what words say. We may have to guess what words mean, but we decode words to figure out what they say.
We acknowledge that we must be flexible with our decoding (in the literature this is called “set for variability”), but we lean upon the code to learn what most every word says. It’s a No Guess Zone.
To promote accurate reading, please be sure your kids are really looking at the words and that they’re not looking to you for cues or clues. A tip that can be really helpful is that you keep your eyes on the words when they’re reading too. Don’t look up, or nod your head, or offer a big smile to encourage them along. Don’t give clues like, “This is your birthday month.” Try your best to keep quiet and to do nothing that would encourage your reader to take his or her eyes off the page.
We ask our students to set up for good reading by using a holding hand to hold the paper or page in place as their pointer finger slides under every word as they make the sounds they see. If your child gets stuck, keep looking at the word. Point to the letters, with your finger above the word. Ask, “What sound do you make for this letter . . .”, and make your way across the word until the child decodes it accurately. If it’s a word you’re not sure they can decode, simply provide the word and say, “You’ll learn to decode this word soon!”
Tips for Teachers
One of my heroes who has taught me much about how best to teach kids to read is Dr. Timothy Shanahan. He hosts a blog that I recommend for all teachers of reading called Shanahan on Literacy.
A few weeks back, Dr. Shanahan spoke of the great state of Ohio and how our politicians may have gone a bit overboard when they banned the Three Cueing System. He stated that, “…when we decode words, we need to monitor our success and we do that by evaluating our pronunciations against ‘meaning, structure and syntax (the three cueing system).”
Shanahan stated that Ohio has mandated that teachers can no longer teach kids to use context clues to determine, for example, if b-o-w says bow (rhymes with cow) or bow (rhymes with glow).
Well, I think Shanahan’s gone a bit too far. The Ohio ban of the Three Cueing System was put into effect to make clear the expectation that kids must be taught to read words using explicit, systematic phonics. No more word guessing.
Ohio never stated that kids should never use meaning, structure, and syntax to determine word meanings.
Perhaps if Shanahan had seen the mess we were in, he’d take it a bit easier on Ohio’s ban.
I’m just so grateful that Ohio is (finally!) doing what it takes to equip more kids to read and spell well.
Practical Grammar
Based off vs based on
If you’ve ever talked about a movie that was based on a book or based on a true story, you might have grappled with this one.
You should know that it is never correct to say, “It was based off . . .” or “It was based off of . . .”
The only correct way to convey this sentiment is to say, “It was based on . . .”
News from Book Bums
Great news! Book Bums will be providing summer school for Lakota’s third graders who are struggling to pass the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. We’re honored to be invited to offer this service for our local school district!
Additionally, we’re kindly asking for at least a 24-hour notice for cancellations. We understand that life gets crazy, but so many parents are cancelling at the last minute that we simply must make a change. Effective immediately, families will be charged for a half session when cancelling 24 hours before tutoring session. When cancelling within 12 hours of the scheduled tutoring session, families will be charged for a full session. We hope you understand. Our business simply cannot continue with the desired quality and outcomes you’ve come to expect without these changes.
Just for Fun
If you haven’t seen this comedian share his thoughts about having a Silent Letter Day, you’ve just got to watch this! Find the video here:
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