Category: Reading

World Cup - Wonderful? Or waste of time?

16/6/2014

Well, the football World Cup has started and England have played their first match. It seems the majority of people are split in to two groups. Those who couldn't care less and can't wait for all the fuss to be over, and those that have already rearranged their schedule so that they can watch every match without interruptions.

So how are we coping here at Daisy Education HQ? Well, I kind of fall in the middle. Personally I don't follow football, but we have students who do, so why not utilise that interest? It would be a wasted learning opportunity not to! Here are some ideas to get you started if you have a child who's football mad and want to exploit that too...

Children who are interested will happily read articles on the World Cup. Get them to read and explain them to you, which will help their comprehension. Ask them to explain football terms to you. Ask for their predictions and get them to explain why they think that.

If you have an older child you can start looking at probability. All betting works on probability. Or, if you don't want to introduce the idea of betting to your children, simply look at fantasy football leagues. For younger children, look up the scoring system and see if you can work out who is going to win each group. After a few matches it can often be quite obvious if a team is going to win or will find it impossible.

Why not read some football related stories? I love Wonder Goal! by Michael Foreman, which is a beautiful story, and Cinderboy by Laurence Anholt and Arthur Robins, which is both funny and cleverly written. You could write a football poem or create your own football terrace chant. You can also join in with us on Twitter and Facebook as our Weekly Wonder this week is football related!

That's just a few ideas, but as I always tell parents, follow the children's interests. If they love it, adapt the work to fit. You and they will achieve more.

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Easter Break

15/4/2014

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It's finally here! The Easter holidays are upon us. All the schools have now broken up and the weather has co-operated by being wonderfully sunny. Holidays are a busy time for us here, as we get some children who can only make it then and others who have extra lessons now that they can fit them in.

The majority of our pupils also move their lessons to earlier in the day, seeing as they don't have school. It means that on some days, like today, I have an afternoon free to do some spring cleaning. Today's task was the art cupboard. Cue very large box of mixed paper stars and sequins that opened up and went everywhere! Myself and the classroom are now covered in a fine layer of glitter and the odd sequin I missed. Oh dear.

The second part of my reading blog on Kidz First Childcare is up, with a focus on comprehension. Look out for something different next month.
You can find the blog on www.kidzfirstchildcare.co.uk/community/the-blog

I often get asked by parents how to keep their children learning during the holidays. There are many ways, but the key is to make it fun. If the child doesn't enjoy it, they're not going to be encouraged to continue. Why not try a holiday diary? Make sure to include lots of pictures, both drawn and photographs. Get the children to take them. You can also discuss layout and presentation at the same time. Keep souvenirs such as postcards and entrance tickets to make your diary more interesting. You, as the adult, could write alongside your child so that it becomes a collaborative effort.

If you're taking part in an Easter egg hunt, it's a great opportunity to include some Maths. Count the eggs and ask questions like "How many more did you get than Holly? How many more would you need to make ten? If you eat two, how many will you have left?" Ask them to describe the eggs they found. Boil up some eggs and then decorate them. Ask them to describe the patterns they have made. Can they design an egg using only stripes? Or spots?

Children love to make things. Can they design a box to keep their egg safe? They're only allowed two sheets of A4 paper and 30cm of sellotape. Why not test it? Use some hard boiled eggs (not their decorated ones) and put them in the box. Drop them from a height of 10cm. Were they kept safe? Now drop them from 20cm. Keep going.

Let me know how you get on. You can send photos of your decorated eggs or boxes to @DaisyEducation on Twitter or post a picture to our Facebook page www.facebook.com/pages/Daisy-Education/1450738115147023 or leave a comment below. Have fun!

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World Book Day

6/3/2014

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It's World Book Day today! Hurrah! As an avid reader I love today. All over the country schools are getting involved and children are dressing up as their favourite book characters. I'm often asked what my favourite book is. I find it an almost impossible question to answer. It's like asking a teacher who their favourite child is! Or a parent the same question. I just love books!

However, I have developed a response over the years. When I was tiny I adored The Enchanted Wood and over the years I've read it to every single class I've ever taught. Children of all ages engage and enjoy it, especially boys. It's also from this book that I choose my character to dress up as. Everyone I've ever taught can tell you who my favourite character from the book is...The old Saucepan Man.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the book (go and read it!) The Saucepan Man is introduced part way through. He is covered in saucepans and they make quite a lot of noise, so he gets a bit deaf and mishears things - usually for rhymes. For example when he's asked if he'd like to go to tea he mishears it for sea and bee. He's hilarious and I get to spend the whole day 'mishearing' the children and hearing rhyming words instead. You certainly have to think quickly to come up with the rhymes and the children will often do the same. I love their enthusiasm and the fact that they're practising rhymes without even knowing it.

Another thing I'm often asked is when children should start reading. The answer is, it's never too early to start reading. Obviously I'm not expecting newborns to read, but that doesn't mean that they can't enjoy books. I know of several people who have introduced books to their babies from a couple of weeks old, usually integrating it in to their bedtime routine. These children will always pick out books as one of their favourite toys and have gone on to be avid readers themselves. Besides, snuggling up with a book is a brilliant way to spend time together.

From a child's point of view, some children will start to read at three, others not until they're seven. All children are different. Most children however, will start to learn some sight words and be able to sound out simple words from Reception. As they progress through Infants they build on their knowledge and the aim is for children to be reasonably fluent readers by the time they leave Year 2.

If you want an idea of what level they should be by the end of Year 2, pick up a standard picture book. They should be able to read it with 90% accuracy and answer questions about the text. I'll be going over this in more detail next month, so check back if you'd like to know more.

Until then, grab a book and get reading!

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Half Term

21/2/2014

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Well, half term is coming to a close. Children up and down the country have hopefully had an enjoyable week of activities. We've been very busy here, as we continue to teach throughout the holidays. No school means the majority of the children come during the day but I have said goodbye to the last class of the week. Only an afternoon meeting to go and then I get to enjoy my weekend. I'm looking forward to watching our Men's Curling team take on the Canadians in the Olympic final! Good luck Team GB.

We have had a wonderful sock monkey mascot made for us by the lovely Emma. A photo of him reading a book in our book corner is above. We've been trying to come up with a name for him. Any suggestions?

Reading to a sibling or a teddy bear (or other soft toy) is a great way to get children reading more. The toy option works particularly well if a child is concerned about making a mistake, as our cuddly friends are very forgiving. Even as children get older they still benefit from being read to, so as half term is ending take the time to snuggle up together with a book. Happy reading!

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World Cup - Wonderful? Or waste of time?

Easter Break

World Book Day

Half Term

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