Literacy is delicious

Introducing...MULTI-GRAIN ALPHABET PRETZLES!!!

If you haven't seen these delightful snacks yet, you must go to your local President's Choice (PC) grocier and pick up a bag. I was introduced to these at a staff retreat on Friday and have been raving about them since then. I am impressed with PC for comming out with such a fun and healthy snack (they are blue menu - low fat)!

These pretzles offer a great jumping off point for talking about letters and the sounds they make. Also, can you think of a better way to work on name recognition???


What do you think?

Preschool Printables

Preschool Printables is a great website where you can find teaching resources. Since I think parents are a child's first and most important teacher, this website is for you, too, if you're a parent reading.

Check out the felt board stories on Preschool Printables. Print some off in black and white or in colour and tell one with your child today. Oral language is the foundation of literacy. The more practice your child gets talking, the better they will get with their reading.

Happy International Literacy Day!!!

September 8th is International Literacy Day. Its aim is to highlight the importance of literacy to individuals, communities and societies. Here are some statistics that suggest just how important literacy is.

- 42% of Canadians, age 16-65, do not have the minimum literacy skills for coping with everyday life and work. Adult Literacy and Life Skills survey (Statistics Canada and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2005).

Justice
- Offenders experience literacy problems at a rate 3 times that of the general population. Select Committee of Experts on Education in Prison (Council of Europe, 1989)

- The average education level of newly admitted offenders serving two years or more is Grade 7. Correctional Education Year-end Report (Correctional Service of Canada, 1995)

Health
- Canadians classified among the most healthy have the higher average literacy and numeracy skills, while those among the least healthy have the lowest average skills. Adult Literacy and Life Skills survey (Statistics Canada and OECD, 2005).

- Some direct effects of living with low literacy levels include increased hospitalization and misinterpreted medication instructions. Baker, D.W. et al., Functional Health Literacy and the risk of hospital admission among Medicare managed care enrolees (2002)

Work
- People with low literacy skills 42% of adult Canadians) are about twice as likely to be unemployed for 6 months or more than those with higher skills. Adult Literacy and Life Skills survey (Statistics Canada and OECD, 2005)

- 50% of Canadian adults score low numeracy levels and are 2.5 times more likely to receive social assistance, compared with those scoring higher levels. Adult Literacy and Life Skills survey (Statistics Canada and OECD, 2005)

Poverty
- Between 22% and 50% of adults with lower levels of literacy live in low-income households, compared with only 8% of those with high-level literacy skills. The Value of Words: Literacy and Economic Security in Canada (Statistics Canada, 1998)

Adult and workplace literacy myths.

Name printing

The most important word to your child is their name. For this reason, your child's name is a great place to start with letter recognition and eventually, printing. Recognizing and writing one's own name are not only important skills, but they are also something your child's kindergarten teacher will appreciate!

Practice doesn't have to be boring! Here are some fun suggestions on helping your child learn to print their name.

- Start by talking about the letters in your child's name. Does your child know all the letters? Make sure you talk about the sounds the letters make. ("Sarah starts with the sound Ssssss, just like snake. Can you hear it? Ssssssarah...")

- Make sure your child knows how to form the letters in their name. Talk about circles and lines in letters. Once they know how to make the letters, practice by having them make the shapes of the letters with their fingers. For example, they can write the letters in the air, on the floor, on your back, in water in the tub, in rice, shaving cream, flour, playdough (using stamps), or by tracing sandpaper letters with their fingers.



- Your child should feel comfortable holding writing implements in his or her hand before he or she will be able to write. This takes strength! Help your child build the muscles in their hands by engaging them in fine motor skills like cutting, playing with playdough,
using icepick tongs to sort,playing with lego, and so on. Once they have build up some strength, encourage them to practice using chalk, paint markers, and smelly markers (washable of course).



- Encourage your child to take pride in their name. Show them it is important. Label their belongings with their help (lunch containers, clothes). Give them plenty of exposure to their name in their world.

Please post any suggestions you have on helping children learn to write their name.

An apple poem a day keeps illiteracy at bay...

Here's another apple poem to share with your child:

Eat an Apple

Eat an apple; (Bring right hand to mouth)
Save the core. (Close right hand in fist)
Plant the seeds. (Bend down touch hand to ground)
And grow some more. (Extend both arms out)

Magazines for Children

I found myself in Chapters this past weekend looking for a good book for one of my favourite youngsters. Instead of immediately making my way back to the children's section, I decided to change it up and see what is available for children in the magazine aisle. I remember getting Highlights in the mail as a child. I enjoyed this monthly treat for two reasons:

(1) I got MY very own magazine in the mail (so cool in grade 2); and

(2) Who doesn't love getting mail (as long as it's not a bill, but what eight year old gets bills?)

Anyway, after carefully flipping through all the magazines and evaluating them for their age-appropriateness, interestingness, and general appeal I chose this:


National Geographic Little Kids is for children 3-6. I was really impressed by the issue I picked up. It had great activities that children can sit and look at with adults, as well as amazing pictures of animals with brief sentences to describe the pictures.



For those of you with young boys (and girls, too!), I would advise checking this out.

Has anyone seen good children's magazines they would like to mention?

Apples for Circle Time

Props are a fantastic addition to circle time. Stimulating thought and conversation, they can be a very positive and highly anticipated part of the daily routine.

Concrete objects are the gateway to learning and understanding for young children and should be used when presenting new concepts, themes and other information. Props, pictures, toys and sensory materials are essential tools for children's learning. Capture children's interest with these props and objects and encourage them to explore and experiment with many different materials.

With that said, apple picking season is here! Here is a rhyme with an accompanying prop that will help children develop their schema of apples, as well as numbers. The apples are made from red craft foam (cut using a die cutter), large popsicle sticks, and hot glue...that's it!


Here is a copy of the poem:

5 Red Apples

Five red apples sweet to the core;
One fell down and then there were four.

Four red apples sitting in a tree;
One fell down and then there were three.

Three red apples one for you, and you, and you;
One fell down and then there were two.

Two red apples shining in the sun;
One fell down and then there was one.

One red apple left all alone;
It fell down and then there were none.

Here is another version:

Five Little Apples

Five little apples, not any more.(Count on fingers)
I give one to________(Child’s name)
And now there are four.

Four little apples are what I see
I give one to _____________,
And now there are three.

Three little apples for me and you.
I give one to_____________,
And now there are two.

Two little apples: oh, what fun!
I give one to ___________,
And now there is one.

One little apple, only one.
I give one to _________,
Now there are none.

Note: I would post the poem somewhere with the apples for your child to play with once you have said the rhyme with them multiple times. Also, after you have done the rhyme several times together, leave off the end of each line and allow your child to fill in the blank. This will help your child become a confident reader! Lastly, you don't need to make the apples - you can use your fingers on one of your hands if it's easier for you.

Do you have an apple song or poem to share?