Teacher Read-Aloud Time

Over the past few months, I've been reading out loud to our class. I have been reading books from "The Series of Unfortunate Events" by the author Lemony Snicket.  So far we have read the first 3 books.

In the first book, The Bad Beginning, we met our 3 main characters who became orphans after their parents died. They were sent to live with a so-called relative they had never met and many terrible things happened to them.

In the second book, The Reptile Room, the 3 children were sent to live with a distant uncle and the terrible things followed them there.

In the third book, which we just finished this week, The Wide Window, the children were sent to live with an aunt who was scared of EVERYTHING...and again, terrible things happened.

Now we are getting ready to start the fourth book, called The Miserable Mill. 

What do you think might happen in this book? Do you think our evil villain will show up again? Will things get better for the orphans?  Share your thoughts with me!

Have you taken the "Five Finger Test" yet?

So you've decided you want read some good books this summer.

You are at the library or a bookstore and you can't decide on a good book. It's easy when we are at school and you know your AR "comfort level" that I put on the back of your library card.  But the library and book stores don't put AR levels on their books like our school library does.

So what should you do?

Take the Five Finger Test.

1. First, choose the book you think you would like to read.
2. Open the book to the middle, choosing a page with a lot of text (words) and very few pictures.
3. Begin to read the page to yourself. Don't just "read in your head". Actually whisper read to yourself, so you can hear if you begin to have difficulty.
4. As you are reading, hold up one finger each time you read a word you don't know or have difficulty pronouncing.
5. If none or one of your fingers are up before you get to the end of the page, this book might be too easy for you.
If you have 2-4 fingers are up before you get to the end of the page, this book may be just right.
If all five of your fingers are in the air before you get to the end of the page, then this book is probably too difficult for you right now. It's best to put this book back and try it again in a few months.

Hopefully this "test" is one that will help you find that book that is on your "comfort level".

Summer Reading

Are you reading books this summer?  If not, you should be!  Reading is the key to your success in school. Children who read for fun outside of the school day are better students when they are in school.

Are you going on a long trip?  Take a book to read in the car.

Hanging out by the pool or on the beach?  Take a rest and read a chapter or two.

Is it a super hot day or a summer rainy day?  Spend it curled up with a good book.

Did Mom or Dad put you in charge of the little brothers and sisters? Take a few minutes and read a picture book to them.

Need some motivation to read?  I've got the answer to that question too!  What about a FREE BOOK?!?

Click here to go to Barnes and Noble bookstore's website. In the green box in the middle of the page, you will see a yellow 1. Underneath that, you will see a link to print off a reading journal. When you've read 8 books, you can take the completed journal to the book store and get a free book. You are limited to the the titles they have chosen for your grade level.

Click here to go to Borders bookstore's website. You will see a skinny yellow box where you can download their summer reading form. Borders requires 10 books to be read.  Borders lets you get any book for free.

Also stop by any of the public libraries here in our town. Any child who completes the summer reading program through the library gets a gift bag full of goodies from local companies.  I couldn't find their reading log online, so you may have to go by the library to get one. 

Let me know what books you are reading this summer. Perhaps that will make a good read-out-loud for us this coming school year!

Posts on Mrs. Staton's SuperStars may include links to external websites. Links to external sites are not under the editing control of the author of Mrs. Staton's SuperStars. Please ask that children use adult supervision when visiting websites outside of this blog, especially YouTube. While there are many great videos, please considering the ability for the public to post and comment on videos on YouTube.

Whatcha' Readin' ??

I love to read....even when I was your age, I always had my nose in a book. I read all the time. As a young girl, my favorite books were The Babysitter's Club. I loved to read about a group of friends and the problems they would encounter. It reminded me of my friends I had growing up. As I've gotten older, I find myself reading more books by the same author. I have several authors that I love to read their books. As soon as I hear their new book is out, I rush to the store or the library to get a copy.

I want to know what you are currently reading.

Right now I am re-reading the Twilight Series. Some of you may know this series because of the recent movies that have been made based on the books. I read the series last year, thanks to your 4th grade teacher Mrs. Raper! She told me about the books and I thought, how could I ever like a book about a vampire?? But I've always heard to never judge a book, and to always give it a try, so I told her I would read it. She brought me the first one, Twilight, and made me promise to read the first 3 chapters before I made my decision. That night, I read the first three, and about four more! I couldn't put it down. Now I am reading the whole series again, and I am about to start the second book called New Moon.

I am curious to know what book you are reading right now, or one you have just finished. Tell me the name of the book and give me a little information about what it is about. Don't tell me all the details. If your book gets me excited, I'll read it over Spring Break and tell you what I think about it!

A cool series of books

I am also reading The Series of Unfortunate Events. I like these stories because they are so adventurous. They deal with Count Olaf, a greedy man who wants to steal the fortune of the Baudelaires. Their parents are dead. The henchmen are part of Count Olaf's troupe and they also try to help him capture the Baudelaires. So far they have yet to be captured.

My favorite character in this series is Klaus. I like him best because he likes to read a lot and so do I! I have read Numbers 1-9 and I am reading #10. My favorite book so far in the series is #9 The Carnivorous Carnival, because it had a cool scene with some lions.

Chris

What I'm Reading...

Hi! I am reading A Series Of Unfortunate Events. I decided to start the series about a month ago and it is good. In these books Violet, Klaus, and Sunny go place after place and they are always unfortunate. In the beginning Count Olaf is their guardian. He is an evil villain who only cares about money. When Olaf hears about their enormous fortune the Baudelaire parents left behind he uses ridiculous schemes to try to get the fortune. Then he keeps coming back with ridiculous disguises to try to fool the children. He never does though. Through eight books he has failed to get the fortune. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny keep barely escaping by the skin of their teeth. If you want to read a book about 3 kids finding out clever ways to beat a evil villain I would suggest these books to you.

Matthew