Reading Nonfiction at Home

The local newspaper this week ran a story about the Common Core.  The Common Core is a set of educational standards that 48 states, and the District of Columbia, have adopted as their educational standards.  Love it or hate it the Common Core is here to stay (at least in the short term) and will impact your child's education.  One of the main drives of the Common Core is to increase the amount of nonfiction reading students do.  While English teachers are feeling the burden, and feeling like they have to cut out some of the beloved pieces of literature, the idea behind the Common Core is that ALL subject areas would increase the amount of reading students are doing.  Thus the burden, in theory, shouldn't fall on the English teachers.  (In practise time will tell how well that will work, but that's the idea behind the increase in nonfiction reading.)

As parents however, we can do our teachers a HUGE favor by getting our children used to reading nonfiction at an early age.  I'll confess, when I envision reading to my son I certainly don't picture sitting down with him to read a manual about auto-repair or an essay about the different between an apple and a pear, but there are plenty of great, fun, and simple ways to increase the amount of nonfiction a child is exposed to.  Here are just two ideas.

1) Read article from a newspaper (or an online news source).  I know I'm probably a bit old fashioned since I still subscribe to a newspaper, but I enjoy my subscription.  With older kids (4th grade on up) read an interesting newspaper article together and discuss the article.  (USA Today, for example is written on a 4th grade reading level.)  It can make for some great dinner time conversations and if you pick the right articles it won't feel like an assignment it'll just feel like an interesting conversation.  You can always modify this by reading the article out loud if your child can't understand the article when (s)he reads it him/herself.  Many of the benefits will still be there for your child.

2) Get your child a subscription to a great nonfiction magazine.  Is there anything more fun than getting a magazine in the mail!?  There is a magazine out there to suit your child's interests and they make magazines for any reading level these days.  Even preschoolers can get a subscription to Ranger Rick Jr (ages 4-7) , which is published by the National Wildlife Federation.  As a bonus, there are no ads in this magazine!  Just pages of great content and beautiful pictures sure to interest the budding naturalist in your life.  Got a kid who loves to travel and wants to be a global explorer?  How about getting them hooked on FACES Magazine.  There are so many other great magazines out there.  I could probably do a month's worth of posts on the magazines that I love that feature nonfiction writing.  If you're looking for other ideas be sure to check out the Cricket family of publications.  They really publish some amazing magazines for children and teens.

There are millions of ways to introduce your child to nonfiction and to show them that it doesn't have to mean reading out of a textbook.  A love of reading starts at home, and that includes a love of nonfiction too!

Gifting a Magazine Subscription

It seems like this year a magazine a subscription is the thing to give.  I've never given anyone a subscription to a magazine before, but three people in my family have requested a subscription/renewal to a magazine.  What I like about magazines is that they attract people who classify themselves as "non-readers".  They have short articles with lots of pictures, they are easy to pick up/put down, are centered a topic a person knows they are interested in, and they are tons of fun to get in the mail.  So, if you're stuck on a gift to give someone this year, why not consider a magazine subscription.  You just might turn someone in your family into a reader by getting them hooked on a new publication!

Bedtime Story

My husband and I have been struggling with when we should begin to incorporate a story into our son's bedtime routine.  We, of course, want him to have a rich tradition of a bedtime story, but at his young age (almost 4 months old) it seems a bit early.  We read aloud to him at other times, but just not usually right before he goes to bed for the night.  In his book, The Read Aloud Handbook, author Jim Trelease encourages reading aloud to children from day one.  While another book, Secrets of the Baby Whisperer by Tracy Hogg, encourages reading aloud to children, but discourages a bedtime story until your baby is 6 months old.  At that age she feels babies are better able to focus and sit up.  Right now we seem to be leaning toward incorporating reading into his daytime routine and not yet into his bedtime routine.  I'm not sure exactly when we'll change this, maybe at 6 months, maybe another time, but I can't wait until it can be part of my son's bedtime routine.

My Favorite Gift for New Parents

In packing my hospital bag to prepare for labor I, of course, packed books for my husband and I to read.  But, what I forgot to pack was a book or two to read to our son.  So, the first books that we read aloud to him were adult books.  My husband read selections from Brave New World, while I read him selections from The Looking Glass Wars. 

Inspired by this oversight I've decided that my new go-to gift when I visit new parents in the hospital is going to be a baby book or two.  Flowers are beautiful and I certainly loved the multiple bouquets that decorated our hospital room, but what I would have loved, and really could have used, were a few books to read to my son.  What new parents wouldn't cherish reading from On The Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman, You Are Special by Max Lucado, or Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney to their brand new precious bundle.  There are so many wonderful titles to choose from when selecting a book that may well end up being the first book a baby has read to them.  And just think of the memories those parents will have of the first time they settled in to read to there new baby.

The Book Every Parent (and Teacher) Should Own

If there's one book that I love more than any other is has to be the Read Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease.  (Seriously, run, don't walk, to your nearest library or book store to get a copy!)  If you are a person (parent, teacher, aunt, uncle, grandparent, loving neighbor, or anyone else born on planet Earth) who is passionate about reading with your family then this book is a must have for you.  I've owned this book for years and loved it for years.  It has helped me countless times as a teacher.  But, now I get the joy of rediscovering it as a parent!  As a teacher I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book and wish I could afford to buy copies for all of my student's parents every year. 

There's almost too many good things to say about this book, but I'll list my top 5 reasons this book is so great.
1.  The treasury of read alouds in the back.  If you've ever wondered what to read to your child, this will solve your problem today and for years to come.  If this book was only a lists of books it would still be worth buying, but it is so much more!
2.  The book makes the often hard to understand topic of reading instruction seem easy to understand.
3.  Inspiring writing about the impact that reading to a child can have on all aspect of his/her life.  (And, honest writing about the damage that can occur when a child isn't read to.)
4.  Simple tips to help you make the most of your read aloud time with your family.
5.  Tips on how to create a reader friendly home.

The only negative I can say (and it is seriously the only one) is that the latest edition was printed in 2006.  I'd love to see him update this and release a newer edition.  Which, of course, I'd be first in line to buy!