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 BLOGWelcome to the Lightning Bug Learning Blog! Our goal is to add content that is pertinent to education and literacy related news for early childhood learning. Stop by to see what the new buzz!August “I Can Read” CarnivalThis month Lightning Bug Learning is the host for the “I Can Read Carnival”, which celebrates new readers. The intent is to share reviews of great easy readers and short chapter books. As parents, teachers, and homeschool families, we can instill the love of reading, and set our children on the path to reading success.
With Back-to-School on the horizon, August is the perfect month to get back into the school mindset. To share a review of a great book that your child loved, please e-mail me with your review and a link to the book (mailatlightningbuglearning.com) I will add your reviews until the end of August, 2010.
Here are the key characteristics of an easy reader.
• In general, this is the school-aged audience in Kindergarten through second grade.
• These are books with simple sentences and short sentences for children learning to read. They are generally read aloud.
• Many have a banner that proclaims it as an easy reader, with some form of the word “read” on the cover.
• The books are generally 6-inches by 9-inches, so that they fit comfortably in a child’s hand. They range from 8 t0 64 pages.
• There is a lot of white space on the page, and the type is bigger.
• The books are illustrated, usually in a way that helps the child “decode” the words in the story.
• As the reader grows, the illustrations shift. First, they may move to one page while the text is on the other. Then there may be half-page illustrations on both pages and then smaller illustration on one page of a two-page spread.
• Some picture books may not have the cover notation, but can be easy readers.
There are both fiction and nonfiction easy readers.
Here are the key characteristics of an short chapter book.
• In general, these books are for the school-aged audience in second through fourth grade.
• Some may continue to have a cover annotation with some form of “read” on it, but most do not.
• The books are 6-inches to 9-inches, and have from 48 to 128 pages.
• There is more text in the books, and the margins are closer to a “traditional” chapter book. These are books that are often read aloud, but they are also suitable for independent, silent reading.
• These books are illustrated, but usually the interior images are black-and-white. These books may have an illustration on one page and a full page of text facing it; or a smaller image inserted every couple of pages.
There are both fiction and nonfiction short chapter books.
Guidelines:
Any book that fit the criteria and reviewed within one year of the publication date is eligible to be included. Whether your review of a book is positive, negative, or “eh,” we’d love to know about it. It can be a blog post, a video, or a podcast. We just need to be able to link to it.
I look forward to reading and posting your reviews!
Reviews
Benny and Penny The Big No-No (a Toon book)
Review by Melissa Taylor, Book Editor-at-Large, Colorado Parent Magazine
http://bookmarkable.wordpress.com/2010/06/29/interview-with-geoffrey-hayes-award-winning-author-and-illustrator/
Books by Jan Thomas
Review by Melissa Taylor, Book Editor-at-Large, Colorado Parent Magazine
http://imaginationsoup.net/2010/07/rhyming-dust-bunnies-will-crack-you-up/
Magic Letters; The Keys to the World of Words and Magic Words; Discovering the Adventure of Reading
Review by Jenny Thompson, The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC
http://thehomeschoolmagazine.com/Homeschool_Reviews/4074.php
Doyle and Fossey, Science Detectives
http://jeanlittlelibrary.blogspot.com/2010/08/doyle-and-fossey-science-detectives-by.html
Review by Jennifer Wharton, Youth Services Librarian, Matheson Memorial Library
5 Great Fire Drill Books
Review by Anastasia Suen, Author, Literacy Blogger, and Literature Consultant
http://5greatbooks.wordpress.com/2010/08/25/5-great-fire-drill-books/ |
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