Transcript The Role of Books

Access to books in the home is key to academic success. Having as few as
20 books in the home has a significant impact on propelling a child to a
higher level of education.
Research in Social Stratification and Mobility
We must create ways to put books into all students’ hands during the summer months- and other vacation
periods as well. Ensuring that books are available to any child at any time of the year will be a good first
step in enhancing the reading achievement of low-income students and an absolutely necessary step in
closing the reading achievement gap.
-Richard Allington
It seems pretty clear that the only
way kids can escape the reading
death spiral and begin to catch up
with their higher-achieving peers
is to log lots and lots of hours
reading (indeed, far more than
they can get through classroom
intervention instruction); yes kids
MUST read at home too.
-Lois Bridges
RtI: The Best Intervention is a Good
Book
The single summer activity that is
most strongly and consistently
related to summer learning is
reading.
The unique contribution of reading
to summer learning suggests that
increasing access to books and
encouraging reading may well
have a substantial impact on
achievement.
-Heyns
Jeffco Summer Reading Program
Our mission…put books into the hands of students so they could create personal
libraries and have engaging books to read through out the summer.
Planning and Building
Momentum
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Every student, ECE-12,and every
teacher was given a Book Bag with
8 books:
4 Fiction and 4 Non Fiction books
Books were selected by the
instructional reading coaches
working in the schools. Coaches
voted on books based on what they
knew about the readers in their
schools.
Each book bag contained activity
sheets and a book mark that
allowed students to track their
reading progress.
During the summer months each
family received automated phone
calls (English and Spanish) from
their school reminding them to read
their books.
Each teacher previewed one of their
grade level’s summer books the last
week of school creating excitement
about the book bags and the books
that would be read over the
summer.
Maintaining Momentum
Outcomes
• Every school held at least one family
engagement kick-off event prior to the
end of school. This event focused on
literacy and created excitement for
the Summer Take Home Reading
Program.
• Schools’ family nights highlighted the
importance of reading to and with
children and showed parents how to
engage their children reading.
• Especially in year 2, schools got very
creative with sustaining the
momentum for summer reading.
Some used online blogs for students
to connect with teachers around the
books they were reading.
• When students came back to school
in the fall they were rewarded for
books read and ongoing events such
as “Books and Brownies” were held to
allow students and families to have
book talks.
• We provided books for 16,000
students by the end of year 2. This
was an increase from 11,000 in year
1.
• Students built an at-home library of at
least 16 books. Some students had
the opportunity to build libraries
consisting of up to 40 books over the
two years if they were ESL and/or
Migrant students. Some identified
ESL and Migrant students got up to 3
book bags.
• Students were observed out in the
community reading during the
summer months.
• Parent engagement at school
increased dramatically beginning in
year 1.
• Parents reported that barriers were
taken down for them- they often
struggled to support their students in
selecting ‘just right books’ to read,
with the take home book bags book
selection was already done for them,
allowing them to focus on reading.
• Culture of reading was built.
Centennial ECE-8 Vacation Reading Program
The new mission…put books into the hands of students so they can create personal
libraries and have engaging books to read during ALL vacation periods.
Planning
• Every student will receive a book bag prior to each vacation
period- Thanksgiving, Winter Break, Spring Break and
Summer Break.
• The book bags will contain a mixture of fiction and non-fiction
texts.
• For breaks during the school year book bags will be premade
bags developed by Scholastic. For the Summer Break bag
there will be an element of student/teacher choice.
• Students ECE-2 will have their summer book bags developed
by their teachers.
• Students 3-8 will have a say in the titles selected in their bags
through a preview and vote opportunity.
• A Family Night will be held before each vacation period as a
way to draw families into the school, provide an opportunity for
them to learn with their students and a way for us to kick off
the vacation reading.
• Each Summer book bag will contain activity sheets and a book
mark that allows students to track their reading progress.
• During the summer months each family will receive automated
phone calls (English and Spanish) from the school reminding
them to read their books.
• Each teacher will preview one of their grade level’s summer
books the last week of school creating excitement about the
book bags and the books that will be read over the summer.
Intended Outcomes
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Students build personal libraries at home.
Students see themselves as integral in the
choice aspect of vacation reading.
Parents see their students as readers and feel
confident in their role supporting their students
to become life-long readers.
Centennial develops as a culture of readers.