OLOG READING CHALLENGE

1. Dear Parents/Carers,Please find accompanying this letter a reading resource for you to use at home and for teaching staff to use at school. The aim of the reading resource, used in partnership at home and at school, is to bring success in reading for all students. During many parent/teacher consultations we have been asked reading advice and we hope this new resource enriches your child’s reading experience with you. We ask that you:- Read with your child for at least 15 minutes 5 times per week, the more regularly you read the quicker your child will make progress(in Year 3 books are changed on a Monday and a Thursday).- Listen to them read out loud so you can check for expression and fluency (i.e. not monotone and robotic sounding). - Use the questions provided (all children have been previously given these and Year 3 children now have them. They can also be found at the bottom of the Literacy section of the school website) to help you to further develop your child’s understanding of what they are reading.- Encourage your child to read a range of text types: fiction, non-fiction and poetry. -A list of recommended reading is now on the website for each year group - Model reading. If they see you as a reader, your child will be more likely to become a reader too. Reading Record OLOG READING CHALLENGE • Each child is expected to make a reading record entry at least 5 times each week. They should write a response to the 15 minutes of reading they have completed that evening. Their entries should be varied and ideas can be found on the inside cover of their reading record, for example: • Ideas for things I can write about:- Explain what has happened in the part I have read. - Write a character description using evidence from the book.- Discuss what I think about a character’s actions using evidence from the book. - Predict what I think will happen next using evidence from the story.In Year 3, a comment should be approximately three or four sentences (but more if they are up for the challenge!) • See school website for good examples of comments. Congratulations to the students who successfully completed the 2012-2013 Reading Challenge! At the beginning of the term they were presented with their certificate and badge. The children are encouraged to wear their badge with pride to school daily. There are four different badges to collect throughout their four years at OLOG. The Reading Challenge for 2013-2014 has already begun. Each child is expected to read ten books from the Reading Challenge box in their class over the year. They will be introduced to exciting authors and genres. If your child is unable to independently read a book they have chosen, we ask you to share this book with them. Please support your child in completing their challenge.

2. How I should be using my Reading Record- It is VERY IMPORTANT that I should read at least 5 times a week, (the more I read the faster I will improve).- An adult should ask me questions, from the laminated sheet, about what I have read to help develop my understanding. - I should ask an adult to sign my reading record every night to confirm I have read.- After I have read, I need to write an entry into my reading record.- My entries should be varied and not be repetitive. - My entries should be for the same book until I complete it. I should not switch books every evening if the previous book was not finished. (My entries should not be copied extracts from the book, but my own ideas).Ideas for what I can write about:- Explain what has happened in the part I have read. - Write a character description using evidence from the book.- Discuss what I think about a character’s actions using evidence from the book. - Predict what I think will happen next using evidence from the book.- Explain why the author has chosen certain words.- Explain why the author has changed font and/or size of text.- Comment on the layout of the text. - Discuss whose voice we are hearing using evidence from the book. - Look for examples of sentence opener and powerful verbs used by the author. - Listen to my teacher’s suggestions for Reading Record entries.