I hope you are all enjoying our snow-free Snow Days! I certainly didn’t mind the opportunity to sleep late on this unexpected winter break, but I am looking forward to getting back into our routine. We have a lot of learning left before the school year ends!
Your child may have shared with you that we have been having fun reading various types of folktales – stories from long ago that often have similar types of characters and a common message that good wins over evil. We have tried to use very specific words to describe the personalities of the characters and have discussed the similarities and differences among the different stories. We have also looked at how authors today have taken the classic stories and put a modern twist on them. Ask your child to tell you about his or her favorite stories that we have read. The Three Ninja Pigs was one of my favorites! You can find it at the Cobb County library.
This week, I was planning to read some fables, which are short stories. These stories were originally told to teach a life lesson and typically have animal characters. These stories have been told again and again and have been made into poems and children’s books. You can find many animated versions online too. If you’d like something educational to do today, try going to http://pbskids.org/lions/stories/ and viewing the folktales and fables there. Your child can read along with the video, and then you can discuss the story’s moral or life lesson. You can find many more stories and animated versions free online. Search for Aesop's fables or go to YouTube and search for fables.
It is helpful for your child to read these stories over and over again. Not only does rereading help with fluency and word solving, but good readers are able to go deeper into the text each time they read. We have discovered new understandings about the characters, the setting, and the plot by rereading our favorite stories. Try to help your child look for something new or gain a better understanding of the author’s message each time you read. Actually, your child may be able to help you develop a deeper understanding of the story too. I love that our conversations in class help me to discover new ideas about the stories and characters too!
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