Reading is one of the most important skills we ever learn.  It is the grand daddy of many skills.  We spend the first years of school learning how to read.  Then we spend the rest of school reading to learn.

So, the big question- is your child reading?  My expectation for every one of my students is that they read outside of school every day of their lives, for the rest of their lives.  That’s a big goal, I know.  It’s challenging for me to do too.  But I want to shoot big, and even if we fall short, we’ve still done something worthwhile.

Students

For a starting place, I tell the students they should be reading a minumun of 20 minutes daily.  This can even be broken into two 10 minute sessions if need be.  I tell the students that it needs to be every day.  Even Saturday and Sunday.  I want to reinforce the habit.  Reading on your own time is a habit just like watching TV or playing video games.  Habits take time.  Habits need to be reinforced daily.

Parents

Remind your child of the reading expectation.  Create an environment that makes it easy to read.  You could have a designated “screens off” time, or a time when everyone in the family reads.  Ask your daughter or son questions about what they are reading.  Ask them if they are going to the library regularly.  Make a family trip to the public library, or go to the bookstore for a special treat.  My favorite is Half Price Books.  You could even read the same book they are reading.  Have your child read to you or a younger sibling to change it up.

Just Read

Kids need to read.  Kids need to get good at reading.  The best way for kids to get better at reading is… (drum roll) to read!  Studies show time and time again that the kids who make the most gains in reading are the students who spend the most time reading.

I know my family needs to get better at it.  Will you join with me and start making sure our kids have time to read?

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A report from the National Institute of Education (1988) concluded that,

the amount of reading done out of school is consistently related to gains in reading achievement.

A study of 155 fifth grade students demonstrated that,

the amount of time children spent in independent reading was the best predictor of the amount of gain in reading achievement.

According to Begin To Read-

• 85 percent of all juveniles who interface with the juvenile court system are functionally illiterate.
• More than 60 percent of all prison inmates are functionally illiterate.

January is an incredible time of new beginnings!  I can’t help but get excited for a brand new year!

I love the way our school year is set up.   It is genius that New Year’s Day is smack dab in the middle.   I always like to remind the students that this is a fresh start.  It’s a time for all of us to start over.   A two week break is long enough to gain a new perspective.  It’s long enough to start some new habits.  Most importantly, it’s long enough to break some old ones.

We will be working this week on getting a fresh perspective, setting goals, and making a New Year’s Revolution.  Be looking for some exciting blog posts from the students later this week.

Welcome back, everyone!  Happy New Year!

The class and I were so excited to have our spelling bee on Tuesday.  It was challenging, fun, and a great learning experience.

I told the classes that I expected all of them to participate and give their best effort.  We had some conversations about talent and skills.  Much like sports, we discussed how some people were going to naturally be better at it than others.  Only one person would win.  Nineteen others would not. 

I also made sure to point out that trying your best shows respect not only for the game, but also for the participants.  It was such a good opportunity to review Essential #10:

If you win or do well at something, do not brag.  If you lose, do
not show anger.  Instead, say something like, “I really enjoyed
the competition, and I look forward to playing you again,” or
“good game,” or don’t say anything at all.  To show anger or
sarcasm, such as “I wasn’t playing hard anyway” or “You
really aren’t that good,” shows weakness.

Ms. D’s homeroom went to round six, with the final three contestants being Abby, Gavin, and Alex.  Alex pulled out the win in the championship round by spelling wardrobe.

My homeroom competed until round ten.  Joshua and Kyler were neck and neck for several rounds.  It was intense to watch them go back and forth.  But, it was Joshua who correctly spelled confection to secure his win.

I’m so proud of everyone who gave it their best, and especially proud of Alex and Joshua for their mad spelling skills.  They will both go on to participate in the school bee on January 13th.  Congratulations!

I love weather like this.  The temperature is cold, but not too cold most days.  The crisp air makes me want to grab a a jacket in the mornings, but I know I won’t freeze without one.  As a teacher, I call this Love and Logic weather.

Love and Logic is a book by Jim Fay.  It’s a teacher favorite that talks about the benefits of kids learning consequences on their own.  The main point of the book is to allow kids to have choices and hold them accountable for those choices with logical consequences.

We, as parents and teachers, have a great opportunity to teach logical consequences during weather like this.  My son forgot his jacket today.  Instead of getting ready before it was time to leave the house, he wanted to get some cards for a magic trick.  Then it was time to go and he couldn’t find his jacket.  We had to leave without it.  Recess was a a chilly 58°F.  I think he will probably take some time to find his jacket for tomorrow.

It may sound cruel, but don’t be so quick to bail your child out of a jam.  Sometimes natural or logical consequences can be the best teacher.

[Originally posted Nov. 15, 2010]

Photo Credit: lululemon athletica on Flickr

Parents /Guardians:

I feel this e-mail list will solve most of the electronic communications problems I’ve been experiencing this year.  Please sign up to actually get classroom updates and reminders from me, Mr. Stortz.  I’ll feel real good about that.

Thanks.

Please click the link below.

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Sign up for updates and reminders

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Our school will be celebrating Red Ribbon Week Oct. 25 -28.

Did you notice that we don’t actually get a red ribbon this year?  We get one of those cool, new plastic wristbands.  I think it should be called Red Plastic Wristband Week.  It doesn’t have the same ring to it though…

This week we will highlight an awareness for smoking, alcohol abuse, and illegal drugs.  We’ll also be talking about peer pressure and importance of standing up for what you believe.  Each day we’ll celebrate our commitment being drug free by wearing something different:

Tuesday- Put a cap on drugs and wear a cap to school

Wednesday- Team up against drugs by wearing a team jersey /shirt

Thursday- Dream big and wear your pajamas to school

Friday- Go wild about being drug free by sporting wild hair

Which one is your favorite?

We’re back from a great field trip.  It’s our one and only this year, so we tried to make it count.  Our trip this year was to the Dallas Museum of Art.

There was so much to see in so little time.  Thankfully we had some wonderful chaperones and docents to help us along the way.  We divided into small(ish) groups.  Some groups ate first and walked around on their own.  The other groups went on a guided tour of a few areas of the museum.  Then we switched.

It ended up feeling like a quick trip that will probably leave many students thirsty for more.  We also got to end the day with some cool make-and-take art projects.

[Special thanks to Mrs. Naugle for the idea!]

All in all, I have to say it was a great week!  The big things were covered- everyone was safe, everyone ate, and everyone made it home.

We spent time getting to know each other.  We practiced procedures and started getting used to the schedule.  We read books, we made journal entries.  We discussed, and we collaborated.

We did many things, but the most important thing was that we began to transform.  This first week we began our process of transforming from a loose group of individual people into a classroom family.  I know that we are going to go through a lot this year.  It is important to strengthen our bonds early and often.

Here are some pictures from our first week.  The students and I will be taking a photo everyday of this school year.  Check it out in our blog’s sidebar, or see the full size album at Photo 175 Project.

Hi everyone!

I’m Mr. Stortz.  I am so excited to be your teacher!  We are going to be doing so many amazing things this year.  I can’t wait to start the excitement!

One thing we will be using is super cool technology like this blog.  I would like you to leave a comment for me on this post.  Here is how you do it:

1. Click the Welcome New Students! title
2. Scroll down to the comments form
3. Use ONLY your first name in the name box
4. Don’t worry about an e-mail or website
5. Type your answer to this question—

What are you MOST excited about for 4th grade?

If you can do this before the first day of school, I’ll have a special treat for you.  You can always e-mail me if you get stuck.  My e-mail is jstortz AT mckinneyisd DOT net

Best wishes!