Dear Families,
For the past few weeks students have been reflecting on their reading in the document embedded below. These seem to be working well- and students have requested to use them instead of the digital versions we were using before. I love when they know what works best for them as learners! On the day we choose book bag books (usually Wednesday), we set the logs up together. That means that after students have chosen the three books they would like to read, they complete the yellow parts of the reading log. This section is titled, "Before Reading." During or after reading, students are expected to reflect on their reading in the yellow fields. There are sentence starters for both fiction and nonfiction books to help students get started. We have done lots of revision over the past weeks to make sure our reflections include specific details. As your child puts finishing touches on his reflections tonight, the examples below might help. These are the most common conversations I have about reflections in class.
Student writes: My favorite character was Stanley because he is funny.
Ask: What did he do that was so funny?
Student says: He made the robot chase the dinosaurs away.
Revision: My favorite character was Stanley because he is funny. One time he made the robot chase the dinosaurs away. It was funny!
Student writes: I was surprised to learn what happens to oil in water.
Ask: What happens when oil and water are together?
Student says: The oil floats on top.
Revision: I was surprised to learn that when you put oil and water together the oil floats.
My hope is that being responsible for completing reflections on two books each week will encourage students to persist through their chosen books and be thoughtful about their next book choices. If you have any comments or questions, feel free to reach out to me.
Sincerely,
Alicia Sullivan
asullivan@ww-ps.com
