Ten Tips for Promoting Literacy Among Boys
Guest Post by Michael Gurian
Whether your son is a reluctant reader or already loves reading, try these literacy boosters anywhere, anytime.
A Crisis of Confidence to Succeed – The Literacy Challenge Facing Boys
Guest Post by Michael Gurian
Literacy matters. Reading, writing, and speaking intersect with everything in life: character development, emotional intelligence, and physical fitness. Reading is essential for successful brain development in children, and stories help build character and emotional development. There are few career areas in which literacy skills—reading, writing, critical thinking, articulation of positions in words, and even anecdotal storytelling—are not essential for success. The Boy Scouts of America’s mission to help boys be “Prepared. For Life.®” is directly correlated with the need for literacy in America and precisely why the BSA incorporates literacy skills into so much of its program.
3 Activities Promoting Literacy for National Family Day
Did you know today is National Family Day? To celebrate, we’d like to share some of our favorite literacy-promoting activities that you can do with your whole family to encourage your budding reader and—well, to just have fun together! Remember, reading books is a great way to help your little one acquire literacy skills, but it’s not the only way!
Art and Literacy: Do They Go Hand in Hand?
Dwindling budgets have forced art programs across the country out of our public school systems, much to the dismay of many teachers and educators who have long respected art as not just a second recess (as some mistakenly perceive it), but as a key part of a child’s schooling. We know that the arts can help students develop critical thinking skills, special intelligence, and of course, creativity, but did you know that art can also enhance literacy? Here’s how.
Reading Outside of School: How Much Is Enough?
We all know that the biggest readers are often the biggest achievers, so a daily regimen of reading is a must. Many parents wonder how much their children should be reading outside of school, however. While there’s no definitive answer to that question, there are some guidelines you can follow to ensure that your child is getting her daily dose of literature.
The Importance of Nursery Rhymes – Reading Essentials #10
Who isn’t familiar with Jack and Jill tumbling down the hill, or Little Boy Blue falling asleep and letting his animals running amuck, or Little Miss Muffet getting scared by a spider? I remember reading nursery rhymes as a child from a big Mother Goose book that was very old, and is still packed away in the attic somewhere. When my daughters were young, they read from a more modern-looking book with larger print and more colorful illustrations.
These stories have been around for hundreds of years, and while fun to chant (I can still recite many of them from memory), they also serve a very important purpose in your child’s reading development. Read on to find out why these old tales are still so important to share today.
Literacy Activities: Preschool to Kindergarten – Reading Essentials #9
Most parents of preschoolers and kindergarteners have starting thinking about how they can help their children get ready to read. Hopefully by the time your child is 3 or 4 years old, he has had plenty of exposure to books, nursery rhymes, songs, and the letters of the alphabet. Take a look at my last post, Literacy Activities: Toddler to Preschool, if your child has not yet had these experiences.
As your child becomes more comfortable with the sounds that letters make, you can begin to help her connect the letter-sounds into words….
Literacy Activities: Toddler to Preschool – Reading Essentials #8
In my last post I discussed how you can get your child’s reading development off to a good start with activities for infants and toddlers. Those budding skills will need to continue being nurtured as your child moves from toddlerhood to preschool.
Literacy Activities from Infant to Toddler – Reading Essentials #7
One of the most important things you can do for your child from the beginning is to read to him. Reading books, even if they are plastic or board books, introduces your child to the wonderful world of reading that will become so critical once he enters school.
How to Support Reading Skills at Home
We all want to help our children succeed in school, and this includes promoting good literacy skills such as reading and writing. Although the two go hand in hand, reading is perhaps the most important skill a student can have. After all, good readers make good writers!
No matter where your child is in the process of learning to read or advancing his reading skills, there are things you can do at home to enhance his learning and give him the boost he needs to excel. Here are some tips to help you assist your emerging, beginning, or proficient reader develop the skills he needs in order to take reading to the next level.