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Hello! I just placed my order for our next school year (we start in June). For my daughter who has just completed grade two using Beyond, I ordered Bigger with third grade options. After placing my order, I read more about Drawn Into the Heart of Reading, and I think I'd like to add it to her third grade year. However, it seems that the storytime box included in the guide for Bigger would be redundant if we also use DITHR for next year. From my perspective, the only difference between the two (other than DITHR being more thorough of course) is me reading to her versus her reading independently.

Is it necessary to do both the storytime section and DITHR? I'm thinking of just using the girl storytime set as her book for independent reading in DITHR and skipping the storytime box altogether. She does listen to me read aloud at other times besides school time, so she would not be missing auditory comprehension if I skipped the storytime box.

Thanks so much! I rarely post here, but I have been enormously encouraged by reading through the threads here.

Sarah

There are a lot of similarities with DITHR and the storytime box but here is my take on some differences, and why both are good to do, especially together. The storytime box stuff is more just the narration and analysis. The DITHR is analyzing and interpreting what they are reading with certain specific things in mind: things like setting, character, mood, etc. DITHR has the workbook and projects which have really enriched her understanding of the books. You go a lot deeper into the story with DITHR, first because the reading is lower level and shorter (as the child is reading it, not you) and because of the projects and analysis being done. This is literature they are studying for themselves. Storytime is fun, they get more of the flow and again higher level book because you are reading it to them. The discussion and analysis for storytime is easier and faster, a lot of people I think do DITHR just 3 days a week (we've been doing 5 days a week, or at least every day that we do school we do DITHR).

I think both are valuable and storytime is really easy for us so we would never want to leave that out!