Read-aloud question

[catbeth]

What should the books for the Storytime box be?

a) at or below the child's reading level so that they can practice their narration skills on easier material

b) above the child's reading level so that they can improve their listening skills and be exposed to a higher level of language than they can read for themselves

[GinainMD]

I've always thought that the great thing about storytime is/was that I can expose my dc to great books that they may be unable to read for themselves. As in the books are either too difficult or maybe too long for dc. Don't know if this is a correct assumption just my 2 cents.

[Heart_Mom]

What should the books for the Storytime box be?

a) at or below the child's reading level so that they can practice their narration skills on easier material

b) above the child's reading level so that they can improve their listening skills and be exposed to a higher level of language than they can read for themselves

I choose B almost all of the time!

[catbeth]

Thanks for the responses!

Our storytime books for Beyond fall squarely in Category A, so I realized today that I'm not doing ANY Category B read-alouds with dd. I guess I should do extra reading aloud with her, but I have a hard time making myself do something that's not scheduled for me.

[Rhyah]

What I'm doing for Beyond storytime for my 6.5 year old (and this is our first year/week with HOD, so it may change) is substituting some words to make retelling the story on her grade level. For example, we are doing Pocahontas for biography by the D'aulaire's and there was a sentence today that said: "He was the hardiest and shrewdest of the white men....." I changed hardiest to strongest and shrewdest to smartest. This way she is able to understand the vocabulary and the story and also be able to retell it and understand what she's retelling. Does that make sense? I think that's what you were kind of asking as far as which way to go with the storytime books.

[Heart_Mom]

Thanks for the responses!

Our storytime books for Beyond fall squarely in Category A, so I realized today that I'm not doing ANY Category B read-alouds with dd. I guess I should do extra reading aloud with her, but I have a hard time making myself do something that's not scheduled for me.

Just a thought here: it looks like from your signature that your daughter may be advanced in reading. If that's the case, I don't think you should feel that there's anything wrong with using Storytime books that are at about her reading level!

We did Beyond last year, and I remember that there was a wide variety in the choices in the appendix for each genre. In other words, for the adventure genre, a couple of the options might have been books that were on my dc's reading level, and a couple may have been above it. So I would say that you might want to try to choose the Storytime options that are more advanced, but if you aren't able for whatever reason, don't sweat it!

(If what I'm saying is off base, or does not apply to your situation properly, please just disregard! )

Edited to add: Alternatively, if all of the Storytime options for Beyond are too easy, you could substitute quality, higher level books for each genre. But, really...I don't think this is something you need to worry about. I think it's okay to just do what you're doing (without feeling like you have to add extra reading aloud) and see how it goes!

I hope this is helpful!

[lharris]

Hello Ladies,
Interesting things to think about. .. When I work with patrons, the biggest hurdle for them to begin to understand is the idea of storytime where mom still reads to child who is capable of reading! That seems to be a big lesson. With HOD, you all already know this -- because you are reading to the child. Some moms think I insult the children by suggesting the parent continue to do read-alouds. I've actually gotten a cold response from public school moms, "No, I don't read to her/him, he has been reading for ...years now." as if they are completely taken aback and insulted on top of it. Welcome to my world! You've asked a good question about the level of read alouds for an advanced reader. My question for you was wheter you substituted books or went with some of the storytime suggestions? I suggest for the next year's plans to use storytime suggestions that would be slightly above your child's reading level for the very reasons you listed. I also completely understand changing some vocabulary words on occassion especially for "labels" such as old texts that mention word "savages" -- which I explain the white man's thoughts but skip this word in my read-alouds, that kind of thing. For other words that you think might go over a child's head, my advice is DON'T substitute. Let them hear the richness of language. For example if you come across the word "smote" don't subsitute wtih "kill". Let them hear the old language -- this is crucial to helping your child's ear and mind to be ready for prior 19th century writing and crucial to being ready for Shakespeare at the High School level. This preparation actually begins in grade school. Children who are not used to older language "freak" out when they get to high school. I actually had one mom many years ago ask if I had a Shakespeare play written in English and how dare they make her 14 year old try to read this [foreign] material. Needless to say another librarian stepped in to help her before my red face exploded Love your HOD journeys ladies!! Your dear children will do wonderfully well in Carrie's capable hands,
In Christ,
Laura

[alydar]

Hello Ladies,
Interesting things to think about. .. When I work with patrons, the biggest hurdle for them to begin to understand is the idea of storytime where mom still reads to child who is capable of reading! That seems to be a big lesson. With HOD, you all already know this -- because you are reading to the child. Some moms think I insult the children by suggesting the parent continue to do read-alouds. I've actually gotten a cold response from public school moms, "No, I don't read to her/him, he has been reading for ...years now." as if they are completely taken aback and insulted on top of it. Welcome to my world! You've asked a good question about the level of read alouds for an advanced reader. My question for you was wheter you substituted books or went with some of the storytime suggestions? I suggest for the next year's plans to use storytime suggestions that would be slightly above your child's reading level for the very reasons you listed. I also completely understand changing some vocabulary words on occassion especially for "labels" such as old texts that mention word "savages" -- which I explain the white man's thoughts but skip this word in my read-alouds, that kind of thing. For other words that you think might go over a child's head, my advice is DON'T substitute. Let them hear the richness of language. For example if you come across the word "smote" don't subsitute wtih "kill". Let them hear the old language -- this is crucial to helping your child's ear and mind to be ready for prior 19th century writing and crucial to being ready for Shakespeare at the High School level. This preparation actually begins in grade school. Children who are not used to older language "freak" out when they get to high school. I actually had one mom many years ago ask if I had a Shakespeare play written in English and how dare they make her 14 year old try to read this [foreign] material. Needless to say another librarian stepped in to help her before my red face exploded Love your HOD journeys ladies!! Your dear children will do wonderfully well in Carrie's capable hands,
In Christ,
Laura

Great post, Laura! Thank you!

[catbeth]

What wonderful responses! Thank you all so much!

Yes, my daughter is an advanced reader. She's doing DITHOR with the level 3 book pack, and it's easy (I don't mind that because this is her first time to do actual literature study). I wasn't sure of her actual reading level, so today I gave her a quick freebie test from the website of another literature-based curriculum, and based on that, she placed into their 6th-grade program!

So, while she's very much 6, and doesn't need to be in 6th grade, I do need to figure out what to do about book selections so that she can reap the full benefit of read-alouds.

[lharris]

Also, since we are talking about read alouds, there's actually two different kinds of reading going on with your child and with the HOD manuals. The storytime component of HOD is where mom(or dad) reads aloud to the child. This is where you'll choose books a little above their reading level and why she has different book packages for the storytime part. The books that you use for Drawn Into Heart Reading box (Phonics time or Emerging Readers in younger manuals) are what the children read on their own to develop their skills. That's why Carrie has them in different boxes. At some point around jr. high/early high school, your goal is that the two levels (a. their mental level--as in what you read to them and b. their skill level) converge so that they are reading skill-wise on the same level as their mental maturity. Hope that helps.

[HollyS]

We do a bit of both. All three of my older DC (ages 9-4) like to listen in. I usually try to go with a topic they'd be interested in instead of going by the reading level. Some have been above and some at or below...obviously they've all been above the 4yos reading level. They seem to enjoy all of them equally.

[my3sons]

What an excellent discussion! In general, read alouds are meant to be a bit above dc's reading level. I think it is important to note that many of the living books HOD chooses have a vocabulary that is more difficult simply because of the narrative nature of the book. This does not always show itself on an "AR" leveling of a book. With 3 choices for each genre given within the Storytime sets, as well as additional choices provided in the Appendix, there are usually a variety of levels of reading to choose from. Of course, you can always choose your own books as well, as long as you choose a book within the appropriate genre being studied for the unit. Charlotte Mason would say it is important to read the book as it is written, and not substitute words for the author's as the flow of the reading and the style of the author is altered. I agree with lharris that if the word is "savage", or something that now would be considered improper, substituting a word in this case makes complete sense. Two of my dc were very early readers and have always been able to read books 5-6 grade levels beyond their years. I don't choose read alouds that are this far ahead of their years. The content would often not be appropriate, and there is no need to always have them working at their optimal level or at a challenge level. Enjoyment according to their tender years of age is an important consideration too. I think you will be able to tell what works best for your dd. There are some real gems in Beyond's Storytime selections. I think you'll be able to choose from the books and find some your dd loves, but you can always choose your own otherwise too. I hope something here helps!

In Christ,
Julie

[catbeth]

You all have given me so much to think about! Thanks!

I'm going to experiment for our next genre. I have another reading list that I really love (from the curriculum that I intended to use before deciding on HOD). I don't want dd to miss out on those books entirely, so I think I'll get a read-aloud from that list, and give her the original read-aloud for her DITHOR selection. If it doesn't work, we can always go back to the original plan.