Why is literacy important? Learners need literacy in order to engage with the written word in everyday life… Being able to read and write means being able to keep up with current events, communicate effectively, and understand the issues that are shaping our world.
- Today’s literary skill: Story Elements (part 1)
- Making the family connection: Read Aloud: Any picture book you have at home. Discuss: Before, during, and after discuss the main character… then discuss who would be a supporting character. Which character causes a problem for the main character?
- Next: Discuss where the majority of the book takes place (inside/outside; house/room; school; farm; forest; mountains; etc.). Don’t forget to the setting’s time (season; past (historical); present (what they see in their life today/reality); future (science-fiction).
- Finally: Discuss the the main idea of the story. Ask: “Today we read a book about?” The main idea has supporting details which leads the reader to a conclusion. *Author’s purpose: is called the “Big Idea.” Big idea typically relates to a theme, what is the reader suppose to learn from the text (courage; fairness; honesty; hope; integrity; respect; kindness; teamwork; etc.).
- Materials: family learning journals/paper, pencils, colored pencils, and/or crayons. Remind: them to open their journals to the next available page and date it. Don’t forget to have them label the top of the page with today’s learning topic/skill. Allow 10 minutes for them to follow the prompts on the slide.
- Share: After everyone has written their responses and illustrated their favorite part in the story, invite each family member to share their journal entry.
