Students in 5/6P have between 15 to 25 minutes each day to participate in DEAR (Drop Everything And Read)/SSR. This is quiet, uninterrupted reading time that occurs during our first period. Students have been instructed on how to pick a "just right" book and know that they must always have at least three books in their DEAR bags (a nonfiction and fiction selection, and a magazine).
Each child has their own SSR folder where they maintain a daily reading log to note when they read, the author and title of the book/magazine, and indicate what genre they are reading. When they are done reading a particular book, novel, poem, article, they assign a number to it to indicate whether they enjoyed it or not. Ask your child about our year-long SSR BINGO, their monthly Genre Tally, and their month-end individual reading self-assessment (also assessed by teacher).
The process is simple. Students get a Home Reading Minutes Log at the beginning of each month. Every time they read for 15 minutes they get an adult to initial one entry on their sheet. There are 18 spaces on a sheet. This means that students will need to read at home for 4.5 hours each month. This works out to approximately 15 minutes every other day. I know they can do it!
But wait! There are prizes!! When students complete their Home Reading Minutes sheet, they cut them up and enter their names into our monthly, month-end book draws. I give away about 7-9 books each month.
In May, if a student has completed their Home Reading Minutes for all the months from September to April (8 months), I will give them a Scholastic book of their choice (up to $5.00) and I will purchase pizza for a pizza party in June. If a student misses one month, they will not be eligible for the book gift, but they are still welcome at the pizza party. If a student misses two months of the Home Reading Minutes program, they lose both prizes.
Ask your child about the SSR BINGO incentive prize. Yes, they can double the value of the book they get at the end of the year (from $5 to $10) by reading from a wide range of genres.
It is my sincere hope that this is enough incentive to help jump start your child's home reading time. Please remind your child daily about doing a little bit of reading. Five minutes here and ten minutes there really add up!