In the 2008-09 school year Duclos School
students read ! books, at home. All
students in Duclos School take part in “Just Read”, a home reading
program. The students are expected to read each night. Titles
of the books that students read are recorded and handed into their
teachers on the last school day of the week.
What is the
purpose of “Just Read”?
“Just
Read” is based on the research that the more students read the better
readers they will become which has a great impact on achievement in all
subjects. Emily Calhoun (1998), in the Literacy
for All document, reports that there is
a high correlation between extensive reading outside of school and high
vocabulary development and reading comprehension. Frank Smith (1998), in The
Book of Learning and Forgetting, reports
the research findings that teenagers learn an average of 3400 words a
year. The number of new words learned ranged from 1500 to 8500 words per
year. What made the difference? READING!
How much reading do students need to do
outside of school?
The
research suggests that when students, reading at their appropriate reading
levels, reach certain targets, there is a significant impact on growth in
reading and writing. These are the minimum targets that we
have chosen for students in Northern Lights School Division:
**
Many teachers at Duclos expect more than the minimum targets. A good
goal for your child is to have them read for at least 20 minutes a night,
recording all the books that they have read during this time.
Kindergarten:
5 picture
books/week (read or read to them)
Grades
1-2:
5 picture
books/week
Grades
3-4:
We
hope that the students will be reading a variety of books, with a balance
between fiction and non-fiction.
