Book Talk #1

Welcome to our Book Talk series! In this series, I'll post a picture book every week and highlight some of the learning opportunities that you can leverage while reading with your learner(s).

My recommendation that will always stay the same for every Book Talk is:

• Repeat Read!! (I put two exclamation points to show you how important this is)

Please, for the love of literacy, read picture books that are engaging over and over again with your learner. This stands for at-home literacy, and it stands for classroom literacy as well. Rich learning happens when we move at a pace that matches our learners, and repeat reading can simultaneously slow learning down for learners that need more processing time while allowing learners that are ready to go deeper to make deeper connections over multiple readings.

This week's book is From Head to Toe by Eric Carle.

https://eric-carle.com/eric-carle-book-gallery/from-head-to-toe-1997/

#1: Compound Sentences

A simple sentence always has one subject and one verb. Sometimes, an object or an adjective can be added to a simple sentence. When two simple sentences are connected with "and," a compound sentence is created.

Take the first page: "I am a penguin and I turn my head." That's two simple sentences connected with 'and' - a compound sentence.

Using compound sentences is a great way to add detail without confusing the person you're communicating with, and having two separate ideas connected in this manner allows you to check on your learner's ability to comprehend compound sentences.

Try it out:

1. Find two toys that have moveable body parts (ex: teddy bears, superheroes, dolls, figurines).

2. Ask your learner to move one of the toys in a specific way (ex: "I am a _____ and I stomp my feet").

3. Did they choose the right toy? Did they move the toy in the right way?

*Understanding two-step directions is a 2 year old milestone, but please keep in mind that every child develops uniquely. In this activity, we are adding complexity by pretending to be the toy. You know your learner best, and you will know if this language skill is something that your learner needs to learn.

#2: Matching Meaning to Verbs

Each page of this book gives another action word (a verb). Since these verbs were specifically chosen to encourage movement, you can do the actions along with your learner. The more that your learner sees or does an action while hearing the word, the easier they will learn that new verb word. This book has a great list of verbs that aren't just your typical run/walk/go/stop, what a fun way to expand your learner's verb repertoire!

#3: Question/Answer Routine

Every new animal asks "Can you do it?" and every new child responds "I can do it!"

That's a rich language model for learners that are working on answering questions with the correct word order. It's a big skill to notice that the question-asking pattern is Verb-Subject ("Can you...") and that the response is flipped to Subject-Verb ("I can...").

You can use the predictable question and answer routine to your advantage by asking the question, and then waiting. I wonder if your learner will fill in the answer by themselves? If not, feel free to fill it in yourself. At some point, after your learner has heard the predictable question/answer routine enough times, they might just fill it in themselves if you give them enough wait time. I love a book that gives learners the chance to notice and use a pattern, it's a learning strategy that we use all the time.

#4: Repeated High Frequency Words

You may have heard High Frequency Words called sight words, Dolch or Fry lists, the first 100 words, etc. These are the words that we use the most in reading and writing. Some of these words follow phonics patterns really nicely, which means that they will be easier to sound out if your learner has had explicit phonics instruction. However, some High Frequency Words don't follow a phonics pattern - these are the words that make people says things like "English is impossible, it doesn't have rules" or "I don't know why that word is spelled like that, just memorize it." Not a great learning strategy in my book... stay tuned for another post and resource about High Frequency Words that takes that guesswork away.

For this book, the words 'you' and 'do' are repeated in that predictable question/answer routine - which means that your learner will get to see them on the page, in a sentence that makes sense, over and over again. Repetition is a great learning strategy, and a routine like this one can provide success for some of our more frustrated readers.

#5: Body Part Labelling

Being able to name body parts is something that we seem to think is crucial for learners (we have a similar obsession with animal sounds honestly - I'm not sure that I've ever needed to know or make a turkey's gobble sound in adult life...) Lots of tests that specialists might use to determine a child's functioning have body part questions, especially in the speech and language world, so it doesn't hurt to make sure that the basics are covered.

Similar to #2: Matching Meaning to Verbs, this book allows educators to match meaning to body parts. When the animals says a new body part, watch to see if your learner is looking or pointing at their own corresponding body part.

• If yes, woo hoo - standardized tests everywhere rejoice.

• If not yet, model by saying the word again while pointing at your own body part, and move on to keep the reading experience enjoyable. You can always revisit this skill during a repeat read!

Let me know what you notice - and reach out through the form on our website if you would like more individualized learning solutions! Happy reading (repeat it ... please...)!