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From the Fantastic to the Funny,
a Book for Everyone
Cultural experiences, foreign countries, historic discoveries, exciting tales, and fantastic ideas await your young readers.
Each month Reading A–Z adds new books and materials to the website. January's new books and lesson plans include leveled readers about the discovery of a Stone Age cave in France; prehistoric giant reptiles, insects, and other creatures that lived alongside dinosaurs; the makings of a perfect gift; outdoor winter fun; the life and death of King Tut; and two sisters who are swept away to the Rome of long ago.
The Reading A–Z comics collection also keeps growing, this month with School Days: The Dragon, about medieval horses that would rather be in class than toting around knights. And we have added to the popular "Monsters" series Bonk, the Healthy Monster, who may not be so healthy after he discovers the local candy store.
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Breathing New Life into Old Favorites
Every classroom has at least a few favorite classics on the shelves. But many teachers do not have time to plan lessons from scratch to use trade books to teach reading, so the great reads accumulate dust on bookshelves. Well, dust them off. Reading A-Z recently introduced trade book materials—lesson plans, worksheets, and activities—for many of the timeless favorites; books like "The Secret Garden," "The Wind in the Willows," "The Prince and the Pauper," and many more. Be sure to peruse the entire collection of trade book lessons and materials.
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At Home with America's Kids
"Just as we must focus on improving the time students spend in schools, as a society we need to help parents find ways to spend critical time with their children." So says Learning A–Z Vice President of Publishing Bob Holl in a recent blog article. Holl discusses recent studies showing what many educators already know—student success is only partly attributable to the level of learning in the classroom.
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Housing Market Slump Hits School Funding
The housing market has significant impact on state revenues. Experts forecast the slowdown in the housing market will mean education funding shortfalls in 2008, especially as student populations continue to grow. Read more at Bob's Blog about this predicted dilemma and how Learning A–Z's family of websites can help.
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Welcome back to work and school. Let's have a great Spring Semester.
Sincerely,
Bob Holl
Co-Founder and Vice President of Publishing
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Go Ahead, Write in These Books
Many of us were taught never to write in a book, so it might be a little difficult to wrap our minds around the concept of using Reading A–Z's printable books like workbooks, for reading and writing instruction. Since members can print as many books as they need—anytime, anywhere they have Internet access—they might as well take advantage of their multi-purpose capabilities. Try having students:
• Underline certain vocabulary words and write synonyms and antonyms above the words.
• Circle the parts of speech in a sentence in different colors.
• Label the main idea, significant details, topic sentences, problem/solution, etc.
• Highlight the five most important sentences.
Over the years, teachers, parents, educators, and students have sent us great tips on how to creatively use Reading A–Z's leveled readers for a variety of purposes. Be sure to send us your ideas, success stories, and any accompanying pictures, and we'll feature them in a future newsletter! It only takes a minute, and you can help tens of thousands of your colleagues. Be sure to tell us a little about yourself, too, so we can give credit where credit is due. Write to: editor2@learninga-z.com.
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Flashcards, Classifieds, and Thematic Activities
Want to find hundreds of the best websites for teachers? Sites for Teachers, a Learning A–Z sister website, provides a comprehensive list of Internet resources ranked by their popularity. Here are a few of our favorite sites:
StudyStack
Online flashcard program for multiple subjects
Time to Teach
Links to classifieds, lesson plan assistants, and educational software
Activity Idea Place
Resources arranged by winter and other topical themes
Many of the Sites for Teachers resources are free.
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