This month's book of the month is The Tale of Despereaux. The First Lady's office (state of Tennessee) offers family activities to go along with our book choice for December.
1. The name Desperaux comes from the words ‘desperate’ and ‘despair’. What do these two words mean? Why do you think author Kate DiCamillo chose this name for her mouse hero? Can you find examples in the book when Despereaux might be acting desperate or in despair? 2. The four connected stories in the book teach us about having different perspectives and how our own actions might affect others. Whose perspective do you identify with most in the story? Imagine that you are Roscuro the rat. How do you feel when Princess Pea looks at you in disgust after you fall into the soup? How do you think the King might feel when you steal the Queen’s spoon for revenge? 3. Many of the characters in The Tale of Despereaux have lots of rules to follow. Why do we have rules? Are rules good for everyone, or do some rules seem silly? Which characters in the story broke the rules? Make a list of the rules that you follow every day! 4. In this book, mice and rats seem very different, but they share some similar qualities. Head to your local library to do some research on mice and rats. Take notes on their physical appearances, food, habitats, and behaviors. How are these two rodents alike? How are they different? Make a Venn Diagram to display what you find! 5. All of the characters live in different parts of the same castle. The author uses many adjectives and scenarios to help us envision what the castle is like. Use the descriptions and information provided in the book to draw what you think their castle might look like! Show a friend where all of the characters live in your drawing. - See more at: https://www.tn.gov/firstlady/section/book-of-the-month#sthash.NucXaSHf.dpuf
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Asking questions before, during, and after reading can improve comprehension. Children are natural at asking questions. They are trying to figure out how the world works every day. This desire to find out what is happening and how it happened helps to make reading fun. If reading time is fun, then your child will want to spend more time reading. The more they read, the better they become at reading. You can help your child fall in love with reading by talking about the book together, sharing your questions, and encouraging their curiosity. This is easiest to do when you can find a topic that the child really wants to read about.
Here are some tips on asking questions to improve reading comprehension: 1. When you are looking at the cover, what questions does your child have? Write a few questions on sticky notes to help them get ready to read. 2. Play a game. Try to find books related to the questions your child has asked. 3. Encourage your child to ask questions that they are wondering as you read together. Share your questions as an example. If you ask your child a question from the reading, ask them to find the answer on the page. |
AuthorI am a certified reading specialist with a background in speech pathology. I love reading and sharing this passion for learning with students. Archives
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