Read It

Monday, 14 March 2016

Read Across America Reader's Oath

A little bit of history

What is Read Across America?

Read Across America is an annual reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of beloved children’s author Dr. Seuss.

When did Read Across America begin?

It began in March 2nd , 1998. When it is also celebrated Dr. Seuss’s birthday.

Why Read Across America?

Motivating children to read is an important factor in student achievement and creating lifelong successful readers. Research has shown that children who are motivated and spend more time reading do better in school.

I promise to read
Each day and each night.
I know it's the key
To growing up right.

I'll read to myself,
I'll read to a crowd.
It makes no difference
If silent or loud.

I'll read at my desk,
At home and at school,
On my bean bag or bed,
By the fire or pool.

Each book that I read
Puts smarts in my head,
'Cause brains grow more thoughts
The more they are fed.

So I take this oath
To make reading my way
Of feeding my brain
What it needs every day.

Sunday, 21 February 2016

Pourquoi Tales

What Is a Pourquoi Tale?

"Pourquoi" [por-kwa] means "why" in French. Pourquoi tales are written to explain why things are the way they are and usually describe something in nature, especaily animals. Pourquoi tales are old legends told to explain why certain events happened. These tales often start in the past and end when the explanation is revealed.


Here are some for you to listen to.

What did the character say? Dialogue rules when writing.

Dialogue in a story helps the characters come alive. Hearing the words from the characters through dialogue is a way to keep readers interested and more involved in a story's plot. The punctuation rules for writing dialogue are learned by children so they can add the voice of the characters they create into their stories.

General Rules

Dialogue, or the spoken word of characters, is enclosed in quotation marks. The stranger said, "Hello, my name is the Big Bad Wolf." A quotation mark appears before the first word spoken and after the last spoken word. If the dialogue is at the end of a sentence, the quotation marks go after the punctuation mark at the end of the sentence. If the dialogue is followed by a tag explaining who said the words (e.g., she said, he remarked, Dad shouted) place a comma after the last word of the dialogue and before the quotation marks. "I'm happy to meet you," said the girl. Always capitalize the first word of dialogue.

Dialogue with a Pause

Dialogue is also written with a tag explaining who is saying the words between the spoken words. "I'm just going through the woods, "she explained,"to visit my grandmother."

New Speaker, New Paragraph

Each time a new speaker begins speaking, a new paragraph begins. Each new paragraph is indented. Look in a fiction book and notice how many new paragraphs are on a page because of the dialogue and speakers changing. Include quotation marks around all of the spoken words, but not the tag designating the speaker. A comma is enclosed in the first set of words. A comma also pauses the reader after the speaker is noted. Another set of quotation marks around the last part of the words with ending punctuation within the quotation marks will finish the dialogue.

Spice it Up

The word "said" when tagging the speaker becomes stale if overused. Use synonyms for said when identifying the speaker. Use words such as: whispered,mumbled,stammered,screamed,shouted,cried,demanded,pleaded,requested.

Use words in dialogue that the speaker might say. A teenager uses different words than a teacher. Choose words in the dialogue fitting to the character to make the character more real for the reader.