Saturday, March 5, 2011

Celebrate World Read-Aloud Day, March 9


Who doesn't love to hear a good story? People of all ages enjoy read-alouds, though we most often think of children and children's books. Reading aloud to and with kids develops their reading skills and opens the door to learning about their worlds or enjoying the fun of fantasy, stimulating their imaginations.

LitWorld has declared March 9 as World Read-Aloud Day and has suggested activities you can participate in, including joining the event on Facebook. If nothing else, read aloud to someone at your own home or someone via phone, or read to a pet!

What are some good read-aloud books? Very often, they have refrains or rhymes that the audience can join in on. Sometimes they have characters that the reader can give funny voices. One of my favorite read-alouds is the now modern classic, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault, illustrated by Lois Ehlert. It gives the audience a new way to see the alphabet and opportunity to call out the refrain with a loud "Boom BOOM!"

The E.B. White Award was created in 2004 to honor "terrific" read-aloud books. The 2010 winner was Peter Brown's The Curious Garden. (See more about Peter in my post from Oct. 3, 2010.)

Jim Trelease is well known as an expert on read-alouds and the author of The Read Aloud Handbook, which has undergone six editions. His "Treasury of Read-alouds" offers great book suggestions and includes appropriate grade levels.

What would you miss if you couldn't read or write? Here are some people's answers:


What is your favorite read-aloud? I'll be listening for it on Wednesday!

3 comments:

  1. Great post! Reading aloud is a special way to share.

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  2. Thanks for your comments, bluerabbit. Yes, reading aloud is good sharing, good caring time.

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  3. Uważaj na to co będziesz mieć na głowie to uwolnisz się od wrogów tchórzliwie ukrywających się w cieniu.

    ReplyDelete