Learning in the Car

In early childhood, every moment counts! Providing opportunities for children to be exposed to oral language, especially in the forms of high quality songs, stories, and fingerplays will help them in their future reading and writing success. Since young children spend so much time in the car, consider investing in CDs that emphasize these language strategies.

-play rhyming, quality children's music (e.g., Raffi) that use rhyme, play on words, and rhythm in songs

-expose children to nursery rhymes by playing them in the car (knowledge of nursery rhymes has been proven to be an indicator of reading success later on in life)

-encourage children to learn the names of letters and their corresponding sounds by playing CDs that emphasize these

-simple recorded stories can be borrowed from the library and played. By not seeing a corresponding picture, children are free to use their imaginations to illustrate the text

-play sound games with children. Stretch out words by emphasizing their individual sounds and encourage children to guess what the word it (e.g., c-a-t is cat)

-play I spy but use sounds (e.g., I spy something that begins with an 'a' sound)

-engage your children in conversation in the car. Encourage them to describe their day by prompting them with higher-level questioning such as who, what, why, where, when, and how questions. Avoid yes/no responses that limit children's explanation

Empowering Families in the Interview Process

I recently experienced my first parent-teacher interview from a mother's perspective. As a teacher I have held hundreds of interviews with families related to their children's progress and development in our classroom. Participating in the interview from the other side helped me realize how I could modify my interviewing process to help families feel more comfortable and get the most for the very short duration of time we are together.

Consider:

-providing families with a template for the interview ahead of time that will guide them through the process and help them consider what information and questions they really want to discuss with you

-have children's work available to families before the interview (e.g., on their desks, in file folders) so families can spend the time waiting for the interview reviewing this work

-consider having copies of recent newsletters, memos, and any other pertinent classroom information posted outside the interview space for family review

-encourage families to bring their children to the interview so they can be a part of this learning experience

-provide families with a 'comments' form to return after the interview that allows them to ask further questions and provide feedback to you regarding the interview experience