Family Literacy

Before:	Set up a Book Nook, a special, private place in your home that provides your child a safe and comfortable place to read.
	Encourage your child to visit the school or public library and check out library books to read during the hurricane.
	Request from your school or local public library a list of recommended titles or new titles that might be of interest to your child. If these are not available, you might request a list of grade appropriate titles.
	With your child, search your school's online library catalog, Destiny (https://destiny.dadeschools.net/common/welcome.jsp) for books that might be of interest. Print titles of the books your child is interested in reading and have him present the titles to the school library media specialists for checkout.
During:	Ask your child to tell you about the story they are reading. Ask what part of the story or book your child liked best and why.Take turns reading sections of the book with your child.
	Ask your child to write a review of the book that will be given to the media specialist when school reopens .
	Ask your child to keep you company by reading an article or a book of their choice to you while you accomplish a chore. At the end of a chapter, stop reading and discuss what might come next. Ask your child to justify his ideas (i.e. Why do you think that? Have you based your ideas on the story so far?). Continue reading, and discuss the child's predictions. Was he correct?
	Ask your child to make a bookmark to illustrate the book.
	Ask your child to make an Illustration Coloring Book. Give the book artist sheets of white paper to position over various picture-book illustrations. The child traces the outlines in the illustration (some books are more appropriate for this kind of activity than others), then removes the sheet and writes a caption: "Curious George does tricks on his bike." The book artists can choose one illustration to trace and color for a book cover. The tracings are stapled together along the top or the left side to make a book. (www.rif.org)
	Help your child create a vocabulary bank of words he finds interesting from his reading and write them on index cards. Ask him to illustrate the words.
	Ask your child to create an alphabet book using words from the books he's read. Have him illustrate his book.
	Ask your child to read to his younger sibling(s) and explain what is happening in the story.
	Ask if your child liked the ending of the story. Why or why not? How would he change it?
	Ask your child what type of mood the story or chapter in a book creates. Ask how the author created that mood. Was it with words? Pictures? Drawings?
	Ask your child to compare a book to another familiar book. How are the characters alike or different? Do the stories take place in similar settings? How are the illustrations the same or different?
After:	Encourage your child to discuss the books he read during the storm, through participation in writing activities and school closed-circuit television programs, if applicable.
	Encourage your child to return the books to the library media center and check out new materials.