Literacy and Math Event Guide
Take Your Family to School Week
Literacy and Math Event Guide Program proudly sponsored by:
The AXA Foundation, the philanthropic arm of AXA US, is the proud sponsor of PTA’s Take Your Family to School Week. Its signature program, AXA Achievement, helps students and parents take the next step toward college. The AXA Foundation has been a proud National PTA sponsor since 2005.
Why Host a Literacy or Math Event? Poor academic achievement, as early as elementary school, is a risk factor for high school dropouts. In fact, children who aren’t reading at grade level by fourth grade are four times less likely to complete high school by age 19. Research shows that students with families who are engaged with their schools earn higher grades and perform better on standardized tests. Literacy and Math events engage families in fun literacy-building or math skills activities that they can complete together. The activities usually focus on improving the reading or math skills of children between kindergarten and fifth grade. By participating in these events, families will learn: • The importance of family engagement in student success. • Simple games and activities that families can use at home to help build their children’s literacy and math skills. • The five domains of literacy—phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension and vocabulary— and how they come together to increase children’s reading skills. • The step-by-step process for learning math.
Who Is Involved? Recruiting a diverse team of parents/PTA members, school personnel and students will make planning and running your Literacy or Math Event much easier! Consider the following, in addition to the general suggestions included in this year’s Take Your Family to School Week Leader’s Guide: • Teachers, school librarians, reading or math specialists make ideal facilitators for the educational activities. Involving educators in these fun, informal activities helps parents connect with their child’s teachers in a relaxed environment. • Literacy Event: Use the PTA Family Reading Experience toolkit to host a literacy event. Consider inviting a representative of your local community library to attend your Literacy event. They might be willing to host a table where they sign children and their families up for library cards or feature some of the library’s resources. • Math Event: Engage parent volunteers who work in careers that use math—accountants, engineers, financial planners, bankers and computer scientists are just a few. • Ask students in math clubs or advanced mathematics classes to help out. Talk to their teachers or club advisors about the possibility of offering extra credit for participation in the event. PhonoL ogicaL
awaren Grades
PTA Family Reading Experience
The PTA Family Reading Experience includes a set of free activities and tools in English and Spanish to organize events that engage the entire family in improving reading skills for students between kindergarten and fifth grade. Visit PTA.org/familyreading for more information.
2
ess K–2
Phonolo gical awa reness is readers the abil demonst ity to und rate pho word. erstand nologica the indi l awarene vidual soun ss by blen ds in spok ding the en words. separate Beginni sounds ng of a wor Materi als: d to say the • Rhyme Bin go board • Toke s (provid ns (bingo ed) chips, pe • Lists nnies, or of rhymin cotton b g words ( alls) provided ) Prep ara
tion :
• Print the Rhyme B ingo boa depend rds (num on how m ber will any part have play icipants y ing at on ou will ce) and t words (on he list of e copy). rhyming • On each Bingo bo ard, writ from List e a variet 1. y of word s
Act ivit y
Inst ruct
ions: 1. Pass out Rhyme B ingo boa (with wo rds rds writte n in each to each square) family m ember. 2. Call out words fro m List 2, on 3. When pla e at a tim yers see e. with a word on their the word board th called o a to at rhyme ut, they ken. s cover tha 4. Play t word w ith ers win w hen they vert cover a ically or row: hor diagonal izontally ly. ,
Take Your Family to School Week: Literacy and Math Event Guide
Where Should Your Event Be Held? The goal of Take Your Family to School Week is to bring students, families and the community together on school grounds. Be sure to coordinate early with administrators to identify a location (or multiple locations) within the school that can accommodate your event, such as the library, cafeteria, classroom or gymnasium.
Materials Needed Tools for educational activity may include: • • • • • • • •
Refreshments Incentives/prizes Small gifts to recognize volunteers Stationery, printing and postage for flyers, solicitation letters and other promotion activities Microphone Pens, pencils, crayons and markers Index cards Audio visual equipment such as a laptop or screen
What Additional Questions Should You Consider? Specific activities for your Literacy or Math Event should be planned in partnership with your school’s teachers and school or district specialists. The following questions may help with planning: • What do our school data show about reading/language arts and math achievement? • What standards do our students struggle with most? • Which student groups should we target?
Recommended Resources • • • • • •
PTA Take Your Family to School Week – http://www.PTA.org/TYFTSW Parents’ Guide to Student Success – http://www.PTA.org/parentsguide PTA Family Reading Experience – http://www.PTA.org/FamilyReading Great Schools - http://www.GreatSchools.org First Book - http://www.FirstBook.org PBS Kids Math and Reading Resources – http://www.PBSkids.org
Take Your Family to School Week: Literacy and Math Event Guide 3
Literacy and Math Event Guide Program proudly sponsored by:
The AXA Foundation, the philanthropic arm of AXA US, is the proud sponsor of PTA’s Take Your Family to School Week. Its signature program, AXA Achievement, helps students and parents take the next step toward college. The AXA Foundation has been a proud National PTA sponsor since 2005.
Why Host a Literacy or Math Event? Poor academic achievement, as early as elementary school, is a risk factor for high school dropouts. In fact, children who aren’t reading at grade level by fourth grade are four times less likely to complete high school by age 19. Research shows that students with families who are engaged with their schools earn higher grades and perform better on standardized tests. Literacy and Math events engage families in fun literacy-building or math skills activities that they can complete together. The activities usually focus on improving the reading or math skills of children between kindergarten and fifth grade. By participating in these events, families will learn: • The importance of family engagement in student success. • Simple games and activities that families can use at home to help build their children’s literacy and math skills. • The five domains of literacy—phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension and vocabulary— and how they come together to increase children’s reading skills. • The step-by-step process for learning math.
Who Is Involved? Recruiting a diverse team of parents/PTA members, school personnel and students will make planning and running your Literacy or Math Event much easier! Consider the following, in addition to the general suggestions included in this year’s Take Your Family to School Week Leader’s Guide: • Teachers, school librarians, reading or math specialists make ideal facilitators for the educational activities. Involving educators in these fun, informal activities helps parents connect with their child’s teachers in a relaxed environment. • Literacy Event: Use the PTA Family Reading Experience toolkit to host a literacy event. Consider inviting a representative of your local community library to attend your Literacy event. They might be willing to host a table where they sign children and their families up for library cards or feature some of the library’s resources. • Math Event: Engage parent volunteers who work in careers that use math—accountants, engineers, financial planners, bankers and computer scientists are just a few. • Ask students in math clubs or advanced mathematics classes to help out. Talk to their teachers or club advisors about the possibility of offering extra credit for participation in the event. PhonoL ogicaL
awaren Grades
PTA Family Reading Experience
The PTA Family Reading Experience includes a set of free activities and tools in English and Spanish to organize events that engage the entire family in improving reading skills for students between kindergarten and fifth grade. Visit PTA.org/familyreading for more information.
2
ess K–2
Phonolo gical awa reness is readers the abil demonst ity to und rate pho word. erstand nologica the indi l awarene vidual soun ss by blen ds in spok ding the en words. separate Beginni sounds ng of a wor Materi als: d to say the • Rhyme Bin go board • Toke s (provid ns (bingo ed) chips, pe • Lists nnies, or of rhymin cotton b g words ( alls) provided ) Prep ara
tion :
• Print the Rhyme B ingo boa depend rds (num on how m ber will any part have play icipants y ing at on ou will ce) and t words (on he list of e copy). rhyming • On each Bingo bo ard, writ from List e a variet 1. y of word s
Act ivit y
Inst ruct
ions: 1. Pass out Rhyme B ingo boa (with wo rds rds writte n in each to each square) family m ember. 2. Call out words fro m List 2, on 3. When pla e at a tim yers see e. with a word on their the word board th called o a to at rhyme ut, they ken. s cover tha 4. Play t word w ith ers win w hen they vert cover a ically or row: hor diagonal izontally ly. ,
Take Your Family to School Week: Literacy and Math Event Guide
Where Should Your Event Be Held? The goal of Take Your Family to School Week is to bring students, families and the community together on school grounds. Be sure to coordinate early with administrators to identify a location (or multiple locations) within the school that can accommodate your event, such as the library, cafeteria, classroom or gymnasium.
Materials Needed Tools for educational activity may include: • • • • • • • •
Refreshments Incentives/prizes Small gifts to recognize volunteers Stationery, printing and postage for flyers, solicitation letters and other promotion activities Microphone Pens, pencils, crayons and markers Index cards Audio visual equipment such as a laptop or screen
What Additional Questions Should You Consider? Specific activities for your Literacy or Math Event should be planned in partnership with your school’s teachers and school or district specialists. The following questions may help with planning: • What do our school data show about reading/language arts and math achievement? • What standards do our students struggle with most? • Which student groups should we target?
Recommended Resources • • • • • •
PTA Take Your Family to School Week – http://www.PTA.org/TYFTSW Parents’ Guide to Student Success – http://www.PTA.org/parentsguide PTA Family Reading Experience – http://www.PTA.org/FamilyReading Great Schools - http://www.GreatSchools.org First Book - http://www.FirstBook.org PBS Kids Math and Reading Resources – http://www.PBSkids.org
Take Your Family to School Week: Literacy and Math Event Guide 3
