Baggie Books

Dear Parents,

I am happy to announce the start of Kindergarten Baggie Books program. Baggie Books are supplemental to our Reading program. These books promote reading skills through predictable, patterned and rhyming text. Over the past three years, Reading Specialists at Arcadia have collected data suggesting that the kindergarten Baggie Book program has positively influenced reading achievement of students entering first grade. We strongly encourage all parents to read Baggie Books at home with you child on a daily basis. Further observations have suggested that students who read several Baggie Books each week progress in the area of reading at a faster rate that students who read only 1 book weekly. The students reading more than one book weekly may emerge with fluent reading skills by the end of their kindergarten year.

Your child will pick a book of his choice to take home and read. There are 17 levels of baggie books and your child will be reading at the level that is appropriate for him/her. This promotes success-oriented reading experiences and builds on self-confidence. Eventually he will begin to read it for himself. There are a variety of stages at which your child may be reading:

   *Parent reads book to child and parent finger points to each word.
       *Student will retell story through pictures in the story.
       *Student will memorized text.
       *Student will finger point to each word as he reads the story.
       *Student will begin to recognize the words of the text and connects print to meaning

The baggie books should be read each night at home. Please have your child keep his baggie book in his "Doc It" organizer when it is not being read. I listen to the children read their baggie books daily. Your child needs to have his baggie book with him onhis assigned reading day. Parent and grandparent volunteers, will also be listening to the kindergarten children read their baggie books.

As the year progresses, your child will be bring home more then one baggie book in his "Doc It" organizer. There will be some previously read or "familiar" books and one new book for your child to read. We call it "familiar reading" when a child has an opportunity to reread familiar material. Please have your child read his new book and his familiar books to you daily.

Within the next few weeks you will find a set of word cards in your childs "Doc It" organizer. I will add some high frequency words to your child's set of word cards as the year progresses. These words will come directly from the text of your child's baggie books. Please review these words with your child frequently. I am looking forward to this being a successful and enjoyable learning experience for your child.

Sincerely,

        Ms. Bradly
     

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