Getting parents and children off to a strong start in reading

 

Getting parents and children off to a strong start in reading

A In recent years literacy experts have expressed concern that children are not reading enough for pleasure and that many youngsters are never read to by their parents. They claim that children who are left to fill their own time, watching TV and playing computer games may be at a serious disadvantage later on in life. In an effort to offset this alarming trend a Czech NGO is organizing an annual week of events to provide inspiration for a habit that may turnaround a child’s life.

B Once a year it is Czechs Read to their Kids Week – a series of reading events in hundreds of locations around the country. The tradition was established in 2007 by Eva Katrušáková and has gained increasing popularity. I asked Eva how the idea emerged. “I would say that everyone has been looking for a way to bring children back to reading books. Originally, the idea came from abroad from Jim Trelease. He has been promoting the idea of reading aloud to children for many years in the United. We all know that reading is good, but maybe some of us don’t realize how important it is to a child’s development. It positively effects a child’s emotional development, improves their language skills and thinking abilities, it develops their memory and imagination, improves their attention span, deepens their knowledge. “

C Do you feel that parents have stopped reading aloud to their children? “Well, maybe stopped is not the right word, but many of them think that if they put their child if front of the TV or give them a computer game it is the same as reading aloud to them – and that is simply not true.“

D How have children responded to all this? “Oh, the kids are really great. We bring them songs, short readings aloud, theatre plays and what is uppermost in our minds is that reading should always be a pleasure for a child, for any child, and never a compulsory thing, a punishment or a boring experience. So we try to keep them happy when we prepare programmes for them. And when Mr. Jiří Labus or Mr. Zdeněk Svěrák read for the kids they simply love it.”

E Are parents receptive to the message that you are spreading? Have you seen signs of positive change since 2007? “It is a strong annual reminder which is good because parents sometimes forget about the need to read to their children. We don’t have any numbers yet, but we can see how many people, institutions, schools, kindergartens, mother centres and literary cafes are involved in the project – so we know that it is worth doing.“

Adjusted to (1)

offset – vyrovnat, vykompenzovat

span – doba, rozpětí

1) Read the article and match each of the headings to a paragraph.

1 Children sit at the TV instead

2 Children aren’t fond of reading, which should be changed

3 Many people are involved in the project

4 The idea of reading aloud to children comes from the US

5 Children are pleased because it isn’t compulsory

2) Read the article and answer the questions.

1 What do literacy experts say? Why are they worried?

2 What is Czechs Read to their Kids? Where does this idea come from?

3 Why do parents read less to their children?

4 What are children’s reactions? Why?

5 How has the approach towards reading changed since 2007?

3) Explain the following words and phrases.

1 literacy experts

2 reading enough for pleasure

3 reading aloud

4 it develops their memory and imagination

5 literary cafes

4) Answer the following questions.

Why should we read to children? How often? What happens when we read to them? What is Celé Česko čte dětem project? How does our school participate? Where?

Video:

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Tips, sources of information:

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Source:

(1)https://goo.gl/zj7NEfLAZAROVÁ, Daniela. Getting parents and children off to a strong start in reading. Český rozhlas [online]. 2015 [cit. 2015-09-21]. Available at: http://radio.cz/en/section/panorama/getting-parents-and-children-off-to-a-strong-start-in-reading--1

Children with Communication Disabilities Profit from Inclusion into Regular Classes

 Children with Communication Disabilities Profit from Inclusion into Regular Classes

A Petr is 10 years old. He was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome at the age of 3. Till that time, he did not speak at all. And any time feeling uncomfortable, he often threw fits of tantrum. Péťa started attending a free-time centre in Třebíč at the age of four instead of preschool, as none of the preschool teachers wanted to accept him to their class. And his school attendance had to be postponed twice, so he started school attendance at the age of 8. Pedagogy-psychological specialists agreed with his mother to apply for a pedagogy assistant with the recommendation to place Petr into a regular school.

B The secret of enhancing language skills of preschoolers with disabilities may be to place them into classrooms with typically developing peers. Children with disabilities significantly develop their language skills over the course of a year, in case they can interact with other children who have good language knowledge. In fact, children with disabilities have language skills comparable to children without disabilities after one year of preschool. They benefit from being surrounded by highly skilled classmates. Children with disabilities have limited opportunity to improve their use of language if they are not surrounded by highly skilled peers them.

C Petr’s mother decided not to send her son to a special preschool. She rather quitted her job and spent the whole day with her son, and they attended a free-time centre together, so that little Péťa could stay in contact with other children on a regular basis. They were involved in many art, therapeutic and speech activities. Petr’s communication skills developed slowly, and when starting school attendance, he spoke fluently. But he still had a lot of difficulties with social interaction.

D Children with disabilities who are included to regular classes with more skilled peers are affected by the skill levels of their classmates. For those children with disabilities who are in classrooms with the highly skilled peers, language scores at the and of the school year are much better than those of children with disabilities who were placed to special schools. Other benefits of school inclusion are development of a positive understanding of themselves, development of friendships, enhancing empathy, and sharing knowledge and information.

E Nowadays, Péťa is attending the third class. He does not need an assistant anymore. He has the best school results of all children in the classroom. Moreover, his dream is to become a university professor. And on top of that, he has superior knowledge of maths, loves reading encyclopaedia, and learning English.

Adjusted to (1)

 

1) Read the article and match each of the headings to a paragraph.

1 Benefits of preschool education

2 Petr’s preschool education

3 Petr today

4 Pre-schoolers with disabilities should attend normal preschools

5 Petr’s case

 

2) Read the article and answer the questions.

1 What does the article refer to?

2 Who is Petr?

3 What is written about Petr’s preschool education?

4 What are the benefits of inclusion?

5 What is written about Péťa’s life today?

 

3) Explain the following words and phrases.

1 Asperger’s Syndrome

2 typically developing peers

3 limited opportunity to improve their use of language

4 art, therapeutic and speech activities

5 development of a positive understanding of themselves

 

Source:

(1)

FRAŇKOVÁ, Ruth. Future of almost 500 children unclear after charity crisis. Český rozhlas [online]. 2015 [cit. 2019-04-14]. Available at: http://radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/future-of-almost-500-children-unclear-after-charity-crisis

 

Music in the project English4Family

 Music in the project English4Family

A Teacher Veronika Bílková wants to show how music can help preschoolers and younger school children from the ages of 5 to 9 learn a language with an actual curriculum. This project is realized in the city of Jihlava.

B Not all preschool children are getting adequate music instruction that could evoke real progress in their overall development, particularly their reading and writing readiness, according to the teacher. This is mainly true when speaking about children in need. “Our project has the ambition to create a model showing how music can influence overall development of children in preschools and primary schools and help classroom teachers present music activities in these institutions,” Veronika, teacher of Social College in Jihlava says.

C Veronika’s project appears at this time when some schools are deciding to cut music out of their curriculum, and some do not present music adequately. “When we lose the opportunity to introduce music to children at such a formative age, it might have a very negative impact,” the teacher says. But the situation can be even worse for preschool and younger-school children because Veronika’s project has shown that music can make young children readier to profit from classroom instruction and become better readers as well.

D Veronika has been realizing a project English4Family dealing with musical activities for three years, and has so far involved 80 students of Preschool and Extracurricular Pedagogy and 20 preschool and primary-school teachers and more than 200 pre-school and primary-school children who took part in musical activities. All involved teachers have intensive musical skills and learning strategies for conducting the musical development of young children. Children and teachers experience the music at regular music sessions where music is introduced in connection with English. “Our project includes English songs, songs that improve rhythm and rhyme, songs that support auditory discrimination, they are connected with movement, space and time development, playing and exploring simple instruments,” she explained.

E “This project develops children’s music learning, their knowledge of English,” Veronika says, “but it also professionally develops their teachers so that their future classes of children will benefit from music. This is something that both teachers and children will once appreciate and it will cultivate their whole lives.”

Adjusted to (1)

 

1) Read the article and match each of the headings to a paragraph.

1 The project English4Family has involved many people

2 This project influences also teachers

3 Music supports children’s development

4 Music project in Jihlava

5 Some schools are deciding to cut music out of their curriculum

 

2) Read the article and answer the questions.

1 What does Veronika say about influence of music education on learning abilities?

2 What is the situation concerning music in the Czech schools like?

3 What kind of project did Veronika start? Who is she?

4 What skills will be practiced?

5 How will teachers benefit from this project?

 

3) Explain the following words and phrases.

1 curriculum

2 reading and writing readiness

3 rhythm and rhyme

4 simple instruments

5 to professionally develop

 

Source:

ANZALONE, Charles. Music curriculum aims to nurture preschoolers' language skills. News Center University at Buffalo [online]. 2014 [cit. 2015-09-21]. Available at: http://www.buffalo.edu/ news/releases/2014/07/041.html

 

Inspiring creativity in young children in the dance club Hotch-Potch Jihlava

 Inspiring creativity in young children in the dance club Hotch-Potch Jihlava

A Sometimes, as I showed my 3-year-old children in the dance club Hotch-Potch in Jihlava some new materials to work and dance with, they would ask me: “What does it do? What are we going to do with it?"” These questions make me think about what parents give their children to play with. Very often, these are toys and manipulatives that are designed to “do” something interesting. However, they do not push the child to do too much. My favourite choice for manipulatives I use in preparatory dance lessons have always been materials that are called “open-ended”. These are things that require children to think and adjust for themselves.

B For example, I once read a fairy tale of a “Little naughty breeze” with my class. This story is especially suited for younger children, preschool children and children in primary school. I used storytelling, children were engaged in their fantasy, curiosity and taste to try what the animals do in the story. I could have presented the yoga positions to the children, but I let them think them up themselves. After the movement part, we added visual artwork. Painting animals from positions might be a good idea or colouring in animals from printables. But I offered the children ribbons, strings, and little balls to create the fairy tale on the floor as they imagined. We involved most of our senses, and boosted our creativity. The children created amazing work of art and were proud of their creation. They cooperated and remembered the activity also after the lesson.

C My aim here was to use open-ended materials which did not ‘do’ anything, but they could be used in an originative way to inspire the child to create something. In this way, the children really immersed into a nice piece of children’s literature through movement and visual arts. They also discovered basics of choreography as they were encouraged to create a piece of dance art on their own.

D What can teachers and parents learn from this educational approach? We should think about toys we buy carefully and develop projects that allow children to be more creative, although it could be a bit of a dirty effort. And we should also try to reuse the things that are already in our surroundings as a means to support our creativity.

E And sometimes, the best manipulatives are not in the classroom or in the house. They are outdoors, provided by nature. I believe my own creativity was originally boosted and inspired by my ability to see products in clusters of wood, stones and rubbish. The ability to be creative can be the most important quality of our child. So next time, we are in a toy shop, we must ask ourselves: “What will motivate my child to ‘do’?”

Adjusted to (1)

1) Read the article and match each of the headings to a paragraph.

1 Buying toys should be more inventive

2 Creative activities and open-ended materials

3 Nature and creativity

4 A lot of toys aren’t creative enough

5 Wind story and activities

 

2) Read the article and answer the questions.

1 What is the majority of toys in toyshops like?

2 Who is the story teller?

3 How was the lesson improved?

4 What should parents think about more?

5 Where can they find inspiration for creative activities?

 

3) Explain the following words and phrases.

1 manipulatives

2 printables

3 to boost creativity

4 open-ended materials

5 to reuse things

Source:

(1)

PALACIOS, Rebecca. Inspiring Creativity in Young Children. ABCmouse [online]. 2012 [cit. 2019-01-29]. Available at: https://www.abcmouse.com/results-and-references-articles/sarticles.inc?num=7

 

Fibichova Preschool teachers talk about the importance of art

 Fibichova Preschool teachers talk about the importance of art

A When I asked the headteacher from Fibichova Preschool in Jihlava, a small preschool with only two classes, why art is important and how it is being taught in preschools, she told me her answer could be too long and she would rather invite her colleague to speak on the topic as well.

B Věra Kalinová, headteacher, and her colleague Tereza Smolíková, teacher at Fibichova preschool explained: “The skills which we practice in art are the abilities that children can use throughout their lives. These processes are important, and they are a vital part of human experience. Art is used in our preschool as a way for children to translate the world through their own eyes to create something new and personal. It is a way our children can express their experience to others. Art can be an essential part of each child’s learning experience.”

C “Art can support children to become better problem solvers, and they can develop their decision making and critical thinking skills,” noted Tereza Smolíková. “Working on manual art activities can develop children’s fine motor skills. Art also reinforces what is taught,” added Věra Kalinová. “We offer our children art activities which they may not otherwise do, and we also introduce art from other cultures. The arts inspire children to create and use their imagination, and they also develop self-confidence.”

D During our conversation, I watch preschool children who are just compiling a map of Africa. “Later on, we will place animals there that we made from pressed paper yesterday”, Tereza Smolíková explains. “As you can see, children are able to develop independence and collaboration through these activities,” Věra Kalinová expressed. She is persuaded that arts teach children that problems can have more than one solution. Children can develop not only their communication skills but also non-verbal communication and ability to concentrate.

E Fibichova Preschool was founded in the 1950s and is once one of the famous villas of the Vysočina Region. Due to its size, low number of children and the amazing locality of a large garden with many full-grown trees, the preschool manages to establish a family education. The atmosphere is highly stimulating, socializing and protective.

 

1) Read the article and match each of the headings to a paragraph.

1 Children work together on a project

2 Climate of the preschool

3 Headteacher wanted her colleague to participate

4 Art supports critical thinking and motor skills

5 Art develops thinking and prepares for future life

 

2) Read the article Fibichova Preschool teachers talk about the importance of art and choose the correct answer:

1 Why did the headteacher want her colleague to join her?

2 Why do the teachers think art skills are important?

3 What do art classes develop according to Tereza Smolíková?

4 Which qualities does art boost according to Věra Kalinová?

5 What is the environment of the preschool like?

 

3) Explain the following words and phrases.

1 to translate the world through their own eyes

2 to become better problem solvers

3 fine motor skills

4 to develop independence and collaboration

5 non-verbal communication

 

Source:

(1) ROZNIK, Sharon. FDL art teachers talk about the importance of art. FDL Reporter [online]. 2015 [cit. 2015-09-21]. Available at: http://www.fdlreporter.com/story/news/local/2015/03/06/fdl-art-teachers-talk-importance-art/24500883/