April 12, 2013

Dear Parent/Guardian:

During the month of April and May the entire school community will read, Kate DiCamillo’s  best-selling novel, The Mysterious Journey of Edward Tulane.  This year, the adults and students pledged to read the same book our third book, for the 2012-2013 school year.  Every family will receive a copy of the same book.  I am personally asking you to reserve a time so your family can participate in this special activity. We believe that reading is a lifelong venture which enhances and enriches our daily lives.

Reading aloud at home is valuable because it better prepares your child to be an effective reader.  With the One School, One Book program, we aim to build a community of readers.  Everyone in our school community reads the book; students, parents, teachers, support staff and principal.  One School, One Book is a novel program in that children at all grade levels will all be listening to the same book.  We selected a title that can be followed, understood, and enjoyed by younger students. We hope that our older students also become captivated and energized by the text.

Each family will receive one copy of The Mysterious Journey of Edward Tulane.  When the book comes home, you will receive a tailored reading schedule so you can keep up at home.  Please read a chapter a night by reserving about 15 minutes per night to engage in this rich adventure.

Week of April 8-14, Chapters 1-4, pages 3-34.

Week of April 15-21, Chapters 5-7, pages 35-58.

Week of April 22-28, Chapters 8-10, pages 61-80

Week of April 29 –May 5, Chapters 11-13, pages 83-102

Week of May 6-12, Chapters 14-17, pages 105-136

Week of May 13–19, Chapters 18-20, pages 139-158

Week of May 20-26, Chapters 21-23, pages 161-185

Week of May 26-June 2, Chapters 24-27

In school, your child will be invited to answer daily trivia questions to encourage and reward attentive, aggressive listening.  You will soon find that your child will take pride in knowing and anticipating the details of the story.  In class, there may be various activities which discuss or explore the book.   You will want to make sure your family keeps up so your child can be included.  Throughout April and May, everyone will be talking about The Mysterious Journey of Edward Tulane!

Strange or daring as that may seem, it actually makes sound educational sense.  Reading professionals recommend reading material out loud that is beyond a child’s own reading level.  You can and should continue reading chapter books with your older children, even when they are able to read by themselves. 

I hope to talk with both you and your student sometime this month about the adventures of Edward Tulane – and the lessons he learns.  With your help, we can build a Community of Readers at our school.

“Reading aloud with children is known to be the single most important activity for building the knowledge and skills they will eventually require for learning to read.” ^{- Marilyn Jager Adams}

Sincerely,

Aura Wharton Beck

Principal

Shelfari:

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog