Read.gov for Kids

The Library of Congress invites people of all ages to discover the fascinating people, places and events that await you whenever you read. Kids - Read.gov has online books (many of the classics) in their original format just waiting for kids of all ages to explore. You can read books ranging from Cinderella to Treasure Island - in addition to these amazing books there are contests and other links. Check out the link to the right of the blog. Enjoy!

Accelerated Weekend Experience at Northwestern University

What do you do with a bright adolescent with a thirst for knowledge but a full schedule?  How can parents continue to enrich their child's studies when extracurricular activities and other obligations compete for a young adult's time?  For academically talented students, the answer to both questions can be the same – the Accelerated Weekend Experience!

Accelerated Weekend Experience (AWE) provides academically bright students in grades 5 through 8 an opportunity to explore a subject of study in depth and with concentration, with an expert in the field, over one weekend. 

Since older students often juggle many commitments, the Accelerated Weekend Experience affords them the chance to be inspired, invigorated and impassioned in a short two-day session. Participants investigate a subject that is new to them and learn about its practical applications by collaborating with like-minded peers and vanguard instructors.

View the 2012-2013 AWE Course Offerings today!

REGISTRATION IS CURRENTLY OPEN!

Metacognition and Reading

I came across this section of an article from Bertie Kingore (long time researcher and specialist in gifted education and differentiation).

The tips included in her article are a quick and easy way to stretch students' thinking about their reading.  Many of these questions may seem natural and subconscious for a reader but good readers must be trained in this type of thinking despite their reading level.  For students whose thinking is developing and growing, making these questions part of their reading habits is essential to better understand and guide their understanding of a text, whether they are an elementary student or in high school.  The article mentioned below brings to the forefront the importance of asking these types of questions.

Full article: http://www.bertiekingore.com/readinginstruction.htm

Metacognition. As children read in school, they need to be guided in their development of metacognitive or self-monitoring strategies so that these important skills become an internalized part of their regular reading behavior (Cecil, 1995).Metacognition is referred to as thinking about thinking. It invites children to bring their thinking to a conscious level and provides a window that increases adults' understanding of students' behaviors. A parent reported that her gifted second-grade daughter did not want to participate in a discussion about a book she had immensely enjoyed, because "I have already discussed it with myself." Since gifted readers are so consciously involved in introspection, teachers [and parents can] continually analyze students' behaviors and talk with them to make sense of what is occurring in learning situations. (Abilock, 1999) Metacognitive Questions • What can you tell me about your reading? • What did you think was easy to do and hard to do? • What changes would you want to make? • What is the most important thing you learned from this? • What do you do when you are reading and you find a word you do not know? • When might it be a good idea to reread something? (Really important for strong readers who skip or miss nuances in the text due to speed of reading) • Why do you think that is so? • How did the author cause you to infer/conclude that? (This supports higher level thinking.) • What evidence can you use to support that? (One of the best questions to ask.  Many times under further investigation, opinions can change about a text!) • If you did not know, what would you do to get the most information?