Sunday, August 12, 2007

Reading Aloud


I really liked this post from BookMoot, so I am going to link it here, but also quote the advice and rules here as well:

My advice and rules for newbie read-alouders
1. You HAVE to like the book you are going to read. 2. Read the book before hand 3. Try to have the kids "below" you. If you are sitting in a chair, get them on the floor. If they are in chairs, stand. Maybe this is just me but I like to be at a "commanding" elevation if possible. 4. Know what kind of time frame you are expected to fill. 5. Make eye contact with your listeners while you are reading. 6. Have fun! If you are not enjoying yourself, no one else will.

These are not my words, but I totally agree with all of them
Do you have other advise or rules? Any books you would recommend? Feel free to comment!

3 comments:

AMY T said...

I'm often surprised and gratified when a book I wouldn't have predicted turns out to be an excellent read aloud. The Tale of Desperaux was like this, for me. I liked it fine enough, just reading it to myself, but I LOVED it as a read aloud. Also, Becoming Naomi Leon, and Bud, Not Buddy are fun ones, for me, to read out loud. I'm looking forward to trying out Harry Sue, in a few weeks. My two cents of advice to add to the list is that it's helpful to listen to a variety of children's books on CD. This has helped me develop "voices" and other fun techniques.

I read about a profession that existed about a hundred years ago---a person who would read books out loud to miners and factory workers. I so enjoy reading out loud that I often cite this as my other "dream job".

Jessica said...

Great tips, thanks :) And, I've never had much chance to read aloud to "younger ones", and I'm not sure I would be the best for it. My brother, though,he is good at it.

Anyway, here are some good books: Old Yeller, A Dog's Life by Ann M. Martin, ANY Dr. Seuss books, The Christmas Box by Richard Evans, and erm... I can't really think of any more (my brain is is blocked :) But, maybe those aren't the best to read aloud. I'm just trying to list short, but really great books...

Jen Barney said...

I always put voices to my characters when reading. I have had several past students who come to visit and ask to talk in a characters voice. It is so funny!