Date: Fri 19-Feb-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: ANN

Quick Words:

education-St-Rose-reading

Full Text:

Reading "Comes Alive" At St Rose

(with cuts)

BY ANN MARIE COHEN

Class size doubled in an elementary classroom at St Rose this month. Lifelike

characters sat along countertops of the room looking like they might

participate in class at any moment.

These characters were created by students in Frances Van Zanten's fourth grade

class. Children were to select a book to read from a list of Newberry Award

Books. They were assigned a written book report as well as a three minute oral

presentation. Students were then encouraged to assess their own work by

writing a self-evaluation, and the class as a whole critiqued each speech

using guidelines provided.

It is Mrs Van Zanten's hope that this process will, over time, help the

students avoid common errors.

As a culminating activity in the project, the children were to design a visual

aid that represented a character from their chosen book. The results were

original and creative. Slowly a cast of characters made of papier-mache,

paint, paste, and sewn materials took their places in the room.

Most impressive was the widespread enthusiasm the children felt for their

reading project. It is Mrs Van Zanten's goal to help her students develop

reading as a life-long habit.

Each Thursday reading is reinforced with "Silent Sustained Reading" for 20

minutes. The children can escape to "hidden worlds" such as adventure,

mystery, and fantasy without leaving their classroom. Spread around the room

are mats, blankets and pillows where the children read what interests them.

Mrs Van Zanten's future plans for the class will be to read Orphan Tourney

Home, a 20-chapter story written by Liza Ketchum.

The children very much enjoy being read to, so when time permits, Mrs Van

Zanten reaches for her copy of Maniac McGee, written by Terry Spinelli. "I

hope that with all the emphasis that I place on reading, my students will find

that reading is the key to success and fundamental for life," said Mrs Van

Zanten.