Munn Elementary School

Home of the Rangers

Munn One School One Book
Published on Dec 16, 2019 16:12

Dear Families, 

During the month of January, Munn will be embarking on a special project, an all school book club called One School, One Book™.  Every family will receive a copy Jean Craighead George’s My Side of the Mountain and asked to read it at home over the month of January.  I am personally asking you to make the time so your family can participate in this special activity.

Reading aloud at home is valuable because it better prepares your child to be an effective reader, and it is also a fun, worthwhile family activity. With the One School, One Book™ program, we aim to build a community of readers at our school. Everyone – students, parents, teachers, office staff, bus drivers, cafeteria staff, etc. – will all be following along together.

The oldest child in each household will receive a copy of My Side of the Mountain on January 8th. Along with the book, you will receive a reading schedule so that you can keep up at home. The schedule will come home in the book, and you might want to use it as a book mark!  Generally, you will be asked to read aloud as a family for about 15 minutes each night. 

In school, your child will be invited to answer daily trivia questions to encourage and reward attentive 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 the month, everyone will be talking about My Side of the Mountain!

One School, One Book™ is a unique program in that children of all grade levels will be listening to their families read the same book. 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. There may be times as you are reading where you may need to use your own words or stop and talk about parts of the book because of the way the author writes and uses words. That’s a great thing to do!  We also believe that you can and should continue reading chapter books with your older children, even when they are able to read by themselves. We have selected a title that can be followed, understood and enjoyed by younger students, but will still captivate and stimulate older children.

I know that you’ll enjoy this special reading time with your children. "When a whole school reads a book, there's a lot to talk about." With your help, we can build a Community of Readers at our school.