We all know that children love surprises, and when you combine that with reading, you get a great combination! Inviting Mystery Readers into your classroom can build suspense while fostering a love for reading and books in children. In fact, year after year, I never get tired of watching the joy and excitement that a Mystery Reader brings to my students.
So, how does it work? At the beginning of each quarter, I begin scheduling a weekly Mystery Reader who can visit our classroom to read and share books with my students. I let the suspense build all week long, then on Friday afternoon, the Mystery Reader appears. A Mystery Reader could be a parent, grandparent, principal, librarian, family member, former student, or an older sibling, just to name a few.
This year, I found an easy and simple way to schedule my Mystery Readers...SignUp Genius! SignUpGenius is a wonderful online tool used for creating and managing group sign up lists. I create the dates/times that I need a Mystery Reader, and then send the link out to parents and co-workers. They sign up for the day that is most convenient for them, then an email reminder goes out reminding them of their special day. I also use SignUpGenius when scheduling parent/teacher conferences, and classroom parties. This is a great online resource, and if you haven't tried it yet, check it out here.
Below is a screen shot of the Mystery Reader SignUpGenius that I created for my classroom.
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| SignUpGenius..An online tool for creating and managing group sign ups. |
Over the years, I have met parents who are so thrilled about being a Mystery Reader, that I honestly don't know who gets more excited; the parents or the students.
Recently one of my parents read the book Goblin Shark to my class...
Recently one of my parents read the book Goblin Shark to my class...
and as you can imagine, my first graders flipped when this parent walked into the classroom wearing scuba gear! Not only do kids love the idea of sharks, but when this dad combined a shark book with scuba gear, along with his own personal encounters with sharks and diving; it was a match made in heaven. What a fun way to end the week, while fostering a love for reading.
Since we're on the topic of sharks, I created a little game using the online gaming program, called Scratch. We all know that kids are fascinated with both sharks (in a scary sort of way) and games, so I thought combining the two would make a great combo, just like surprises and reading.
To play this game, use your arrows keys to safely hide Ollie the Octopus behind the rocks. Go Ahead...click the green flag to start, BUT watch out for the shark!!
Since we're on the topic of sharks, I created a little game using the online gaming program, called Scratch. We all know that kids are fascinated with both sharks (in a scary sort of way) and games, so I thought combining the two would make a great combo, just like surprises and reading.
To play this game, use your arrows keys to safely hide Ollie the Octopus behind the rocks. Go Ahead...click the green flag to start, BUT watch out for the shark!!
MYSTERY READER
NANCY GERUNTINO
In February, we were blessed when one of my students' family members was visiting from Ohio, and she decided to become our next Mystery Reader. Her name is Nancy Geruntino, and she isn't your ordinary Mystery Reader, she has authored a children's book along with her friend Susie Cutler called, My Hair! The students were mesmerized as she used an English accent to tell about 2 zany queens who do outrageous things while getting into silly predicaments. The characters from the castle try to help solve the problems: some succeed and others fail. However, we found out that with failure, we learn. |
| Author Nancy Geruntino with my sweet first graders! |
Nancy Geruntino, and her friend Susie, have also created a website where children can color characters from the book, find a recipe for baking crowns, and learn new vocabulary words. Teachers can access this website to find Reading Common Core Standards that go along with the book, My Hair! Teachers, parents, and students can learn and have fun at Queensplaytime.com, check it out today.
Today, I leave you with a few photos of Author Nancy Geruntino reading to my class, and one more thing...it's no Mystery, that sharing books with children help them to become Wild About Reading, so become a Mystery Reader today!
Today, I leave you with a few photos of Author Nancy Geruntino reading to my class, and one more thing...it's no Mystery, that sharing books with children help them to become Wild About Reading, so become a Mystery Reader today!
Well, between now and next time...ya'll come back you hear!
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| Author Nancy Geruntino reads her book My Hair! to my first grade class. |
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| Author Nancy Geruntino uses an English Accent while reading her book, My Hair! |
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