Reading Incentive Programs and Links

West University students participate in a number of reading incentive programs offered through the classroom and supported by the library. Two such programs are the Accelerated Reader program in grades 1-5 and the Texas Bluebonnet Award program for grades 3-5. We also participate in the "Book It" program offered by Pizza Hut and the "Reading Champions" program sponsored by the March of Dimes.

In May 2007, for the first time, students from grades 3-5 at West University Elementary participated in the HISD "Name That Book" contest. Each year we have continued our participation. A younger team with students from grades K-2 was added during Spring 2008.

What is Name That Book? A team of 6 students plus one alternate in grades 3-5 are required to read a list of 35 books, participate in discussion and team practices, and then compete against other HISD schools. The younger team which is composed of 6 students plus four alternates in grades K-2 are required to read a list of 30 books, participate in discussion and team practices, and then compete against other HISD schools.

Interested participants in the 2009-10 teams should download a list from the HISD Library Services website and begin reading the books over the summer. Watch the Pony Express for continuing details about each contest.

READING TIP FOR PARENTS: Help your child choose appropriate reading material that will build comprehension and vocabulary skills!

Your child's reading level is reported to you on standardized testing and the STAR test as "reading level". (RL) The reading level of an AR book is listed as "book level" (BL) - which is one in the same. This information is important in helping a child choose appropriate reading material. Another very important consideration in recommending books to children is "interest level." An example of interest vs. reading level is seen with the Harry Potter series. Many children had enough "interest" in the phenomenally popular series to persevere through the reading of hundreds of pages, so the interest in reading the book was there, yet they cannot answer the 20 questions on an AR test. True comprehension of any book read independently would be evident in a quiz passed with an 80% or above. 85% is the recommended score on each book - a true indicator of comprehension and vocabulary understanding. AR research shows the 85% averages are most effective in producing true reading growth. Be sure to listen to your child read a page out loud to determine that they are reading fluently. Ask questions to make sure they understand what they are reading. Discuss the meaning of words that they may not know. The AR program is just one way to motivate students, but please know it does not motivate all of them!

The best advice for parents to encourage reading is to just enjoy books together and remember reading should be FUN! Go to the public library together, read children's magazines, newspapers, comics, and lots of different types of literature. Don't forget to read poetry, jokes and riddles, and craft, hobby, and recipe books together.

Online Card Catalog - shows you the books and other materials available in our school library. Available to you 24 hours a day at any internet computer. Just click on the link to your left. Search by author, title, subject, or a key word search. Read a description of the book and see if the book is available. Copy the call number and come in on either Monday , Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday after school to check out the book. (The library is closed after school on Friday).

ACCELERATED READING PROGRAM (AR)

The AR program is a commercial reading program used in many schools nationwide. Participating students in grades 1-5 read a book, take a short comprehension quiz (on any school computer) and earn points based on that score. Our school maintains a database of quizzes on over 125,000 books which means that the majority of our library books can be used for AR testing. The AR list includes excellent children's literature titles from the classics, to award winners, to new and popular titles. When parents ask for a good reading list for their children, it is suggested they start with our AR list or any of the attached reading lists.

The CLASSROOM READING TEACHER administers AR the program for his/her class. The computer teacher gives the STAR test twice a year which places the student at an appropriate reading level range. The student can then choose books to read independently for AR testing. (The AR list refers to Reading Level as "Book Level" - BL) Teachers follow their student's progress during the school year. Any questions regarding student participation should be directed to the classroom teacher.

The LIBRARY supports the AR program by selecting books appropriate for all reading levels as part of our collection development as well as marking all books with AR reading level color-coded stickers. A different color is assigned to each reading level, and students learn the color system quickly during library skill lessons.

QUIZ LIST: Our school quiz list ranges from 0.3 to 12th grade reading levels. Quizzes are available on both fiction and nonfiction books. We have access to over 125,000 AR quizzes. During library time, children are instructed how to choose books of all types and genres, including AR books. Students quickly learn to choose books within their "comfort zone" which is actually a reading range and not an absolute number. A measure of flexibility must be exercised when choosing AR books. NOTE: books used for AR may be obtained anywhere - classroom, home, public library or school library.

POINT CLUBS: Students who pass AR quizzes are awarded a point value for each book. When a student has accumulated a certain number of AR points, the librarian awards him or her with a Reading Success Tag as follows:

10 Points = Orange Tag 25 Points = Red Tag 50 Points = Blue Tag 100 Points = Green Tag 200 Points = Silver Tag 500 Points = Gold Tag

TEXAS BLUEBONNET AWARD READING PROGRAM

logo for the Texas Blubonnet Award

Each year, the Texas Library Association chooses 20 excellent recently published books for readers in grades 3-6. Students who read AT LEAST five of these books are eligible to vote for their favorite at a school balloting event in late January. Our votes are tallied, a school winner is selected, and vote tallies are sent to the state library association. On the day of voting, eligible children are rewarded for their efforts with a special breakfast of blueberry muffins and bottled water served by our parent volunteers. Our 2010 Bluebonnet Breakfast is scheduled for Friday, January 8th.

In 2008-2009: 405 West U students enjoyed reading many of the 20 books and voting for their favorite at the Bluebonnet Breakfast on January 28th . Our chosen school favorite was The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (also this year's Caldecott Award winner). Our ballots were submitted to the Texas Library Assocation on January 30th. The state winner was announced on February 9th: One Potato Two Potato by Cynthia DeFelice! Even though our chosen book favorite did not win, our students truly love participating in this statewide contest.

Here is a photograph from the Bluebonnet Breakfast in 2009. Students who read all twenty Texas Bluebonnet books and their teachers were featured in this photograph. It is a tremendous achievement!

Here is a photograph from the Bluebonnet Breakfast in 2008. Congratulations to all!