An All-District Read is a community-building event in which every family and staff member in school reads the same book aloud at home for a set period of time. Research tells us that children benefit from being read aloud to at all ages for many reasons. Listening to stories read aloud builds children's vocabularies and provides an example of fluent reading. Most importantly, reading a book aloud brings families together. You will get the chance to cuddle up, read and talk about a book! And everyone at school will be reading the book right along with your family, so we will have a common text and experience we can share! We are especially excited to be reading the book The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, by Kate DiCamillo. Kate DiCamillo is one of only 6 people who have won two Newbery Medals, recognizing her books The Tale of Despereaux and Flora and Ulysses. She is also the author of the popular Mercy Watson series.
We invite all families to join together and read The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane over a course of 4 weeks starting January 8, 2017. The PTOs from each of our elementary schools have generously donated funding so that every K-5 family in our district will receive a copy of the book on January 8, following our Kick-off Assembly. You will also receive a pacing guide to help keep on track. Each night (except for Wednesdays!) we recommend reading 2 chapters, which is about a 10-15 minute read. Wednesday nights there will be no reading "assigned". There will be a Trivia Contest each Wednesday for a chance to fun prizes including gift certificates for books, and pajama read-ins for your class! As always, we encourage families and teachers to preview reading material to make informed decisions about what is best for the kids reading the book! One quick note regarding the content of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane: We chose this book because of its broad appeal to a wide range of ages, abilities and interests as well as its messages about kindness, compassion, and resilience. We wanted you to be aware that chapter 17 contains a reference to alcohol. Chapter 19 deals with the death of one of the main characters. Please preview these chapters and address it as you see fit through discussion.
A website has been created where you can find all material relevant to the All District Read, plus additional fun related to the book. Along the top banner of the page, you will also find videos of different teachers reading each chapter of the book under each individual building's name. Visit the website at: https://sites.google.com/elmb
We are excited for this opportunity to join together around a great book! Happy Reading! The School District of Elmbrook Elementary Staff