Rooted in Reading: a Fun Theme with Big Impact on Achievement

At The Out-of-Door Academy, building lifelong readers is the vision for our Lower School  reading program. Research overwhelmingly reveals that no single literacy activity has a more positive effect on students’ comprehension, vocabulary knowledge, spelling, writing ability, and overall academic achievement than free voluntary reading.

This year’s “95 Years of Rooted in Reading” theme will create classroom cultures in which students, no matter their reading level, are part of a reading community in which all members make meaningful contributions to the learning of the group. They will talk books: the good, the bad, and the ugly, and they will set reading goals, encourage each other, and experiment with a variety of genres.

“Visit any one of our classrooms and you will encounter a workshop method, where children identify themselves as readers,” said Mrs. Tanna Horner, Head of Lower School. “Students are provided ample time to practice the skills of reading with a teacher's guidance, given the opportunity to choose reading materials for themselves, experience rich mentor texts, and receive feedback and validation on their reading development. Most importantly, this reading environment is free from anxiety.”

Throughout the year, the Lower School will engage in a multitude of activities and events cultivated to encourage a love of reading. Some of these events include:

• For every book that a child reads, he/she will add a marble into a banyan tree-shaped “bank” in the dining hall. As the tree fills and marbles reach predetermined milestones, the school will have a campus-wide celebration in which every student can come in time-era inspired costumes celebrating various decades (80s, 60s, 50s, and 20s) from our school’s history.
  
  
• Behind the scenes, teachers are refining the workshop model, elevating our connections to reading across all subject and specials areas, and digging in deeply on data to ensure that we offer individual readers what they need most.
  
  
• The front kiosk will feature weekly reading tips and children's and adult book recommendations. Parent lending libraries are available at the Higel and Reid Street entrances so that parents can exchange parenting books or pleasure reading materials.
  
  
• Exciting author visits for students and parents, fun family reading events, book tastings, and other events are planned throughout the school year.

Our hope is that you and your family will join us on this adventure as we unlock the magic of reading!