World Read Aloud Day

1st graders can now officially say they've been to Australia (well virtually at least), as part of World Read Aloud Day.  The first Wednesday of every March marks LitWorld's campaign for sharing the importance of reading aloud and sharing stories.  Room 116 had an extra special treat for WRA and were able to skype with author Sally Rippin half way around the world in Australia.  We made sure to say "Good Morning" at the start of our skype visit, since Sally was just waking up, even though it was the end of our school day.

Sally took the opportunity to inspire the young writers in our classroom by sharing humorous tales of her childhood and explaining how those events inspired future published stories.  We learned that Sally and her younger sister got into a little mischief as young girls and one time gave themselves a haircut without permission.  Sally told the boys and girls how her mom was quite cross with her (it was fun learning some new Aussie lingo too).  After telling this animated story along with others, Sally read aloud Billie B. Brown The Beautiful Haircut and the story was surprisingly close to the real life events that happened when Sally was a little girl but don't worry 1st graders didn't get any new ideas.

If you'd like to know more about Sally Rippin and her wonderful stories take a look around her website: Sally Rippin's Homepage

The boys and girls have loved getting to know Sally's characters Billie B. Brown and Jack better over the course of the last few weeks.  Billie B. Brown and Hey, Jack! are perfect stories for our emerging 1st grade readers.  Students can relate to these characters and were able to learn some valuable lessons.  We can't wait to read more!

It’s hard to imagine a more delightful holiday than World Read Aloud Day, “to celebrate the power of words and create a community of readers taking action to show the world that the right to literacy belongs to all people.”  Never underestimate the power of reading aloud with your children.