I don't always have time to listen to each child read aloud as often as I would like so I have paired favorite books with a matching stuffed animal. My sons select a stuffed friend and read the book out loud to the animal. When they are finished with the book, they must return both to the display. Even my 14 year old occasionally grabs one of the books :-). It's a fabulous way to encourage a reluctant reader and reading out loud improves fluency, whereas silent reading does not.
Here are the animals out for display this week:
Several of the stuffed animals in our collection were gifts but most were purchased for under a dollar at the local thrift store and washed in the washing machine. (I always dry them on fluff/no heat to keep the fur looking nice.) On my iPhone, I have a list of animals I want to keep an eye out for during my frequent thrift shop escapades. (Currently my list has a giraffe, a hippo and a brown mouse, among others.) Nearly all of our books were Christmas or birthday gifts or were purchased for 50 cents at the thrift store.
It's also an easy way to rotate books off our shelves that are passed over. Sometimes, the boys even ask if the stuffed friends can join us when I am reading out loud. I currently only have picture books in the rotation but have considered doing the same thing with chapter books and novels. Look for a future post with an update on that....
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