Make Your Own Pointers

Pointers have endless uses in the classroom. They channel student attention, allow teachers to emphasize key skills, promote left to right directionality, and more. Mundane skills like practicing word wall words, reading the room, and reading the morning message are a little more exciting when students have the opportunity to choose a pointer and be the “teacher.” Incorporating positive feelings and utilizing novelty stimulate the brain and serve as a catalyst for learning.

Pointers are available commercially through many educational companies and discount stores. They are also easy to make. Making a special pointer is a fun way to incorporate a theme or highlight a sight word or letter. Wooden dowels can be purchased from discount, craft, or hardware stores. Simply glue an object (such as a foam shape, letter cut-out, spider ring, so on) to the end fo the dowel, and you are ready to roll.

Make It Personal

What is the best way to cultivate readers?

Share your love of literature and language.

My students and I love to have fun with reading. We videotape ourselves reading, use props, dramatize with puppets, and throw ourselves into books.

Celebrating favorite authors encourages students to l

ook forward to the next book and the next and the next. Kindergarten students through seniors helped me celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday and Read Across America. We created book videos, posted them on YouTube, and were amazed by the number of hits. We used Green Eggs and Ham to write our own class books during ELL inclusion time. The school newspaper made us famous!

“Funny” books are often favorites. When I think I have a student ‘pegged,’ I select a book that “I know he will love.” We talk about how fun it would be to read it to mom, dad, a sister, or brother. Once they come back ‘hooked,’ I feed them a steady diet from the same author or them. I am forever indebted to Doreen Cronin and the Click, Clack, Moo books.

My goal is for students to ‘get’ to take books home to read rather than books they ‘have’ to read. The David books by David Shannon and Yo! Yes! books by Chris Raschka are great fun. Simple text and opportunities for expressive language make them delightful for beginning readers. They love to read REAL books. Our local libraries are very generous and allow me to check these books out and send them home with eager students. We have to develop systems so that everyone gets a turn with each book. “I haven’t had it, yet . . . You had the last one first . . . “ What a wonderful problem to have!!!!