Hey all! Liz on Call here. Last week was our big back to school week. My son started first grade and was really excited to go back to school to see his friends. Unfortunately, he woke up on that first day with pink eye! He was so sad he wasn’t able to go to school. But luckily we got some drops and he was able to go the next day. He had a great first week and has been really good at doing his homework. First grade is such an important year in school. My son did start learning to read in kindergarten, but struggled. This year I am really focused on keeping him on track with his reading. The school encourages 20 minutes of reading every night. 20 minutes is a lot for a first grader, but I do think it’s important to encourage him to read each night and I thought he would be more excited about it if we kept track on this printable reading log.
My son is one of the oldest in his class so I don’t want him to ever be held back. Plus I want him to excel in school and never feel like he can’t do what the other kids are doing. Every night though, it is a struggle. My son is such a social kid and very creative. He just doesn’t like to focus on words or reading.
I did make this reading log with my son in mind, but I think it could work for any grade level. Stars, stickers, check marks all work to record reading goals for each day. My son wanted me to put a picture of a present in the last box, because it was exciting to get a present if he filled it all out. 🙂
Another struggle we had last year was his behavior in class. If he got in trouble for talking or not paying attention, he had to move his clip down “warning.” There were a couple of days he had to move his clip down even further. So I started keeping track of how well he was doing in class. If he was able to fill the whole chart up with stars, he would get to go out with mom and dad for ice cream.
I think having a reward that he could work toward helped him stay a little more focused during the school day. We are still new to these school years and just starting out. I’m still trying to figure out what will work best for my son to help him with his education. And I’m sure once I figure that out, I’ll need a whole new approach with my daughter.
You can download the free reading log or behavior chart using the links below. These are for personal use only.
Are your kids headed back to school? What ways do you encourage your child to read?
If you’re looking for a back to school teacher gift, I’ve got this cute printable pencil wrapper.
Here are some more educational posts on OSSS you might like:
Shapes Matching Game and a Printable
5 Favorite Homeschool and Educational Products and Resources