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Background Information

            The student that I worked with was a little girl who was in kindergarten. She is has one sister who is two years younger than her. Molly loves playing with her sister. She also enjoys the Disney Princesses. Her favorite is Cinderella. Outside is Molly’s favorite place to be. She can go out and entertain herself for hours. Her favorite thing to do outside is jump on the trampoline. She is a very active and happy little girl.

            It is the family’s routine to read before bed. Each sister has a large bookshelf stuffed to the brim with storybooks. In addition to this the children go to the library every week to check out some additional storybooks. Before bed, each sister is allowed to choose two books to be read. Mom is usually the one who reads these stories to them but on occasion dad reads also. The children are also encouraged to demonstrate their print knowledge during these readings. For example, if there are some sight words in the story that they are reading, Molly’s mom will ask her what the word is, or if her sister is working on a specific letter that week the mom points it out and asks what letter it is and what sound it makes. The children in this household are very encouraged to begin reading. They both receive an immense of support and practice at home.

When I spoke with her mother for the first time she informed me that Molly was just beginning reading. She was enrolled in preschool for two years and is excelling in kindergarten. She tries very hard to do what you ask her to, listens, and is eager to learn new things. Her mother has been working with her on sight words. She has flash cards that she uses to teach Molly these words. As mentioned above, the mother also reinforces these words during story time right before bed.

This family is a very close-knit family. The parents want the best for both of their girls and encourage them to begin to read. They communicate with the girl’s teachers in regards as what to do to help and advance them. The little girls are both very happy and active children. They love going to school and learning. Molly has just begun to learn to read and she is very eager and interested in learning more. She cannot wait to be able to read a whole story by herself to her whole family.