WHY CAN'T I SKIP MY 20 MINUTES OF READING TONIGHT??
Answer: Let’s figure this out using Mathematics!
Student A reads 20 minutes, 5 nights, every week.
Student B reads 5 minutes a night…or not at all.
Step 1: Multiply minutes per night by 5 times per week.
Student A reads 20 x 5 = 100 minutes per week
Student B reads 4 x 5 = 20 minutes per week
Step 2: Multiply minutes per week times 4 weeks per month.
Student A reads 400 minutes per month
Student B reads 80 minutes per month
Step 3: Multiply minutes per month time 9 ‘school’ months per school year.
Student A reads 3600 minutes per school year
Student B reads 720 minutes per school year
Student A reads the equivalent of 10 whole school days per year.
Student B reads the equivalent of 2 school days per year.
By the end of grade 6, if Student A and Student B maintain these same reading habits,
Student A will have read the equivalent of 60 whole school days.
Student B will have read the equivalent of only 12 school days.
Questions to think about….
Which student would you expect to read better?
Which student would you expect to know more?
Which student would you expect to write better?
Which student would you expect to have a better vocabulary?
Which student would you expect to be more successful in school?
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education, America Reads Challenge (1999). "Start Early, Finish Strong: How to Help Every Child Become a Reader." Washington, D.C.