Welcome to our Step into Reading Teacher Web Site! The Step into Reading leveled series includes age-appropriate font and decodable text— perfect for guided reading or any reading program! Promoting fluency and providing quality content, Step into Reading hits curricular topics and is perfect for integrating science, social studies, and even math. Step into Reading offers fiction and nonfiction favorites, and includes popular characters such as Disney Princess and Barbie™, who will excite even your most reluctant readers.

Check out our What’s New section for featured books by level and classroom activities. We hope Step into Reading brings you one step closer to fostering your students into life long readers. Enjoy and please feel free to share any of your Step into Reading success stories!

WHAT'S NEW!

STEP 1: READY TO READ Preschool–Kindergarten Big type and easy words Rhyme and rhythm Picture clues For children who know the alphabet and are eager to begin reading.

Tae Kwon Do! By Terry Pierce Illustrated by Todd Bonita 978-0-375-83448-6

Activities:

After reading Tae Kwon Do to the students have them write a similar story about a sport or activity they like to do.

Brainstorm a list of activities that students like to do after school. Sort them into two categories: active and idle. Discuss which ones are best for your body. As a follow-up have students create collages from magazines, newspapers, and advertisements that show children being active and healthy.

STEP 2: READING WITH HELP Preschool–Grade 1 Basic vocabulary Short sentences Simple stories For children who recognize familiar words and sound out new words with help.

Shampoodle by Joan Holub Illustrated by Tim Bowers 978-0-375-85576-4

Activities:
Copy a blank, simple board game grid, and in each square add one of the words from Shampoodle included in the list below. Create small playing cards for the rest of the rhyming words (index cards cut into thirds make a nice durable option). Have students take turns drawing a card from the stack and moving to the next word that rhymes with the card they picked up. First one around the board wins. It’s easy to play several rounds in a short time period.

Rhyming pairs from Shampoodle: day/away, see/flee, in/begin, up/pup, shake/mistake, fun/run, chasing/racing, slipping/tripping, fright/tight, scare/hair, spat/scat, rest/best, blast/last, knots/dots, skunk/funk, collide/slide

STEP 3: READING ON YOUR OWN Grades 1–3 Longer sentences Engaging characters Easy-to-follow plots For children who are ready to read on their own.

Barack Obama: Out of Many, One by Shana Corey Illustrated by James Bernardin 978-0-375-86339-4

Activities:
Before reading Barack Obama: Out of Many, One, have students create a KWL chart with three columns labeled Know, Want to Know, and Learned. Students should fill out the first two columns before reading and the last column afterwards. The “know” section accesses their prior knowledge, the “want” section helps create a purpose for their reading and the “learned” section will assess their comprehension after reading the book.

Next, have students come up with a KWL chart for a president they would like to learn more about. Give students access to kid-friendly Web sites, books, and articles on different presidents. Once each student has filled in his/her chart with five new facts, have him/her share the findings with the class.

STEP 4: READING PARAGRAPHS Grades 2–3 More challenging vocabulary Short paragraphs Exciting stories For newly independent readers who read simple sentences with confidence.

Ice Mummy: The Discovery of a 5,000-Year-Old Man by Mark Dubowski and Cathy East Dubowski 978-0-679-85647-4

Activities:
Have students fill out a graph for the events in Ice Mummy. List major events in the story and then rate their importance. They can use five for the highest and one for the lowest.

STEP 5: READY FOR CHAPTERS Grades 2–4 Chapters Long paragraphs Full color art For children who want to take the plunge into chapter books, but still like colorful pictures.

Dinosaur Hunters by Kate McMullan Illustrated by John R. Jones 978-0-375-82450-0

Activities:
Discuss with the class that scientists create questions, or hypotheses, and then seek out facts of physical proof to support their ideas. As students read Dinosaur Hunters, have them create a list of questions that each scientist (or questioner) in the book asked about dinosaurs and their bones and what each one discovered. Once they are finished, have students write down a question or puzzle that they would like to explore.