Reading: Real Life Reading

Using TV to Help Your Reading Skill

 

            Today's Snack: In the 1950s and '60s, frozen foods that could be quick-cooked and eaten soon were called "TV dinners." A well-balanced meal was cooked and flash-frozen in a foil tray, then heated in the oven to produce a meal that would take a home cook much longer to prepare. This was the start of the convenience food era. For today's snack, choose a "TV dinner" entrée such as frozen lasagna or fish sticks, and heat in the microwave. Although slow-cooking is usually better, fast food can be very good!

 

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Supplies:

Your favorite TV show | a friend or family member

Piece of paper| pencil or pen

 

 

            OK, OK, OK. We know you are going to keep watching TV, even though we yell at you to cut it out because it's rotting your brains.

 

            TV has already rotted the brains of most adults, so we really shouldn't be hypocrites and yell at you for quitting something that we can't seem to quit.

 

            And actually, a little TV watching every day is OK. If you can keep it to an hour a day or less, you'll be in good shape academically. And you'll have a social life and an athletic or musical or hobby life that goes 'way beyond the screen.

 

            But here's a simple way to flex your intellectual muscles while watching the idiot box. It will actually help you with your reading. That's because you are going to PREDICT the ending of your favorite TV show. And prediction is an important skill for reading comprehension.

 

            If you can predict a pretty believable ending to a story whose beginning and middle are all you know, that shows that you have learned to think "in sequence," which means you have the brains of a reader. If you understand the storyline well enough to be able to think of the implications of the action, and what the characters are likely to do, that shows you've been paying attention - another sign of a good reader!

 

            So sit back, relax, eat some popcorn or whatever, and watch the show with your friend or family member. But keep one eye on the clock. When there are fewer than three minutes left in the show, LEAVE THE ROOM.

 

            Go into another room where you can neither hear nor see the TV . . . and write down your prediction for the ending of the show.

 

            Wait 'til your friend or family member calls you back in. You read your prediction - and see how close it comes to how the show really wound up.

 

            If it's fun, you two can try it again for the NEXT show, and switch places. But just don't make a habit out of doing this too often, because that would mean that you really are watching too much darned TV!