December Deep Dive ⭐️ The Superkids Skill-Building Book

The Superkids Bulletin. Fun and Creative Inspiration for Teachers of The Superkids Reading Program | Zaner-Bloser

ISSUE 45 | DECEMBER 2023

Happy December, Superkids teachers! We are sure you are looking forward to a relaxing, well-deserved winter break. As you approach the mid-year mark, specific needs for additional skill support or challenge beyond the core lessons are likely apparent. When looking for teacher-directed activities for reteaching, reinforcing, or extending core skills, the Ten-Minute Tuck-Ins are a great place to start. The Superkids Skill-Building Book is another resource brimming with targeted practice activities. In this issue, we will explore this valuable resource and highlight a few freebies that can be used with this book.

The Superkids Skill-Building Book provides reteaching information and targeted practice for essential reading and language arts skills taught at all levels of the program. You will find many activities in the Superkids Skill-Building Book to assist students with significant skill gaps. You will also find activities to reinforce skills for on-level students to ensure they maintain steady progress. And, you will find activities which will provide a challenge for those working above grade level.

Grab your Superkids Skill-Building Book, and let’s explore how the book is organized.

Book Breakdown

The Superkids Skill-Building Book is designed for you to quickly find activities that will support the needs of your students. It is divided into eleven sections. Each of the first ten sections concentrate on an essential strand of skills:

Sounds
Letters
Phonics
Structural Analysis
Fluency
Vocabulary
Comprehension
Spelling
Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics
Writing Composition

Quick Assessments

A tabbed divider marks the start of each section. On the back of each skill section divider, you will find Quick Assessments. These are simple one-on-one tasks that will help you quickly identify a child’s strengths and weaknesses within a skill strand. These Quick Assessments are designed to require very little teacher prep-time and are quick to execute.

Workout Plan

The front of each skill section divider identifies common problems that prevent children from mastering skills for the section’s skill strand. This Workout Plan also provides a list of specific activities in the book—and EXACTLY where you can find them—that you can use to address the identified problem.

Skill Information

Each section begins with an introduction. This overview provides background information about instruction for the skills in that strand, why it is important to teach the skills in the strand, how the skills help to develop reading and writing fluency, and how this strand relates to other essential skills.

The introduction also gives an overview of how skill instruction progresses across the grades, problems you might see your students having as they work on the skills in that strand, and suggestions for strengthening these skills.

Skill Strands

Each skill section is divided up into two or three parts. Each part contains activities and tips which focus on a specific aspect of that skill strand. For example, the Phonics section is divided up into three parts: Letter-Sounds, Blending, and Decoding.

Activities

Each activity begins with a stated purpose, a list of materials, and information about when in the program it can be used.

The activities include clear instructions, examples, and illustrations so you can easily envision how this activity will be delivered. Many activities include suggestions to simplify an activity or make it more challenging.

Activities are intended to be teacher-led and are designed to give targeted instruction to an individual student or small group of students. But, some activities—particularly the games—can be done with the whole class for additional skill reinforcement.

Challenging Workout

Each skill section ends with a Challenging Workout. This will include activities to challenge students who have demonstrated proficiency with skills in the strand. You can use these activities to deepen or extend children’s knowledge of the skills.

Resources

The final section in the Superkids Skill-Building Book is packed full of resources for skill reinforcement and extension. Some of these resources include an Articulation Guide, Reading Rules, Spelling Rules and Tips, templates, graphic organizers, and more!

We know you love freebies! Here are a few resources we have created that can be used with—or are directly from—the Superkids Skill-Building Book.

These fun flash cards with ice cream lines can be used with any Superkids Skill-Building Book activity that lists word cards in the materials list.
Blending Puzzles is an activity that provides blending and decoding practice. This activity is listed in the Phonics section on page 62.
This is a variation of the Letter Muncher letter-sound game found in the Phonics section on page 58. Use our “monster parts” printable to create a fun, reusable activity. Simply make new cards with the target letter-sounds to match your instruction.
This printable PDF includes TWO activities! Letter Slap is a game located in the Phonics section on page 58 and is designed to reinforce letter-sounds. Collect the Bones is a variation of the Collect the Cards game, found in the Fluency section on page 111, that reinforces fluency at the word level.

The printable Superkids calendar for 2024 is back by popular demand!

One Superkids teacher shared how she uses the calendar in her classroom. She states, “I printed a calendar for each student. At the end of each school day, I ask my students to write one thing they learned and one thing that made them smile on the correct calendar date. It created a positive record of their days in second grade.” What a splendid idea!