Parents Guide to Renaissance Learning’s Accelerated Reader™

CYC Elective

3-30-12

Outcomes

• Parents will learn about Renaissance Learning’s Accelerated Reader

• Parents will understand– How Accelerated Reader works– How to find AR books– How to set up a “reading friendly” home– How to use Home Connect– How to contact their school to get TOPs

Reports and information on how to access Home Connect

What is Accelerated Reader?

A reading program that helps your child with independent reading practice.

How Does AR work?

• Your child picks a book, reads it and then takes a short quiz to see if they understood the book.

How does AR work?

• AR also helps your child set reading goals.• AR gives teachers and parents great

information to help support their child's learning and reading progress

Selecting AR Books

• Parents can use the online AR BookFinder to help their child find AR books. http://cleveland.arbookfind.com

• Your child's teacher can make recommendations.

• Your local library should also have information to help make book selections

What is my child's reading level?• Usually the reading or language arts

teacher gives a STAR Reading test to determine your child's reading level.

• Accelerated Reader then recommends books that are within your child's reading level.

What is a TOPS report?

• TOPS stands for "Three Ways to Praise a Student"

• The TOPS Report provides information about the child's progress and includes; – How well the child performed on the most

recent quiz– Updates on the progress your child is

making for the current marking period– Updates on the child's yearly progress

How do I get a TOPS report?

• Your child's teacher should send a TOPS report home on a regular basis–Here is an example of a TOPS Report.

• You can also access the TOPS reports on AR's Home Connect Website.

Set Up a Reading Friendly Home• Provide time for your child to read at

least 20 minutes a day at home.• Read aloud with your child (works for all

ages, not just early readers).• Set a good example by reading yourself

(Reading Role Models).• Bring books with you as you run errands

and attend appointments. All are opportunities for sneaking in extra reading time.

• Add a trip(s) to the library to your weekly routine.

• Make books a gift priority (birthdays, holidays, etc…)

• Allow children to choose books, which reinforces their independence and allows them to follow their interests– AR supports this concept, providing a wide

variety of books for children to select

Set Up a Reading Friendly Home

What is AR Home Connect?

• Allows parents to view their child’s AR quiz scores online.

• Provides parents with a snapshot of their child’s reading progress.

• https://hosted188.renlearn.com/764635/homeconnect/

Accessing Home Connect

Use your child's login and password, possibly received one of the following ways:– School mails a Home Connect letter home

to parents– School hands out a Home Connect letter to

parents at Back to School Night, a Parent Conference, a Report Card pickup

– Schools hold a "Family Night" to share information about AR and Home Connect

No Home Connect Letter?

• What should you do if you do not have a Home Connect letter?–Have your child login to CMSD’s

Home Connect–Contact your child's Language Arts

or Reading teacher to request the Home Connect Letter

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Creative Commons License

• Curriculum content created by Connect Your Community, a project of OneCommunity, funded by the federal Broadband Technology Opportunities Program.

• This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0