(shÄ­ngâ²gÉl) n. 1. A thin oblong piece of material, such as wood or slate, that is laid in overlapping rows to cover the roof or sides of a house or other building. 2. Informal A small signboard, as one indicating a professional office: After passing the bar exam, she hung out her shingle. 3. A woman's close-cropped haircut.
Kindergartenersâ attention spans are short. So their homework should be short, too! Send home nightly tasks that can be completed in about 10 or 15 minutes. If you send home a weekly homework packet, make sure to educate parents about the importance of doing some each night (rather than all of it on Thursday night!).
At kindergarten, plan to spend a minimum of 20 minutes daily reading aloud to your child. At 1st grade, stretch the time to 30 minutes, and once your child is beginning to read on her own, use some of the time to listen to her read. You can also engage in shared reading in which you take turns reading from a book. By the time your child is in 2nd and 3rd grade, you can begin to read chapter books aloud, encouraging your child to build mental pictures of what you are reading.