How Can I Help My Child
Learn To Read?
The most important thing you can do to help support your child as they learn to read is READ!
If you only have time for one activity to do at home, always choose reading. There are many other areas of learning that are important, but reading is integrated into everything... math, science, socials, music, even art. Strong reading skills and strategies are truly your child's key to success in all future learning.
For more information and articles about what Early Literacy is and specific ideas to encourage literacy at home, go to the Literacy page.
Steps To Becoming A Successful Reader:
Many of these steps take place at the same time and all are important literacy skills for your child to build as they start reading.
1. Enjoy an adult reading with you.
2. Learn all the letters in your first name and then last name.
3. Learn all Uppercase and Lowercase letters.
4. Build, write, and play with letters to make words.
5. Learn sight words (popcorn words) and discover them in books/house/school.
6. Practice beginning letter sounds.
7. Write with inventive spelling (Parents do not worry about correct spelling at this early stage. "Kat" for "cat" or "skl" for "school" is impressive and something to celebrate! Look for spelling to make sense based on letter sounds.)
8. Match, discover and create rhyming words.
9. Practice blends (er, ing) and word chunks (an, in) and find them while reading.
10. Use Reading Strategies (see below) to decode words when reading.
When we are ready to start reading, we have 8 Reading Strategies that help us when we are stuck on a word. We also have a stuffed animal version of all of these strategies to hold onto when we are reading to help us remember! View the Reading Strategies here.
Reading At Home Is A Stressful And Frustrating Time For My Child And I; What Can I Do?
Learning to read is one of the hardest things to do! Reading should always be an enjoyable time for you and your child. If your child is stressed out and frustrated, stop an activity and look to replace it with an engaging and/or high success game. View Educational Online Games to see games relating to the specific grade and subject area you wish your child to work on. A high success game is a game in which your child is exposed to mostly letters or words that they already know. Instead of using all alphabet letters or words, throw in what they know plus a few more. This helps build your child's confidence level and in return lowers their frustration (and yours). However, sometimes your child may just need a night off, who doesn't!
Fun Things To Do While Reading Together:
-Search for words with your child’s “special letter” (beginning letter of their name).
-Search for words with the letter(s) of the week or ones they need to practice.
-Find small words inside bigger words (Ex: “an” in “began” or “be” in “because”).
-Find rhyming words.
-Find words they recognize already.
-Look at the pictures before reading to figure out what the story may be about.
-Look at the pictures for clues on what the word may be.
-Talk about what happened in the story.
-Talk about what they liked/disliked about the story.
-Talk about a possible new ending to the story (if relevant).
Games You Can Buy That Support Early Language Learning At Home:
Talk Box created this article in 2007 that gives a list of multiple games that support Language Learning. You probably already own a few at home!
What is Talk Box? Talk Box was put together by a group of speech-language pathologists and is supported by the Alberta Government.
Go here for more resources and information from Talk Box.
Quick & Easy Word/Letter Games And Other Activities To Do At Home:
Here are some fun ways that you can practice learning your letters and sight words (popcorn words) at home! Go here for more information about Sight Words and access to emergent reader printable booklets.
1. Use an empty Kleenex box to play “Word/Letter BANG!” – put all of the word cards into the empty Kleenex box, and add a few cards that say “BANG!” on them to the mix. Set a timer, and take turns pulling out words from the box. If you can read the word, you get to keep it, if you cannot read it, it goes back in the box. If you draw a card that says “BANG!” then you have to put all of your cards back in the box. Whoever has the most words at the end of the time limit wins! (You could also make cards with alphabet letters on them and play this game to practice learning letters.)
2. Play Memory. Place each word on two different cards and face all the cards down onto a table. Flip two words at a time, each time you get a match you have to say the word to keep the match. The person with the most matches at the end wins! (This also could work with alphabet letters instead of words).
3. Each student was given a cutout of bee and a ladybug (which I discovered is called a “ladybird” in England when I travelled there!). If you do not have a cutout, simply print a picture or use a stuffed animal. Put all of the word cards in a pile and use a bee or ladybird to help you choose a word by singing one of our poems below. Can you read/spell the word that you chose? This can also be used with letters or numbers.
Bee, Bee, Bumblebee Bird, Bird, Ladybird
Can you read/spell this word for me? Can you read/spell this word?
Bee, Bee, Bumblee Bee, Bee, Bumblee
Can you say/find this letter for me? Can you say this sound for me? (point to letter)
4. Print or draw a popcorn kernel on a piece of yellow paper and write a different word on top of each kernel. To make this activity even more exciting, use a "popcorn" bag or box (you can find these for a low cost at most dollar stores). Place all the kernels into the bag and pick (pop out) a word to practice looking for in a book that you read together with your child. If you are using a printable booklet, give your child a yellow marker and ask them to "butter the popcorn" words they see.
5. Put shaving cream on a cookie sheet, or on the table, spread it around and practice writing letters and words! You can even do this with sand, flour and rice.
6. Roll playdough into "snakes" and "dots". Use these shapes to make letters and/or to spell words. If your child really wants to make an object instead, ask them to form the beginning letter or create the word before every object they build. I have also had the kids make up a crazy and fun handshake or congratulatory action that I do with them once they have created the letter/word.
7. Create a sentence with your child using sight words. ("I like the girl", "I see the black cat"). Pick a few words/sentences to write on strips of paper and cut them apart (cut words apart into letters, sentences apart into words). Can you put the Humpty Dumpty words/sentences back together again?
8. Cut letters out of newspapers/magazines. Can you spell any words with those letters? Can you find any of our popcorn words to cut out?
Do you have any other great ideas? Please share them! Happy learning! :)
If you only have time for one activity to do at home, always choose reading. There are many other areas of learning that are important, but reading is integrated into everything... math, science, socials, music, even art. Strong reading skills and strategies are truly your child's key to success in all future learning.
For more information and articles about what Early Literacy is and specific ideas to encourage literacy at home, go to the Literacy page.
Steps To Becoming A Successful Reader:
Many of these steps take place at the same time and all are important literacy skills for your child to build as they start reading.
1. Enjoy an adult reading with you.
2. Learn all the letters in your first name and then last name.
3. Learn all Uppercase and Lowercase letters.
4. Build, write, and play with letters to make words.
5. Learn sight words (popcorn words) and discover them in books/house/school.
6. Practice beginning letter sounds.
7. Write with inventive spelling (Parents do not worry about correct spelling at this early stage. "Kat" for "cat" or "skl" for "school" is impressive and something to celebrate! Look for spelling to make sense based on letter sounds.)
8. Match, discover and create rhyming words.
9. Practice blends (er, ing) and word chunks (an, in) and find them while reading.
10. Use Reading Strategies (see below) to decode words when reading.
When we are ready to start reading, we have 8 Reading Strategies that help us when we are stuck on a word. We also have a stuffed animal version of all of these strategies to hold onto when we are reading to help us remember! View the Reading Strategies here.
Reading At Home Is A Stressful And Frustrating Time For My Child And I; What Can I Do?
Learning to read is one of the hardest things to do! Reading should always be an enjoyable time for you and your child. If your child is stressed out and frustrated, stop an activity and look to replace it with an engaging and/or high success game. View Educational Online Games to see games relating to the specific grade and subject area you wish your child to work on. A high success game is a game in which your child is exposed to mostly letters or words that they already know. Instead of using all alphabet letters or words, throw in what they know plus a few more. This helps build your child's confidence level and in return lowers their frustration (and yours). However, sometimes your child may just need a night off, who doesn't!
Fun Things To Do While Reading Together:
-Search for words with your child’s “special letter” (beginning letter of their name).
-Search for words with the letter(s) of the week or ones they need to practice.
-Find small words inside bigger words (Ex: “an” in “began” or “be” in “because”).
-Find rhyming words.
-Find words they recognize already.
-Look at the pictures before reading to figure out what the story may be about.
-Look at the pictures for clues on what the word may be.
-Talk about what happened in the story.
-Talk about what they liked/disliked about the story.
-Talk about a possible new ending to the story (if relevant).
Games You Can Buy That Support Early Language Learning At Home:
Talk Box created this article in 2007 that gives a list of multiple games that support Language Learning. You probably already own a few at home!
What is Talk Box? Talk Box was put together by a group of speech-language pathologists and is supported by the Alberta Government.
Go here for more resources and information from Talk Box.
Quick & Easy Word/Letter Games And Other Activities To Do At Home:
Here are some fun ways that you can practice learning your letters and sight words (popcorn words) at home! Go here for more information about Sight Words and access to emergent reader printable booklets.
1. Use an empty Kleenex box to play “Word/Letter BANG!” – put all of the word cards into the empty Kleenex box, and add a few cards that say “BANG!” on them to the mix. Set a timer, and take turns pulling out words from the box. If you can read the word, you get to keep it, if you cannot read it, it goes back in the box. If you draw a card that says “BANG!” then you have to put all of your cards back in the box. Whoever has the most words at the end of the time limit wins! (You could also make cards with alphabet letters on them and play this game to practice learning letters.)
2. Play Memory. Place each word on two different cards and face all the cards down onto a table. Flip two words at a time, each time you get a match you have to say the word to keep the match. The person with the most matches at the end wins! (This also could work with alphabet letters instead of words).
3. Each student was given a cutout of bee and a ladybug (which I discovered is called a “ladybird” in England when I travelled there!). If you do not have a cutout, simply print a picture or use a stuffed animal. Put all of the word cards in a pile and use a bee or ladybird to help you choose a word by singing one of our poems below. Can you read/spell the word that you chose? This can also be used with letters or numbers.
Bee, Bee, Bumblebee Bird, Bird, Ladybird
Can you read/spell this word for me? Can you read/spell this word?
Bee, Bee, Bumblee Bee, Bee, Bumblee
Can you say/find this letter for me? Can you say this sound for me? (point to letter)
4. Print or draw a popcorn kernel on a piece of yellow paper and write a different word on top of each kernel. To make this activity even more exciting, use a "popcorn" bag or box (you can find these for a low cost at most dollar stores). Place all the kernels into the bag and pick (pop out) a word to practice looking for in a book that you read together with your child. If you are using a printable booklet, give your child a yellow marker and ask them to "butter the popcorn" words they see.
5. Put shaving cream on a cookie sheet, or on the table, spread it around and practice writing letters and words! You can even do this with sand, flour and rice.
6. Roll playdough into "snakes" and "dots". Use these shapes to make letters and/or to spell words. If your child really wants to make an object instead, ask them to form the beginning letter or create the word before every object they build. I have also had the kids make up a crazy and fun handshake or congratulatory action that I do with them once they have created the letter/word.
7. Create a sentence with your child using sight words. ("I like the girl", "I see the black cat"). Pick a few words/sentences to write on strips of paper and cut them apart (cut words apart into letters, sentences apart into words). Can you put the Humpty Dumpty words/sentences back together again?
8. Cut letters out of newspapers/magazines. Can you spell any words with those letters? Can you find any of our popcorn words to cut out?
Do you have any other great ideas? Please share them! Happy learning! :)