Teach Your Children to Read in 7 Easy Steps..
I am certain most parents do not think about the process of learning to read up to the time when they have children of their own at home grasping for books.
As a teacher myself, I cannot tell you how many times moms and dads have approached me asking questions on the subject of how they can teach their children to read at home.
My answer to each one of them is consistently the same: learning to read is a composed of many different skills and methods, and fortunately, I have broken it down into straightforward and tested approaches to try at home!
1.); Use Songs and Nursery Rhymes
Songs and nursery rhymes are not just fun sounding to children, but are crammed with rhymes which aid them to hear sounds and syllables, which consequently help them with their reading.
One of the most essential skill sets required when learning to read is phonetic awareness. Phonetic awareness is the capability to totally focus on the sound each letter tends to make inside a word.
In this Example, the word “mat” is composed of the sounds the letters m/a/t/ make.
To help your children construct phonemic awareness utilizing songs and nursery rhymes, clap to the beat and sing the songs, try clapping to the rhythm singing the songs together, and just watch your young ones become effective with reading.
2.) Create Homemade Word Cards
Super quick and easy, just simply cut out cards any size from paper, and write just 1 word with 3 sounds on each single (e.g., Sat, cat, sun, pot, pig). Have your infant select a card and read the word together, holding up three fingers. Once done, ask them to say the 1st sound they hear in the word they chose, then the second, and then the third.
This exercise needs very little preparation time, and builds phonics skills and helps them sound out words. If your girl or boy is just starting out, you can do the same exercise, but use letters of the alphabet as a substitute of words.
3.) Print Environments Are Best
If little ones see printed words on a regular basis, like on posters, books, and labels, they actually will be able to make associations between the letter sounds as well as the letter symbol. While out and about with your children, stop and point to letters on billboards and signs to inspire them to work, making letter sounds and ultimately, sounding out the word.
4.) Make It Fun!
Never be afraid to have fun while you are teaching your children to read. Simple things like asking questions, “What sound does the word ___ begin with?”, or “What word rhymes with ___?”, this very easy method will have little ones listening, identifying, and sounding out the sounds within the words, thus building confidence and enthusiasm towards learning how to read. An additional tool that can be used is letter magnets. Occasionally out vowels can be tricky for children, which is why magnets can be very helpful. Put magnets on your fridge, and place all the vowels (a, e, i, o, u) to one side. Say out loud a CVC word (consonant-vowel-consonant sounding), such as “cat”, and ask that your child to spell it out using the magnets. To help them along, say each vowel sound aloud while pointing to the corresponding letter, and ask your child which one makes the sound alike to the letter in the word.
5.) Building The Foundation.
Remember, multiple skills are involved in Learning how to read. Children require all of these skills that are listed below.
- 1,) Phonemic Awareness is the ability to hear the different sounds within words.
- 2,) Phonics, understanding the connection between letters and the sounds they make.
- 3,) Vocabulary: recognizing the context of words and their meaning.
- 4,) Reading Understanding: Comprehending the meaning written text and storybooks.
- 5,) Fluency: Ability to read aloud at speed with accuracy and speed.
6.) Learn Together
Reading to your children every day is the most effective way to get your child to attain the skills required for learning how to read. You are actually showing your child how to structure and sound out words while also building their comprehension skills and increasing their vocabulary.
Letting them hear what someone sounds like who reads fluently, is all that’s needed for your child to be a successful reader. While reading to your child, speak to them engaging them ask them questions the things they see, i.e.: pictures, what colours they see, what animals they see.
7.) See the word, Say the word.
A common expression used is “see the word say the word”, is used to describe what is called sight words. Sight words are words that are slightly harder to sound out. Learning to recognize and read sight words is important while young children are learning to read, and the best method to teach them is by utilizing flash cards with sight words on them, and of course asking them to “see the word, say the word.
It’s important to remember every child is different, each child will have his/hers own pace so it is best to make the reading process as enjoyable and encouraging as possible. Reading daily and having fun with activities, even letting your child pick their own books to read as there reading skills grow will instil a passion to read. Teaching children is not an easy task, if after reading these 7 steps you are still feeling slightly overwhelmed, there is really no need, I have a solution to help you, click the link below and see how fellow teacher Sarah Shepard has taught over 30,000 children how to read with her program Reading Head Start!