Reading Tips For Parents
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Here are some things you can do at home to help your child become a better, more confident reader:
- Take a "picture walk" through a book. Look closely at the illustrations and make predictions. Become familiar with the book prior to reading.
- Read for meaning. Ask questions such as: "Does that make sense?", "Does it sound right?" , "Does it look right?", "Could you try that again?", "What do you see in the picture?" "Are there any clues that would help you?", and "Think about the story. What word would make sense here?"
- Using the context, make a sensible guess for unfamiliar words.
- Look at the first letter of the word and use the context to help figure out the meaning.
- Use your phonics clues. "Can you sound it out?" "Is there any part of the word that you DO know?"
- Ask someone for help. "Is there someone who can help you with that word?"
- Ask your child about his/her favorite part and encourage him or her to tell you why, talk about the problem and solution, what lesson the character(s) learned, what facts were learned from reading this book, etc. Have a discussion and have fun!
- Encourage your child to re-read books they enjoy. Each time, he or she will become a more fluent reader as he or she "scoops up" words and reads like an expert! Also, taking another look at a book offers you the oppportunity to notice something that you may have missed the first time.