Learning never stops. Learning to read is one of the first practices that we all have to engage in on our journey to learn many other things, whether educationally or in some other aspects of life. We’ll be one of the first people to admit that learning to read can get cumbersome and boring. It is important that while your child learns to read, they have fun while at it. That way they’ll learn to love it and do so faster.
The reading journey of your child will definitely start with being able to identify and pronounce the alphabet. Over time, words will get introduced to them, from simple to complex, and before too much time passes, the coherence in their reading improves. In this article, the goal is to help you know how to help your child improve their reading and help them have fun while at it. Read on to find out how this is possible.
Add New Words To Your Vocabulary
One of the best ways to help your child learn new words is to use them in sentences. This will help them retain the meaning of the word, as well as its pronunciation.
When you are reading books or using flashcards or other learning tools, make sure you use new words often and explain their meanings when appropriate. You can also have your child repeat these new words and try to incorporate them into their sentences as well!
If your child has learned a large number of new words during one sitting (or even over several days), it’s helpful to look up each word individually in a dictionary so that they get used to reading a variety of definitions. If you practice wide reading yourself, this will come naturally and your children’s curiosity will get piqued often.
Differentiate Between Facts And Opinions
Teach kids to identify and distinguish between facts and opinions.
Facts are things that can be proven true or false. Like the Earth has gravity, or there are 50 states in America.
Opinions are statements that people make about things they think or feel. Such as, I like chocolate ice cream better than vanilla, or war is bad for our country. The important thing to understand is that while they may be true for you (in this example), they’re still just your opinion!
Create A Thematic Basket Of Books
Create thematic baskets of books. There are so many benefits to creating thematic baskets of books. As you build these reading collections, you can teach your child about a specific topic and help him or her learn new vocabulary words related to the theme—and encourage him or her to read more often by having fun with it. Thematic baskets also help kids learn how to read and develop early literacy skills as they practice their reading skills in a fun way.
Play The Book Game
When you play the book game, you read a book to your child. You stop and ask them questions at certain points in the story. They have to answer those questions correctly in order for you both to continue reading.
The purpose of playing the book game is twofold: it helps your child understand what they’re reading and it also helps them remember what they’ve read. This is because when something makes sense, kids are more likely to remember it!
When playing this game with a group of kids (such as during storytime), take turns asking each child one question about what’s happening in the story so far. Ask them if they know who the characters are or where events took place; anything that will help them connect with what’s happened so far and identify specific details about their current situation within this novel’s world!
Be A Role Model: Read Yourself
- You can become a role model by reading to your child. Being able to read is a skill that may be new for you, but it’s not a difficult one to pick up. And it doesn’t have to be boring!
- Reading in front of your child will show them how much fun reading can be by modeling the behavior you want them to learn. If you make reading a chore, they will most likely reject their own efforts in learning how to read later on in life.
- Don’t try to teach your child how to read; instead, just keep reading books aloud at home and don’t let up! Give your child plenty of time with each book so they can form an emotional attachment with the characters and storyline in order for them to fully understand what they’re hearing.
Make It Multisensory
First, make sure you have the right book.
- Does it rhyme? Most children’s books are written in rhyme so kids can easily remember the story and recite it back to you. This is good for learning words and sounds.
- Is it colorful? Children love bright colors and pictures, which helps them keep track of what’s going on in the book as they learn how to read. Books with lots of pictures are also good because they give you something else to look at besides just words, making them easier to follow along with as well as more interesting!
Encourage Silent Reading
Encourage silent reading again and again.
As we mentioned above, reading aloud to your child is great for helping them learn how to read. The next step is getting them to do it by themselves. It may take some time for your child to really get into the habit of reading silently—especially if they have previously been used to being read to on a regular basis—but once they are able, this will be one of the best ways that you can help them develop their understanding of language and comprehension skills. Also, let them know that avid readers read silently to get exceptional at it.
Choose Books With Illustrations
Illustrations are important.
Children learn to read by recognizing the words and connecting them with the images in their mind. The more connections they can make, the easier it is for them to read new books. Reading comprehension will also improve when children have exposure to a variety of illustrations.
There are some things to think about when choosing books with illustrations:
- Is there a lot going on in the picture?
- Are there any words written on top of the pictures? If so, these may distract from your child’s enjoyment of reading time and make it more difficult for her to focus on learning how to read (or even enjoy reading at all).
- Does each page have only one idea? This can help keep young children focused on one storyline at a time rather than trying to piece together several different stories at once!
Prep Them With Games
Reading can be a lot more fun than it may seem, especially for kids who haven’t had a lot of experience reading. To make the process as enjoyable and memorable as possible, start by getting your child excited about the book you’re going to read together. You might ask them what they think the cover looks like or what they think will happen in the story—and then talk about how these predictions are similar or different from what actually happens in the book.
After discussing the cover and title of your chosen book, look at some of its illustrations. Talk about how those images might help you understand what is happening in a particular scene or character’s thoughts and feelings (or perhaps contradict them).
Once you’ve gone through these steps, you’re ready to dive into reading time! We recommend starting with short segments from several chapters so that your child doesn’t get overwhelmed by having too much text on one page at once; also try not to read an entire chapter all at once if possible—it’s better for young readers if there are frequent breaks between reading sessions instead of just one long session after another. These breaks will keep kids engaged in other activities until their curiosity returns and gives them motivation enough to keep going!
Conclusion
Reading can be fun for everyone if you know how to make it a game or a treat for them! Make reading multisensory. Kids who are learning to read need to experience the words in different ways, so make your reading sessions more than just hearing the words. In no time, you’ll make an awesome reader out of your child.
