Parents as Reading Teachers
I would like to include a reminder about the importance of instilling a home reading habit in children. Daily reading at home allows for practice of new and previously-learned skills. It also sends a message to children that reading is something that requires practice and leads to enjoyment and independent learning.
Daily reading at home can take many forms. Parents can read to or with a child. The child can read to a parent. A child can read independently and share what was learned with a parent. Many children can read independently without reporting back to a parent. It all depends on the ability of the child and the format that fits naturally into the family environment.
If you read to or with your child, ask questions as the reading takes place. Children need to practice locating details, summarizing story events, drawing conclusions, inferencing, compare/contrast. All of these skills can be developed by asking the right questions. Decoding can be facilitated by looking for letter or sound patterns, common syllables, prefixes/suffixes. Most of all, stories can be read or discussed just for enjoyment.
Parental modeling and involvement are crucial to
the reading development of children. Establishing a daily time for reading at home
is a great start to building a lifelong love of reading. Thank you for your support.