Learning to Read

Well, it’s back to school for me and my son tomorrow. Last week, I said I would write about creative ways to help your little one learn to read. I will keep that promise, although make an shorter post so I can get back to making sure all my ducks are in a row for tomorrow. Here are some tips on how to have a language rich environment to encourage early literacy.

Letters everywhere- Letter magnets, letters for the bathtub, letters on blocks, letters on puzzles- there are lots of ways to include letters in your child’s play area. I remember my son had a gizmo that sang a song and said the sound the the letter made. You can also use the letters when you play with your child and sing the song yourself. (The sound will be more clear that way).

Read every day- Find a time- bedtime, after school- to read with your child. Interact with your child, and talk about the book your are reading as well. Get a little silly- find books in which your child is interested. The more fun you have, the more your child will want to read.

Expose your child to media that celebrates reading- For my generation, it was Reading Rainbow. Nowadays it might be Super Why or Word World. There are plentiful choices here- do a little digging and you’ll be sure to find something you both enjoy.

Beginner readers- I highly recommend Bob Books for those little ones who are making some headway in recognizing letter sounds. There are different sets, and if you use them in order, careful to only move to the next book once your child has mastered the book they are on, your child will learn how to read.

I haven’t done this much up until now, but I’m going to go ahead and plug my own work. (This makes two weeks in a row of doing this). Here’s my new video about learning to read and the joy of reading- aptly based on my experience teaching my son to read. Hope you like it! Tune in next week for more tips on teaching early childhood skills- how about numbers?