Everyone has a different theory and a different technique to teaching reading. Throughout a child’s learning to read experience, the most important thing is to keep a positive attitude.
Always read to your children, this encourages good expression when they learn to read, and also a love of books. When you are reading to your child, there is so much to talk about. Ask your child what the book was about, their favourite character, what things they can see in the picture, what letters or words they can recognise on the page.
There are about 100 common sight words that we use that children can learn by sight, for everything else however, children must possess the ability to decode. Knowing the sounds that letters make, will help children to become competent and fluent readers through decoding.
From an early age you can make your child aware of the reading process. Always have something around for them to ‘read’ like board books, television guides, magazines, novels. Encourage them to hold the book the right way up and turn the pages. Often children will make up great stories just doing this and looking at the pictures.
Stage One: Single Sounds
Approxiamate age 3 – 6 years
This is where children learn the name and the sound of the letter. For a beginner, this can be very tricky. b, p, d are three of the most commonly confused sounds as they look so similar. At this early stage it is essential for children to practice all their sounds so that they can begin to build words. In this stage children can look at simple words like bed, peg, cat, dog and identify the beginning, middle and end sound. They can also rhyme words, and have a simple grasp on comprehension. English is particularly hard language to learn to read and write. Children spend their first years learning that the letter ‘c’ makes a ‘c’ sound in cake, but then they discover that it makes ‘sss’ in circle and ‘ch’ in chips. To avoid confusion, explain early on that letters sometimes change the sound they make in words.
Activities to help this stage are:
Put a couple of letters at a time on the floor, ask children to run to the card that makes an ‘a’ sound. Ask them to tell you the sound, and three or four things that start with that sound eg. a is for apple, a is for acrobat, a is for ant.
Concentrate on one sound at a time, learn the same and sound that the letter makes, learn how to write the letter, talk about things that start with that letter sound. For example, if you are concentrating on ‘a’, go out into the backyard and find some ants, eat some apples and swing around the living room like an acrobat!
There are many single sounds games available that you can but or make yourself.
To practice sight words, you can scatter them onto the floor and have a treasure hunt.
Alphabet Bingo: write sounds onto a piece of cardboard and show children letters, they have to tell you the sound and mark it off if they have it.
Read stories to children and ask them to retell the story.
Have a picture and ask children to find all the things they can starting with a certain sound, this can also be done out the car window.
Happy Reading!
If you have any questions or comments, please email me at tina@reacheducation.com.au
Stage Two: Blends and Ends
Approximate age 6 – 7 years
After children are familiar with all things in stage one, they can move onto blending sounds. In this stage children learn the common sounds that are made when two or three letters are grouped together. Once they have established this connection, decoding words and reading fluency will come much easier.
Activities to help this stage are:
Write the sound you’re focusing on on a card and put it on the floor. Get your child to read out that sound and the run to a wall when they can think of a word that starts with that sound. Keep going until they’ve ran out.
Play true or false with sounds that are similar. Eg Does tractor start with ‘br’ “No!” Tractor starts with ‘tr’.
Place words on the floor and collect all words that start with a certain sound. Then ask your child if they can tell you what words they are.
Stage Three: Double Sounds
approximate age 7 – 9 years
Double sounds are the trickiest ones to learn. There are a lot of them, different letter combinations make the same sound, and the same letters can make different sounds! This is not something that you would think about when reading, but it is extremely confusing to children so a lot of patience has to be exercised when trying to explain. It is the automatic recognition of these double sounds that will help your child to read fluently and decode more easily.
Activities to help this stage are:
Look at the sounds and think of three words that have that sound in them.
Write a word like b__ch and draw a picture of a beach. Ask your child to choose the correct sound to go in the space. This can be repeated with all of the different sounds.
Go though sounds that sound the same but have different letter combinations. You can print these onto card and scatter them onto the table for children to group together.
Draw pictures and write two similar words next to each picture for your child to choose the correct word. eg. Draw a cloud and next to it write ‘clown’ and ‘cloud’ ask, “Which is the right word?”
Have your double sounds cards and play who am I? I have the ‘ai’ sound in my name, I arrive at your house, you can open and read me… who am I? mail!
Remember to always encourage children to try! It is better to have a go and get closer than to not try at all. Use the pictures to help with children’s reading, they often provide the meaning.
Always praise your child’s reading. Our language is a very difficult one to learn. At the start it seems like there is so much to remember and it can often be very overwhelming to children. Praise their efforts, for every small achievement they are advancing to the time when they can read without consciously thinking about it. When you see your child do that after years of learning and practice, you will feel proud as punch!
Happy Reading!
Tina Tower
Reach Education Centre
P.S Please feel free to email me or drop in if you ever have any questions. tina@reacheducation.com.au |
