When I first taught Kindergarten I suddenly realized I had to teach these youngsters how to read! That felt like a huge responsibility. Thankfully, with a lot of research, time and experience I have gained some great tips on helping children to read. Now I’m able to work on reading with my children.
Here are the steps I take to teach reading:
1. I make sure they know the letters. I spend a few day’s on each letter, practicing the sound, showing items that start with that letter, tracing the letter, and a craft about the letter. It’s important to note that I teach letter recognition and letter sounds simultaneously.
2. After we’ve gone through the entire alphabet, I go through the alphabet once more (this time one or two days for each letter) and really focus on phonics. At this point I REALLY want my child to know the sounds of the letters.
3. Then we move on to blending two letter words and sounds. I teach my kids to sound out the letter and physically draw an arrow under the letters to show that the sounds blend. (See word family flip through posts in Reading Guide.)
4. From there, we practice, practice, practice. And then we move on to three letter words and work on word families.
There are several ways to teach reading but this is what I found works best for my former students and now teaching my children.
I’d like to note that it’s important not to start having your child read too early (before he/she is ready) because it can cause frustration and discouragement. If you try to have your child read and it’s just not clicking, I recommend waiting a couple months and trying again. However, always read to your child, introduce books, and let your child explore books. It’s important to foster a love of reading so they can enjoy it.