Tips for Helping Your Child Build Their Reading Confidence:

Tips for Helping Your Child Build Their Reading Confidence:

• Let them see YOU reading.  Parents are the “first teachers” of children.  By seeing you read, they realize that the skill is important and they will want to learn too.
• Set aside time to read.  All you need is 10 – 15 minutes daily to read to and with your child.  This can become part of your daily routine (e.g., Bed time stories, read to you while you make dinner, after supper book time, etc.).  Reading daily is the key to helping a child become successful with reading and building their confidence.
• Read books on topics that are of interest to your child.  If you child likes comics, then comic books or graphic novels will peak their interest.  If they like dinosaurs, Barbies, My Little Ponies, Aliens, etc., find story books from the library or your own personal library that focus on these.  Your child will WANT to read or listen to a story that ties into their interests.
• Praise their efforts, don’t stress on their difficulties.  When they recognize a letter or a word, praise them for it.  If they make a mistake, don’t stress it (never say “That’s wrong.”), as this will prevent them from taking risks and trying.  Instead, read the word, or say “that’s a tough one.  I know I struggled with that one until I learned.  Let’s sound it out together.”).  Your child needs to know that YOU struggled too.  YOU had to learn, and now you can do it.  This helps them see that EVERYONE has to learn.
• Become familiar with Reading Strategies used in the classroom. The classroom teacher will send home a chart that outline the strategies used in the classroom and this will help you when you’re reading with and to your child.  You can model some of these strategies as you read.  This will help your child master the strategies and learn along with your child.
• Play rhyming games.  “I’m thinking of something that rhymes with CAT.”  See how many words you and your child can come up with.  It’s fun, and it’s teaching them about “WORD FAMILIES.”  E.g., AT is found in cat, hat, fat, mat, that, rat, sat, etc.  This will help them figure out an “at” family word because they all rhyme.  Other word families that are commonly explored in kindergarten are:  an, ank, ap, at,  ack, ock, op, ot, ill, ing, ink, in, ip, uck, ump, ug, ell, est, ake, ine, ice, ide, ail, ay, eep.
• Letter Flash Cards.  Pick only 5 at a time to review and practice the name and sound of the letters.  Once they’ve mastered those five, move on to five new ones. Periodically go back to the previously mastered ones and review.  Try spelling some small words using the letters they know.  (e.g. C-A-T).
• Reading Rainbow Word Program.  Start with the Kindergarten RED Level Words.  Once they've mastered these (recognize and read them in the list, in isolation, and in books/texts shared), then move on to the next colour level. (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, Indigo, Red Bird, Yellow Bird, Blue Bird, Purple Bird, Brown Bird, Black Bird, Cloud and then Sun).

Hope these tips help.  Happy Reading!