Getting Children Ready to Read

Helping your child get a head start on academic subjects can significantly boost his or her school career--if you go about it the right way. Probably no other skill is more worth tackling early than reading.

In most public schools, students begin learning to read at age 5 or 6.

Before then, though, there are some simple and inexpensive things you can do with your child at home to prepare for reading.

First, create a “reading center”--it can be just a corner--somewhere in the home. It should include good lighting, chairs or floor pillows, and paper and crayons (pencils and pens are obvious hazards). Put the child’s books on low shelves or stacks so he or she can reach them any time.

The most important skill to work on with your son or daughter is recognition of letters. Most 3-year-olds are capable of this.

There are many fun ways to practice naming letters. For example, the child can trace letters you have written, or use stencils. He or she can also shape them out of clay, or cut them from paper and color them.

Once the child has made an entire alphabet, post it in the reading center and ask him or her to name the letters now and then.

Next, have your child practice phonics, that is, the sounds that letters make.

“Hooked on Phonics” and other videotaped lessons are popular, but not necessary, I think.

Just point to letters and ask, for example, “What sound does B make?” Then ask, “Can you say a word that starts with B?”

Now the child is ready for learning sight vocabulary. That means that he or she will learn to recognize entire words without necessarily being able to truly read them.

Begin by teaching the child to recognize his or her name, since this is usually the first word children learn to spell.

Labeling frequently used objects will help to increase the child’s sight vocabulary; let your child help you make labels for bedroom items such as the bed, desk, door and closet.

After some practice, remove the labels, jumble them, then ask the child to put them back correctly. This will probably take a few tries, so don’t be alarmed.

The concept of rhyming words is one that is easily learned by most children--it’s what makes their favorite nursery rhymes and songs so much fun.

You can make a game of it by saying a word, then asking the child to name another word that rhymes. If his or her name is easy to rhyme with, start there.

Then sing a couple of lyrics from a favorite song and ask, “Which words rhyme?”

Sequencing of words is a critical skill, because words have to be in some kind of order to form sentences, and sentences must be in order to form stories.

There are several ways to practice sequencing. Ask the child to retell a story in his or her own words. Teach him or her to follow directions by completing a step-by-step exercise or puzzle, or assembling a toy.

Understanding printed material that is heard, not just read, is crucial too.

Play records or tapes of the child’s favorite stories, songs or nursery rhymes, then ask some basic questions about them.

Creating one’s own written work is a fantastic final step because it makes the child incorporate all of the previous ones.

This is possible even if the child can’t write yet. Have the child dictate a letter to a favorite relative or friend, or an original story that you then staple together as a book. (He or she may want to illustrate it too.)

The main point is that the child is able to hold tangible proof of his or her learning.

A few final hints for a successful ready-to-read program:

* A child who enjoys a task will usually do better at it, so make reading seem fun. Instead of rewarding good behavior with a cookie, trying doing so with a story read aloud.

* Take the child to some of the many free book-related events offered by public libraries.

* Most important, though, let him or her see that you read for fun too, whether it’s a novel or the sports page.