When it comes to teaching a child to read, it’s one of those things that happens without realising. The process itself is something that isn’t entirely thought about until the decision to help the child read is made. Reading is something that is not picked up naturally and is in fact quite complex. It requires the teaching of different skills such as phonics which is the understanding of the relationship between letters and sounds. However, given that the process of reading can be complex, the building blocks that lead to it are quite straightforward to complete.
Here are some top tips for teaching your child to read.
Use different songs and nursery rhymes to help your child build phonemic awareness. There is more to children’s songs and nursery rhymes than them just being fun – the incorporation of rhyme and rhythm helps children to understand the sounds and syllables in words which aids them in reading. A great way for your child to gain phonemic awareness is by learning to clap along with you to the songs. This is an amazing bonding activity to do with your little one too!
When you find that your child is ready, cut out some pieces of card and write a word containing 3 letters on each. These could be cat, sat, mat, sit, lap, pot, fin etc. Allow your child to pull a card from the pile and hold up three fingers. Give them the chance to spell out each letter until they reach the end. This simple activity gives them the ability to break words down and sound them out in order to understand them better. In time, you will be able to move on to words that are longer and more complex.
Read to your child regularly. This won’t teach them how to read entirely but will show them to sound out words, build on comprehension, grow their vocabulary and understand what a fluent reader sounds like. Regular sessions of reading will also help your child develop a love for it which is just as important!
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