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Thoughts on Teaching Your Child to Read
10/18/2004
Gertrude's Musings
Teaching children to read can be a daunting task. For those of you who have children who caught on quickly and who learn easily, be thankful. For those of you who think your seven or eight-year-old is never going to read, be patient. Believe me, with patience and persistence your child will get there. And please, don't get the notion that because your child took longer to learn to read, he is academically inept or has a low IQ or any such silly idea. Some children just process information differently and some just need time. Nothing's wrong with that! I keep saying, some children walk at eight months, others not till they are almost two. Is the child who walked at eight months more athletic than the late walker – experience tells me no. So, the late reader need not be considered less bright than the early reader.
I have had experience with early and late readers in this home and I have a few tips for those of you who also have a late reader. In the first place, don't get frustrated with your child. (Easier said than done, some days). Secondly, don't rush him. Don't keep moving on if he has not yet mastered the last step. If he doesn't know all his consonant sounds, then don't begin with the short vowel sounds. Hang letters up and refer to them in your daily activities. Give him word pictures, if necessary, to remember the sound. (Names of the letters are unimportant at this stage.) Go to the library and get some books to give you ideas for games to play to encourage and reinforce learning. When he has the consonant sounds down pat, move on to the short vowel sounds. Do a combination of workbook and games. Give him time and space.
Once your child has a decent start in reading, start introducing some "sight words" so he will be able to read a broader range than just the sounds he is learning. I found the Pathway flashcards very helpful for a start. Then later I took blank business cards and whenever my son came across a word he did not know but I felt he should know, or it would be good for him to know, I would write it on a card. (Index cards would work fine too) Several times a week we would go through these cards. Once he knew a word without hesitation we would move them into the "mastered pile". That pile would grow, while the pile we were working on would stay about the same (as cards went out I added new ones). I would take these words from Explode the Code, MCP Phonics or books he was reading. This was extremely helpful for him. This may not work for every child but it was extremely helpful for us and I know it has helped others to whom I have explained it. And just keep at it!
Encourage 5-10 minutes of silent reading daily, gradually building up to 30 minutes or more. As in all things, the more you do something, the easier it gets.
One final thought. Some children really do not enjoy novels but we do want to continue to encourage them to read. Let them read books about cars, the Middle Ages, North American Natives, gardening, whatever tickles their fancy. Even if they begin by only reading captions, they are looking at books and with time they will enjoy books more and more.
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