Helping your child Read

Follow the 3Ps - Pause, Prompt, Praise!

OTHER WAYS to help your

child with reading

Pause
Give your child time to work out the words for him/herself before responding too quickly.

Talk and read with your child in your Mother Tongue. Enrich your childs vocabulary. Oral language establishes the foundations of reading skills and written language. Read aloud regularly and frequently and enjoy this bonding time. Encourage signicant adults to read aloud: moms, dads, grandpas, grandmas. If a parent or grandparent is away, consider video conferencing for reading aloud: model that reading time is precious! Keep reading aloud even when your child is reading independently. Keep your reading time happy.

Prompt
Encourage your child to look at the pictures. Ask: What word might make sense? What would sound right? What does the word start with?

READING
TOGETHER
WHAT IS READING?

If the word makes sense, allow your child to continue reading. If the word doesnt make sense, encourage your child to have another try. Tell your child the word.

Take turns reading: you read one page, your child reads the next. Echo-read: you read a sentence with expression, your child echoes this sentence. Drop vocabulary from the written page before reading - i.e. Oh look, Jane is building a sand castle. Reread favorite books. Build up a collection of stories on CD for home and the car. Explore book series with familiar characters. Tell traditional tales and make up oral stories. Tell stories using toys and props. Create a family message board. Leave notes for your child to read. Teach your child nursery rhymes, chants, jingles, action songs. Let your child see you reading. Turn off screens.

Praise!
Always praise and encourage your child for their efforts. When your child self-corrects, encourage your child with words such as, Thats what good readers do! Share how much you enjoyed reading with them.

Learning to read is more about learning language than it is about making sounds from the letters on a page. from Reading Magic by Mem Fox

THE READING PROCESS

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR CHILD MAKES A MISTAKE

HELPING WITH READING AT HOME

When we read we use different sources of information: previous experience and understanding of the world (meaning) knowledge of how language is spoken (structural) and knowledge of letters and sounds and how they are presented in print (visual)

If the mistake makes sense, let your child continue reading. Keep the ow and enjoyment of the story going. The girl walked to her home. (print) The girl walked to her house. (child says) If the mistake does not make sense, ask Does that make sense? Encourage your child to do what readers do." Allow time to self-correct. Have your child look at the picture. Suggest that your child make a sensible guess - what word might t? Let your child read to the end of the sentence and then go back. Casually re-read what your child said, Hmm, you just read: The girl walled to her home. Does that make sense? What could it be? Give your child the word.

Book Introductions: Encourage your child to get ready for what is coming up and to make predictions about what he/she will read. Words and ideas can be discussed so that when reading begins, your child has some idea of what to expect and is familiar with some of the language he/she will encounter. Talk about the cover, title, author - give an overview of what the book is about. Browse through the pictures and discuss the events. Identify unusual or unfamiliar words and ideas and talk about them. Ask questions like: What do you think this book might be about? What is happening now? What might happen next? What do you think could happen in the end? Have you read another book like this? After reading aloud, encourage your child to talk about the book and its meaning. Ask him/her to share and compare their own experiences with those in the book. Have your child describe characters and events he/she especially likes/dislikes and say why. Ask questions such as: Has this ever happened to you? Does this character remind you of someone or another character?

It _______________________across the garden. We can complete the sentence using our knowledge of how language works. Only an action word, verb, can be used here (structural information)

Sophie watched the rabbit. It ___________ across the garden. Now that we know the story is about a rabbit, we are able to choose a suitable word. (meaning information)

Sophie watched the rabbit. It h____________across the garden. Our knowledge of letters and their sounds, together with the way words look, further help us to choose the right word. (visual information)

Does it look right, does it sound right, does it make sense?