Reading Series Part I: Reading TO Children
Reading Series Part III: Reading BY Children
Reading WITH Children
As a child is learning to read, reading to him is still vital but reading with him is also essential. Take turns and listen to each other read. A benefit of reading together is that you’re able to hear where your child struggles and work on those areas. Reading with children further emphasizes to your child that you care about him and that learning to read well is important.
When you’re helping a child learn to write you share the pen right? So when you’re helping a child learn to read, share the book! It’s important to continue reading aloud with your child so that he doesn’t lose listening comprehension.
As you’re reading together, encourage your child to focus on the text. Practice tracking: Put your finger under the words as you read them and have your child follow along.
Here are some ideas for reading with your child:
- Read to your child and then stop. Have your child point out where you stopped.
- Have your child read easy words like “the,” “and,” “for,” etc.
- Have your child read all the text in quotation marks and you read the text not in quotations.
- If the book belongs to you, highlight short portions throughout the book. Have your child read the highlighted parts.
Reading together is all about creating relationships and connections. It’s important to share this time of learning with your child and to continue to be a part of their early reading experiences.
