As children learn to read, the world around them takes on a whole new dimension; signs become meaningful, directions become clearer, and stories and books offer an entirely new world of fantasy, adventure, and discovery. While your child will receive great instruction in school, there are fun, simple ways to reinforce those lessons at home and on the go.
Below you will find an overview of how great reading skills develop in children learning to read, and our favorite tools for supporting literacy growth.
Phonemic Awareness
The first building block of reading is phonemic awareness, a child’s ability to hear and identify the sounds in spoken words. This is a skill that can easily be developed on-the-go as you shuffle your child around the city. Challenge her to think of rhyming words, or play I Spy with beginning or ending sounds! “I spy with my little eye something that begins with a /k/ sound).”
Phonics
Once your child can hear these individual phonemes (a fancy word for sounds), she can begin to learn learn the letters that go with each one. We call this predictable sound-symbol association phonics. While this word is often synonymous with dull, repetitive exercises, it doesn’t have to be. With hands-on games such as Alphabet Go Fish and Alphabet Bingo, you can spend quality time with your child and help her learn letter names and sounds. Digital resources also offer the opportunity for engaging independent practice! And the best of them allow you to monitor your child’s progress as well. Some of our favorite phonics apps include Learn with Homer, Phonics Island, and Letter School, which also targets handwriting skills.
From Sound to Meaning
After these foundations have been laid, it is time for your child to work on developing fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension skills. The first is a question of practice makes perfect. The more your child reads, the better she will be able to quickly identify words; and the more your child hears a fluent reader model how to read with expression (pausing at punctuation, showing excitement at exclamation marks, etc.) the better she will learn to do this herself.
The last two building blocks of literacy will develop as a result of talking with your child about books. It is important to not only ask about who, where and what is involved in a chapter or story, but to also think about bigger picture concepts and connections that can be made. What motivates a character? What are some of the problems or challenges she faced? How did she overcome them? How was the book similar or different to your child’s real-life experiences?
Most importantly, though, reading should be fun. The more you, as a parent, are able to express and share excitement and enthusiasm for stories and books, the more likely your child is to embrace the exciting possibilities of written language!
Get Matched With A Braintrust Tutor Today!
Watching your child learn how to read is an exciting time. We also know it can be stressful for parents who see their kids struggling with literacy development. If you’re looking for an online tutor that specializes in literacy and teaching kids how to learn to read, then Braintrust is here to help. We have a wide pool of teachers in our community. Get matched with the best tutor for your child today!
English 
Spanish