I used to teach, and I have a master’s degree in reading. I have two kids, which is much more important. I wish parents wouldn’t put so much pressure on their kids to “keep up” with other kids. As a mom, I sometimes fall into the comparison trap, especially when it comes to literacy and reading milestones.
I think some rules about reading and writing are out of date, and parents need to not only change what they expect but also get creative with the resources they have and how they define success.
Get people interested
When your child learns the ABCs, it’s a big step in their growth. But knowing what comes next is just as important. The main point should be how to help your child become a better reader. Many parents wonder why their child doesn’t like books or reading as they get older. It could be because of something that happened to them when they were young.
At the reading age, you shouldn’t try to force ideas and strategies on your child. Instead, you should encourage their natural curiosity and desire to learn. The more you try to help your child like books from a young age, the more likely it is that he or she will love reading for the rest of their lives.
You can help promote this by offering children choices. Think about giving them different types of reading materials, encouraging reading in different places, or teaching them different styles, like listening to an audiobook or looking at just pictures.
The ABCs aren’t bad, but you can make the song more interesting at home by choosing alphabet puzzles that show how the letters sound, not just how they look.
When you read a book to your child, you can also point out letters he or she already knows and talk about how the letters sound. You can even use things around the house that start with the same letter sound to make “sound baskets.” To help your child become a better reader, you can also pay attention to what your child is interested in, like space or dinosaurs, and choose books about those things.
Let teachers help you
As a parent, I know that it can be hard to know what to do to help your child learn. All parents want the best for their kids, but when you’re not in the classroom every day, it’s hard to know what your child is learning. Reading skills can be hard to work on if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Many parents don’t know that there is a way to teach reading, right down to the way and order in which letter sounds are taught. As a parent, you can give your kids a safe place to read at home, where they can learn that reading is a way to unwind.
If you’re worried about your child’s literacy skills, it’s best to talk to their teacher at the beginning of the year to find out what your role is at home and how you can support what they’re learning in school.
Count on your neighbors.
When I was a teacher, I used libraries as a resource. I checked out books that related to what I taught so that the kids in my class could learn more and look into things on their own. We go to the library every few weeks with my own kids.
Libraries are great places to read, and they also teach people how to be responsible. We practice taking books out of the library and putting them back. They also have a lot of free programs for families to keep learning about reading and writing in different settings. You can also check out the children’s museum in your area. It might have reading resources or special displays.
Your child’s success is not measured by how many letters he or she can say or how many words he or she can remember. It’s seeing a child like books and want to read them. Reading isn’t the same for everyone. Your child is reading if he or she is learning to read or write in some way.