Simple and easy methods any parent can use to get their preschooler on the right track to reading.
Reading is essential to a child’s development. Parents can prepare their child to be a successful reader before they began any type of formal education. Here are some activities that parents can do to help their children become readers:
Read to them daily. Parents should invest in collecting great children’s literature for their personal home library. If this isn’t possible financially, parents can take advantage of their public library. Experts recommend that parents read to their child at least 30 minutes daily. This will not only create a love of reading in children but will introduce them to the world of words. While reading parents should point to the words in the book and read the dialogue with expression.
Point out words all around. Parents can read the cereal box with their child at breakfast. They can also point out signs while driving in the car. As a game, parents can get their child to name objects around the house. Take a blank index card to write down the names of those objects. Examples include: door, table, television, mirror, etc. Use the cards to label the objects. This activity can help build a child’s sight word vocabulary.
Teach alphabet sounds. Usually children this age are drilled in learning the alphabet song which teaches a child the letter names. However, it would be more beneficial for parents to teach their children the alphabet sounds. This will give them their first introduction to phonics, which is an important ingredient in learning to read. Parents can begin by teaching their child one to two letter sounds a week. Once learned, parents can then introduce blending two sounds together. For example: am, it, on, up, etc. Then move on to simple three-letter blends such as, sat, hot, met, sip.
Read as an example. Young children love to imitate the actions of adults. Parents who love to read can produce children who love to read. Parents should allow their children to see them reading. It could be a newspaper, magazine, or book. When children see their parents having fun reading, then they are more likely to find joy from it as well.
These activities may not make children early readers but it will give them a great start. Parents should try to keep the activities simple because children at this age have short attention spans. They should also remember to keep it fun. Pressuring young children or forcing them to participate will lead to resistance and a dislike for reading.
