K-12 Basics

Essays can be the bane of students, who struggle to meet the teacher’s expectations and get better grades. But good writing is essential in today’s world when there are so many people competing...

You may not be aware of how intricately tied memorization is to learning how to read. Reading a book seems to require little memorization; as a skilled reader, you can simply sound out the words...

Words in the English language can take on multiple meanings based on the context and the intent of the user. Sometimes, these words are homographs, and sometimes they are just words with multiple...

Fluency is a term used to describe a person's reading ability. Fluency rate is the speed at which a person can read effectively. To measure someone's reading fluency is to measure the speed at...

Games are a great way to teach kids a foreign language. Many instructional games are expensive and require special software or batteries to work, but you can make effective learning tools for a...

Your Introduction text will be displayed here

Games can provide a successful way to internalize the meaning of new vocabulary. Vocabulary games provide a high-interest challenge while using the new word and providing the brain with a memory...

English as a Second Language (ESL) activities have different characteristics and purposes. For example, a grammar activity given as a worksheet can be successful when it reinforces information for...

Recognizing sight words and writing them can be challenging for primary school students. Practicing writing can be frustrating, tedious and may not hold the attention of young students....

According to the National Institute for Literacy, children are exposed to the early building blocks of reading---sounds, words, speech and print---long before they enter school. These building...

Vocabulary is key to learning any language. Whether you are a teacher of ESL (English as Second Language) students or simply helping high school students study for a standardized test, vocabulary...

Spanish games provide a break from traditional drill practice in the classroom. They aid students in preparing for upcoming tests or help them review older material. Games also work well as...

Reading is one of the most effective and important communication tools in the world. Sometimes, however, it can be difficult to get the time necessary to read everything you need to. This can...

Word-building activities require students to use decoding skills instead of simply memorizing words on a page. These activities provide kids with a better understanding of how words are...

When students are in grades one, two and three they learn to understand the basic features of reading. They select letter patterns and know how to translate them into spoken language by using...

Creating a personal dictionary or glossary of terms is an easy way to learn and use unfamiliar words or words that we have difficulty learning. The internet offers a plethora of online word...

Studies have shown that there are a number of words in the English language that are high-frequency words. These words need to be seen only about 20 times before they are committed to memory....

As a parent, your child should be able to speak clearly and use words appropriately. Communication is so important. In order to communicate they need a great foundation. It is very important to...

Experts feel that beginning readers such as those in first grade must pay active, prolonged attention while learning reading skills in order to achieve success. Gaining a first grader's attention...

According to the National Institute for Literacy, children learn much of their vocabulary through daily exposure in the form of reading, being read to and conversation. However, learning difficult...

Positional word activities enable students to improve vocabulary while increasing their knowledge of how objects relate to one another. Provide students with a variety of positional word...

Learning to read is an ongoing process that takes regular reinforcement. Like many things in life, practice makes perfect. The more you can get your child to practice reading, the more strongly...

Pocket charts prove to be a versatile educational tool in a first-grade classroom. These simple charts adapt to accommodate a variety of educational activities for the students. Children and...

This will help you, as a student or parent of a student, to memorize vocabulary words and what they mean. I think that I'm very capable of offering advice in this catergory because I spent several...

Developing strong reading skills will give kids a great foundation for future educational opportunities. The ability to read well can help kids in all academic subjects and can be a wonderful...

The reading student begins to acquaint himself with the visual-spacial aspects of reading. Most notably, this includes learning the direction of left to right or right to left depending upon the...

As a teacher and a parent, I know what a struggle it can be to learn the weekly spelling word list that children in elementary school are given. Here are a few tips to make the process less painful!

Sight word recognition plays an integral role in fluent reading and comprehension for children. Frequent exposure to these sight words allows students to commit them to memory. Word walls and...

Math story problems can seem like a nightmare, but they can be made easier with a few simple tricks. Of course, the first step is always to read the problem carefully. Once you have done that, the...

Sight words are words that are immediately recognized, and that do not require word analysis for identification. Sight words make up as much as 70 percent of most general text, so they are...

Sight words are defined as words that are immediately recognized, and that do not require word analysis for identification. Sight words make up as much as 70 percent of most general text, so they...

Here's a quick cure for student insomnia: Hand out a list of definitions and say, "Start memorizing." Fortunately, vocabulary enhancement can be achieved by a range of more interesting methods....

Onomatopoeia words describe the sounds that people, animals, and inanimate objects make. For example, a cat purrs when happy. Other examples of onomatopoeia words include sizzle, crack, vroom,...

The Orton-Gillingham approach to reading instruction is a language-learning strategy. It is based on the research of Samuel Orton and the later research of Anna Gillingham, whose main focus was to...

When an instructor of any grade level imposes a specific word quota on an essay assignment, it's for one of two reasons that will benefit the student later in life. The first is to get him to...

There are eight types of words that are used in the English language to form phrases, clauses and/or sentences. These word types, which are known as the parts of speech, are the basic words that...

Phonics and whole language approaches to reading instruction have been the focus of much reading research in the past several decades. Both of these approaches are beneficial, but both fail to...

The eight main parts of speech are nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.

It's important to teach your child to read. Children who read well adjust more smoothly to school and test better than children who struggle with reading. Here are some steps to take to teach your...

Learning to spell can be difficult for a child and even more frustrating for a parent. Here are some tips to help your child learn to spell. Please rate and comment on this article. Thanks! :)

Learning to spell by using phonics is beneficial in that it emphasizes sound(s) and sound patterns, rather than rote memorization. Although there are exceptions, most words can be spelled...

Reading is one of the most important skills you can teach a child. If children can't read well, they will not be able to succeed in school and will find everyday life difficult. Teaching kids to...

Reading is a hobby for many Americans. The amount of time you spend reading a book is dependent on the amount of words you can read in a minute along with other factors, such as how closely the...

You may come across the term "sight words" when helping your child with homework or teaching a young child to read and wonder, "What are sight words and what purpose do they serve?" Don't be...

When my daughter was in kindergarten, her teacher was amazed at how well she could read. She was reading well into the second grade age level. Now that she's in the second grade she remains two...

Spelling is an important skill that is learned and can be mastered. Spelling is very important in the business world. A person who spells badly may be perceived as uneducated, which may make it...

Dudes and dudettes! A LOT is TWO WORDS! There is no such word as ALOT! It's A LOT! Here's how you can remember that fact!

Learning to speak French while you are still young is one of the greatest favors you can do for yourself. When we are born, we have a remarkable ability to learn and speak languages, but as we get...

Dyslexia is an inherited learning disorder that affects people's ability to process information while reading, writing and comprehension. Dyslexia is a frustrating problem, especially for...

Many people have difficulty spelling words. Since most words follow spelling rules, learning the rules is one key way to help you to spell words correctly. In addition, there are a few ways to...