How to Read Rhyming Words for Kindergarten

Children develop "pre-reading skills" when they observe and imitate adults reading. These important skills include reading a sentence from left to right, holding a book upright and viewing pictures to gain clues about a story. Children develop listening skills and learn new vocabulary when they read stories with rhyming words.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Read short stories and rhymes like the ones from the "Mother Goose" nursery tales. The poems are short, and even young children remember and repeat the lines on their own after a few repetitions.

2. Share stories that are humorous. These engage the children, capture their interest and increase their desire to hear more.

3. Use an animated voice and expression. Take on the character's voices. For example, do a low voice for a bear or a high squeaky voice for a little girl. Whisper or use a booming voice at appropriate times in the story.

4. Add gestures that go along with the action of the story: clap your hands, mimic crying and open eyes wide to show surprise. These act as mnemonic devices to help children remember the words.

5. Repeat the rhyme until your child memorizes the words. Read the beginning two words of a line, pause, and let your child finish the rest.

6. Inquire about the pictures in the book to see if your child understands how much the story relates to them. To increase her cognitive skills, ask questions unrelated to the story, like the color of the character's clothes.

Tips & Warnings

• Many kindergarten classes have books on tape. This is another way to expose children to new reading materials.

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