How to Teach your child to read

Teaching your child to read can be one of the most rewarding experiences you have as a parent. Many parents are initially concerned about whether they have what it takes to teach a child to read. If you are able to read yourself, then you have the tools you need to teach a child how to read. With a little bit of patience, you can have the honor of watching a whole new world open up to your child as symbols on a page turn into access to imaginary worlds. Here is how to teach your child to read.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Ability to read
• Books for beginning readers
• Creativity
• Good attitude
• Patience

1. Read to your child daily. Nothing can replace the head start that a child receives from becoming familiar with books and the way that the written word sounds when read aloud. If your child sees that reading is important to you, then he will be much more likely to want to learn how to read himself.
2. Make sure your child is ready to begin learning how to read. Learning how to read cannot be rushed. If you try to teach a child prematurely, you will both wind up frustrated. If your child has no interest whatsoever in learning his letters, then wait a month or so and try again.
3. Teach your child the sounds of each letter. You can make this fun, such as saying, "I see a c-c-c-cat," whenever you see a cat. The sound of a letter is much more important than a letter's name because the child will need to combine the letter sounds to make words. If you focus on the letter names, then the child has an added step in sounding out a word by first identifying each letter and then going back and identifying each letter's sound.
4. Focus on one letter at a time. Rather than try to teach a child 26 new letters at one time, focus on one letter a day or a week. This enables the child to master each letter sound and feel proud of herself for doing so.
5. Incorporate sight, sound, and touch as you teach each letter. Some children learn their letters faster by seeing or hearing them, while other children learn better by using their bodies. Encourage your child to draw the letter and then paste pictures of something that begins with that sound onto the letter, such as pasting pictures of dogs or dinosaurs onto the letter D. Sing songs about the letter. Read your child a story that repeatedly uses that letter sound. Think up creative ways for your child to learn each letter sound.
6. Begin reading with "consonant-vowel-consonant" words. Once your child knows his letter sounds, he is ready to begin reading. Beginners do best with trying to read words that have a consonant-vowel-consonant pattern, such as CAT or DOG. Create flashcards or obtain books for beginning readers, and walk your child through sounding out each letter to figure out the word. Children become excited when they are able to "decode" a word on their own.
7. Practice reading daily. Once your child starts sounding out words in the consonant-vowel-consonant pattern, she is officially reading. The child will need lots of practice, so collect numerous books for beginning readers from the bookstore or library so your child can practice reading. It takes a long time to go from sounding out each letter in a word to learning sight words and on to fluent reading, but it all comes with practice.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep a positive attitude. If you make learning to read fun, then your child will be much more likely to "play" along with you.
• Practice the letter sounds while you are driving in your car together. Go through the entire alphabet and match words with the letter sounds. For example, see how many words your child can name that begin with a B ("bah") sound. Take turns selecting words so your child can learn from your examples.
• If your child is struggling with learning to read, do not assume that you are doing something wrong. Your child might not be ready to read yet. When a child is developmentally ready to begin reading, the process becomes significantly easier.