How to Support Your Child with Reading
Independent reading is the most important skill your child will learn during their time at primary school. Once a child can read, a wonderful
world of knowledge is theirs for the taking. Supporting your child as they learn to read is a partnership between you at home and the teachers
and support staff at school. Here are my top tips to support your child as they become an independent reader.
Talk to your child’s teacher
The National Curriculum ensures a certain amount of consistency across the country. Each school and each teacher will, however, have developed their own special ways of encouraging children to read. Make an appointment to see your child’s teacher. Ask them to explain how reading is taught at your child’s school. Discuss what you can do at home to support the school in their work.
Share books at home
If books are a part of your child’s life from their earliest days they will pick up reading skills more readily. Board books for babies and picture stories for little ones lead on to shared bedtime reading of chapter books. You and your child will look forward to this special, quiet time of the day together. As your child grows as a reader they can read occasional words, then sentences and then whole pages and chapters.
Let your child see you reading at home as well. This might be reading the newspaper or the TV schedules, a novel or a document from the bank. Seeing you read will help your child to know that reading is important in your life.
Discover your local library
A huge range of books, story CDs, DVDs and magazines are available free of charge or for very little cost at your local library. Take along some form of identification and a librarian will sign you up there and then.
Libraries often put on reading related events with storytellers or puppet shows. They also have reading challenges during the school holidays where your child can earn stickers and posters as they read more books.
And finally
Remember, once your child can read independently a life time of learning opportunities opens up for them. Make reading a big part of your family life and watch your child grow before your very eyes.
Steve Mynard is a primary school teacher with twenty years experience.
This content was provided by one of our users, Steve Mynard
