How to Teach a Child to Read
Most children learn how to read when they are four or five years old, but it doesn’t hurt to get them started and hooked on reading. Reading and comprehension are important skills that can help your child get ahead in life when he or she grows up. Here are some tips that can help you teach your child to read.
Letters and Sounds
A child learns to read by associating visual cues with vocal cues. To teach your child to read effectively, you should start by associating the visual form of a letter with a sound. You could say, “This is the letter ’s,’ and it sounds like ‘ess.’” Here are some tips to keep in mind:
Start with small letters. Instead of using letters in uppercase, it’s better to start with letters in lowercase. Lowercase letters make up most of the words that your child will learn to write eventually. Teaching the alphabet in lowercase makes it easier for him or her to learn how to read and associate letters with sounds.
Associate the letter with a word. Another way to make reading easier for your child is to associate a particular letter with a simple, common word that your child would use frequently. For example, you can associate the letter “D” with “dog,” or “C” with “cat,” and “M” with “Mom.” Word association will also help your child pronounce a word properly.
Use the Right Instructional Aids
Once your child is familiar with the alphabet, you can move to some simple spelling rules. Books, posters, and other instructional materials can help your child develop good reading skills. Try not to rely on TV shows, educational tapes, or computer programs to do your job to teach your children to read. It’s best to teach your child to learn to read by yourself; that way, you can also strengthen the bond you share with your kid.
Read and Write
To make the learning experience more exciting and to maximize your child’s intelligence and eagerness to learn, you can teach him or her to read and write at the same time. Start by teaching your child to imitate how simple words are written, and then you can move up to more complex words and sentences. Don’t be too worried about misspelled words or wrong grammar; your child will eventually learn to properly spell out words and construct proper sentences at school.
It’s never too early to get your child to the healthy habit of reading. With these tips, you can open up a new world of opportunities for your child to explore in the fabulous and magical world of reading.