So I have many things to post about. One of which is my new curriculum for the year, a special giveaway, and of course an awesome memory master type for those of you that are trying. But before I get into that I wanted to touch back on something that I know is important to us all... READING!
If you remember in a previous post, I spoke about how there are three "main levels" to your child's reading ability. The first one is called "Independent", the second is called, "Instructional," and the third is called, "Frustrational". You can read more about each one if you feel the need to refresh at this link.
I then spoke about how I would give you clear steps to take your child from an "frustrational" level to an "independent" level. This strategy and the future ones can be used while reading any leveled text with any curriculum. The one I use is called "All About Reading"- but regardless as long as the text is something that you have been teaching off, this strategy is very helpful.
This strategy is called "Shared Reading", I also throw in a little picture walk which help with comprehension.
In a classroom, the teacher usually has a copy of the text and does not point on the student's book, but since I only have one copy of the reader, I point above as he points out below. The purpose of shared reading is to allow the child to hear the text before he is expected to read it on their own. It builds familiarity and comprehension each time you read it aloud. It also helps them track the words to sounds as you are teaching them to match an audible word to a print word.
This reader is especially important as it is phonetic based. Most leveled books (even those found in libraries) are often whole language based. Thus bringing in words that are heavily learned through memorization and not sounds, i.e. sight words. However this program teaches them words they are learning in their lessons and transfers them directly into a story. I will post more about this curriculum soon.
Here is a quick demonstration of a picture walk. You might have to turn your volume up to hear him, but you can hear me relaying the questions.
Here is the video of Tony and I doing shared reading.
This is the second step after a picture walk to get him familiar with the text and ready to read.
Ok, that's all for now. I hope this is a quick strategy you can implement in teaching your kids to read. Remember this can be used with any leveled reader. :)
So have fun and go do a little shared reading today!
Blessings,
Crecia
This is what I do with my son:) It has made teaching him to read a pleasure for both of us.
ReplyDeleteThat's so wonderful to hear Michelle. I'm excited to hear more from you in the future. It's always nice to hear how others are doing it also. Thanks for reading and commenting.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Crecia
My oldest would have definitely responded to this and learned. We did something similar (he is in 8th grade). My next kids, though, are dyslexic. It would actually be to their detriment to do it this way. It's actually better for them to read stories without pictures or with pictures that give very little clue to the storyline, otherwise they begin to guess. Reading along with them would also cause them to guess. It's just so different with dyslexics. But it's possible a quarter of the population is dyslexic, so I thought I'd mention this difference in approaching them.
ReplyDeleteDear Vosslers,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I agree Dyslexia is very different when teaching kids to read. I have a friend that had her child receive services early and now is an amazing reader, so good for you to figure that out and get them reading with great strategies.
Many blessings to you,
Crecia
Hi,My name is Sarah
ReplyDeleteMy son is almost 5, and we are about half-way through the Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading. My son has always loved being read too, but is less eager to learn to read. When he is in the right mood (calm and focused) he surprises me by how well he reads new material, but most of the time I find he tries to guess from the pictures and context, without pictures/context he'll often make errors that surprise me. He'll reverse sounds, add sounds that aren't there, or substitute a completely different sound. He knows all his sounds and many phonics rules really well and gets them just fine when he's more focused. I'm wondering whether this is just signs of a young reader who has a lot of energy and difficulty staying focused on the task, or if it could be a sign of dyslexia. I'm wondering whether the strategies you mentioned here would help him focus and make it more relaxing and fun for him, or if he'd just memorize/guess. (I usually avoid giving him to many clues when we practice because he DOES tend to guess and memorizes quickly. After one reading he'll read most of it from memory.) Thoughts?
Thanks!
Sarah
Dear Sarah,
ReplyDeleteFirst off, thanks for your comment and I apologize it's taken me so long to respond. You asked right in the middle of a cross country move for me and it's taken a lot out of me to just get unpacked and organized.
From what you've said, it does not sound like there are any reading problems right now. To make a formal diagnosis though, it would be best to talk to a health provider. First off I am not an expert in dyslexia. In my teaching experience of little ones, we always waited till the kids were past the stage of "reversals" before we tested. That was usually after 1st grade. You can get your child tested early and/ or read more about symptoms. I think it's important to just educate yourself and ask questions. If you feel something is wrong, keep asking questions.
With all that said, It's really normal for kids to do what your son is doing. My son memorizes the same books as well. As long as I'm using a reading curriculum I feel changes it up enough the memorization factor is diminished.
The "shared reading" I show is only supposed to be used to introduce new text/ stories. It is a way to diminish the anxiety of having to decode each word and not lose energy for the end.
I will update that posts once I have ore time about the following steps and how to get them to read independently.
Memorization gets a very bad rap in our world, however adults do it all the time. In fact we have memorized nearly every written word and rarely sound out words we are reading. So rest assure that he is doing what we all did at an early age.
The key is he doesn't do it all the time and that he is learning those phonetic rules along side you.
My email is ccingit@gmail.com if you have any further thoughts or questions. Hopefully I have helped.
Blessings to you and your family,
Crecia