Jacob reading to Leah
Contrary to what you might think, (or have been told!) you don't need a fancy or expensive program to teach your child to read. The school system does not have a magic potion for your child to turn them into a reader. In fact, the literacy rate in most public schools is pretty abysmal. Of course it isn't just up to the school system, what you as a parent do with your child is most important. One of my very
favorites books on the importance of reading is
I love this book, and particularly love the cover of this latest edition. The first half of the book is all about ways to encourage your child to be a reader, and the importance of continuing to read to your child even when they can read well on their own. The second half of the book contains reading lists broken down by book type ie picture books, short novels, longer novels all with a description as well as suggested ages.
We recently experienced first hand the importance of all that early reading. When Anna and Levi joined our family at ages 5 and 2, it was pretty obvious that books hadn't been much a part of their previous life. Anna had no idea what the moon was, let alone was she able to identify any letters or numbers. Simple things that our other children, adopted at much younger ages, could easily do at 5. I couldn't even begin to count how many times we have read Goodnight Moon
with our other children and suspect it is a staple in most homes. She and Levi are slowly learning to love our family favorites and reap the benefits as well.
All the time spent reading about seemingly unimportant things gives your child vocabulary and background knowledge to build on that will aid them for years to come. Don't under estimate the importance of reading good literature to your children and the impact it will have on the rest of their life. It makes the task of learning to read so much easier.
I have always loved to read. My mom passed her love of reading on to me and my sister and we are often sharing books between the three of us. I hope all my children will love to read as much as I do. It is one of my very favorite ways to spend time with my children. However, the thought of actually teaching someone else to read was pretty intimidating as we explored the prospect of home education many years ago. Hopefully some of the resources I have listed here will helpful.
I have used a variety of resources to teach reading. I usually start out with Teach Your Child to Read in a 100 Easy Lessons
. It gives a good starting point as children are reading almost immediately. Around lesson 40-60 it gets a little tedious and we are ready to move on to another resource. At that point I usually use Phonics Pathways
. I also supplement with Bob books
, the kids have all loved these books. Recently my sister alerted me to a free resource called Progressive Phonics. The site offers cute little books to print out and read with your emerging reader. Both Jonah and Sarah have liked the books. Plus, other than the printing costs the books are free! Also, many studies have shown that an early reader does not mean a better reader, by about 3rd grade reading levels off regardless of when you child started reading on their own.
Sarah using Teddy Bear Counting
book to practice math
Here is another link that gives of tons of fun ideas to help your child learn letters, sounds and eventually learn to read. Particularly helpful if you have a child who needs a bit more. I will be using the Farmer in the Dell jingle for sure! Enjoy, and spend some time reading today ❀
