Teaching Your Child to Read (Without trying to teach them.)

 
The other day I was talking with a good friend of mine that teaches kindergarten. She was telling me about the types of assessments she does with her students for reading. And we were discussing one of the assessments that measures the Concepts of Print.  ​

​It basically measures if a child knows (the concepts of print) and how a book works such as, letters make up words, words make up sentences, print carries meaning etc…
You can view a copy of this test here:
Concepts of Print test
http://readingandwritingproject.com/public/resources/assessments/reading/concepts_about_print/concepts_about_print_directions.pdf
 
Some students come to kindergarten already having mastered these skills and some will learn these skills during kindergarten.
 
The great thing about this test is that parents can prepare their kids to pass this test without actually “teaching” them anything.
 
In a way this test secretly measures whether or not the child’s parent read to them before kindergarten. Because if a child was read to on a consistent basis, he or she will master this test before they start kindergarten.
 
 
 
Here are a few tips for parents when reading to toddlers:
 
*Choose fun books.
*Read with expression and funny voices and sounds.
*Don’t worry about finishing the whole book.
*If a child isn’t interested in reading a book with you, choose a fun kids book that you love and read it independently out loud. The more fun you are having, the more likely your child will want to join in.
*When reading aloud point to the words so they begin to see that you are reading the words on the page.
*Don’t rush through books. Let a child linger on a page if they want to.
*Talk about  the pages. “Do you see the ducky? Look at his red boots. Awe look how sad he looks. He lost his ball. Poor ducky.” (You don’t always have to do this. Sometimes it’s fun just to read it straight through.)
*Have a special reading nook with a small chair and basket of books or a small shelf.
*Have books everywhere. (Especially in the car.)
*Model, model, model. Our children mimic what we do and say. If they see you reading books, they will want to read books.
*Rotate books in and out. Add new ones in but also keep the favorites near by.
*Take your children to the library and bookstores to expose them to a wide variety of books.
 
 
Following these tips will guarantee your child will score very high on the Concept of Print test in kindergarten.
 
If you have any tips to share, please comment below!