Learning to read is a complicated process that requires several areas of the brain to work together to decode, recognize and make sense of what is being read. In this post, I am focusing on ways you can help you child become a more fluent reader. What is reading fluency? Fluent readers can read aloudContinue reading How to Help Your Child Become a Fluent Reader
Learning to Read: Word Study
Learning to read often occurs around the age of six and continues to develop through childhood and into adolescence. Some young children learn to read before they are six-years-old and some children learn closer to eight-years-old. Learning to read is a lot like learning to walk, some children are early walkers and some walk closerContinue reading Learning to Read: Word Study
Responding to Your Child’s Writing with Encouragement
It isn’t easy to know what to say when you young child shows you his latest writing piece. It might be a letter, a list, or a comic. Young children might show you a picture with some scribbles and an elementary aged child may have several sentences or several pages depending on herContinue reading Responding to Your Child’s Writing with Encouragement
Invitations to Write
“Writing is making marks that have meaning.” -Jennifer Hallissy It is an exciting time when children begin writing. Young children make marks and scribbles on paper and imitate the letter forms they see around them when they start writing. As some children move from early childhood to childhood their interest in writing wanesContinue reading Invitations to Write
A Learning Play Date
This week in Arizona many schools are closed due to the teacher walkout. There is a great necessity to adequately fund schools in the state. I support the teachers, administrators and support staff who have stood their ground to put pressure on the state legislature and leaders to come up with a solution. Since theContinue reading A Learning Play Date
Choosing Picture Books
Kids love to be read to. When my kids were preschoolers, I read them many classic picture books I loved as a child. I chose books with rich language, interesting story lines and captivating illustrations. These kinds of books often satisfy children’s curiosity and sense of wonder. We also read our fair share of books basedContinue reading Choosing Picture Books
Encouraging a Love of Reading
“Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” — Frederick Douglass There are many ways to read with your child and encourage a love of reading. There are also some specific ways you can provide support to your child as she reads. In this post, I will start by describing how I developedContinue reading Encouraging a Love of Reading
How to Support Advanced Readers
I became interested in the needs of advanced readers because I noticed the reading development in my own children. My oldest son began to read at an early age and became a book worm after first grade. My daughter and second son also developed a love of reading at an early age. AtContinue reading How to Support Advanced Readers