Growing Readers Together

The purpose of reading is to gain meaning from the text. As you listen to your child read each evening, be sure to talk, talk, talk about the book. Be sure to share YOUR thinking with your child, too. You are modeling the way readers think.

It is important to discuss the author's purpose for writing the book. You can also discuss any important messages that the author might be wanting to share with the readers. Here are some questions you might want to ask your child after she reads a book.

* Why do you think the author wrote this book?

* What did the author want us to know about after reading this book?

* Did the author have a message for her readers? What is this message?

These questions can lead to great in-depth discussions about the book.

Be sure to share YOUR thinking with your child, too. You are modeling the deep thinking that readers do when they read.

Reading fluency is the ability to read with accuracy, expression, phrasing, and appropriate rate. Students who are fluent readers are better able to devote their attention to comprehending the text, and gaining meaning from the text is the goal of reading. It is important to have your child read aloud to you. This oral reading helps build fluency and confidence.

Poetry is a good tool to help build fluency. Here are some websites with poetry for children.

http://www.poetry4kids.com/

http://www.fizzyfunnyfuzzy.com/

http://www.nurseryrhymes.com/

It is a good idea to read a poem to your child once or twice. Then you can read the poem together a few times. After that, your child can read the poem independently. This is something that can be done over a few days. This is a very quick activity that can help your child practice reading fluently.

Children need the opportunity to work with and manipulate the letters and sounds in words. Phonics instruction can be key in helping students decode unfamiliar words. One phonics skill that your child should be learning about is the Final Stable Syllable. Final stable syllables come at the end of a word. Some examples are -ble, -tle, -fle, -dle, and -ble.

Here are some ways you can help your child practice final stable syllable.

* Have your child listen for the final stable syllable in words. He can put a thumb up if he hears it and a thumb down if he doesn't (ex. market - thumb down, marble - thumb up). Sample words: pickle, apple, saddle, gallop, lemon, waffle, pepper, popsicle, stable, bridle, blanket, bucket

* Write words with a final stable syllable and have your child highlight the final stable syllable.

* Practice reading and writing words with final stable syllable (ex. bubble, candle, jungle, apple, little, ankle, cattle, bottle, sample, simple)