Early reading skills are essential for building a strong foundation in literacy. Here are some key steps to help young children develop reading skills:
1. Build Phonemic Awareness (Understanding Sounds in Words)
- Rhyming Games – Play games like “What rhymes with cat?”
- Clapping Syllables – Clap out syllables in words (e.g., “bas-ket-ball” = 3 claps).
- Beginning Sounds – Ask kids to find words that start with the same sound (“What starts with B?”).
- Try eeBoo's Rhyming Puzzle Pairs
2. Letter Recognition & Phonics
- Alphabet Matching – Match uppercase and lowercase letters.
- Letter Sounds Practice – Say a letter and have them find an object that starts with that sound.
- Simple Phonics Readers – Use books that emphasize CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words like “cat,” “dog,” “sun.”
- An Alphabet Puzzle will help cement language learning while practicing motor skills and concentration.
3. Sight Words & Common Words
- High-Frequency Words – Teach words like "the," "and," "it," "is" that appear often in text.
- Flashcard Fun – Use flashcards for quick recognition of common words.
- Word Hunts – Find sight words in books, signs, or labels around the house.
4. Blending & Decoding (Putting Sounds Together)
- Sound It Out – Show a word like “map” and have kids say each sound slowly (“m-a-p”) before blending them.
- Word Family Practice – Teach words with the same ending (bat, cat, hat, mat).
- Magnetic Letters or Letter Tiles – Let kids move letters around to form simple words.
5. Reading Simple Books
- Repetitive & Predictable Texts – Books with repeated phrases help build confidence.
- Point & Read – Run a finger under the words as you read.
- Echo Reading – Read a sentence, then have the child repeat it.
6. Story Comprehension
- Picture Walks – Look at the pictures before reading and guess what the book is about.
- Ask Questions – “What happened first?” “What do you think will happen next?”
- Act It Out – Pretend to be the characters from the book.
- Create A Story Cards are a great introduction to story structure and development.
