Supporting your child - Learning to Read

Supporting your child - Learning to Read

Sharing Books with your child

Sharing a book with a child is fun! It's a time for closeness, laughing and talking together – and it can also give children a flying start in life and help them become lifelong readers.

If you’re not feeling confident about reading aloud or sharing books, don’t worry – there’s no right or wrong way to enjoy a story together. But if you’d like some tips, here’s a few pointers to help you out

It’s never too early to start sharing books with them – they might not understand the words, but they will love cuddling up, hearing your voice, and looking at the pictures.

Here are some more tips to help you enjoy story time together:

• Ask your child to choose what they’d like to read. They’ll feel more interested in the story if they’ve picked it out themselves. (And don’t worry if they keep returning to the same story, either!)
• If you can, turn off the TV, radio and computer. It’s easier for both of you to enjoy the story without any other distractions.
• Sit close together. You could encourage your child to hold the book themselves and turn the pages, too.
• Take a look at the pictures. You don’t just have to read the words on the page. Maybe there’s something funny in the pictures that you can giggle about together, or perhaps your child enjoys guessing what will happen next.
• Ask questions and talk about the book. Picture books can be a great way to talk through your child’s fears and worries, or to help them deal with their emotions. Give them space to talk, and ask how they feel about

Have fun! There’s no right or wrong way to share a story – as long as you and your child are having fun. Don’t be afraid to act out situations or use funny voices… your little ones will love it!

• Read yourself! It doesn’t matter what it is – pick up a newspaper or magazine, take a look at a cookery book, read a computer manual, enjoy some poetry or dive into a romance or detective novel. And get your children to join in – if you’re cooking, could they read the recipe? If you’re watching TV, can they read out the listings?
• Give books as presents. And encourage your children and their friends to swap books with each other – it’ll give them a chance to read new stories, and get them all talking about what they’re reading.
• Visit the local library together. It’s always fun choosing new books to read, and keep an eye out for special author events at the library or local bookshops – children love meeting their favourite authors.
• Encourage children to carry a book at all times. That way, they’ll never be bored (this is something you can do, too!)
• Have a family bookshelf. If you can, have bookshelves in your children’s bedrooms, too.
• Keep reading together. Just because your children are older, it doesn’t mean you have to stop sharing stories – perhaps you could try the Harry Potter series or A Series of Unfortunate Events.
• Don’t panic if your child reads the same book over and over again. Let’s be honest - we’ve all done it!

 Here is a link to the 100 best picture books to read before you are 5.

https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/reading-lists-for-ks1-school-pupils/100-best-picture-books-to-read-before-you-are-5-years-old/ - 100 books to read before you are 5.

Learning to Read

At St Thomas’, we know how important it is for teachers and parents to work together to give your child the best start.  Reading together at home is one of the easiest but most important ways in which you can help your child. As you share books you are helping improve your child’s reading skills and also showing them how important and enjoyable reading is.  We have a diverse range of books to support your child’s reading within the school, and this will enable your child to experience a range of authors and styles of books including non-fiction and poetry.    In terms of reading, we want children to be able to enjoy reading and see it as a pleasurable leisure activity, as well as a means of following instructions and finding things out, have the reading skills necessary to read a range of text types for pleasure and for information. To be confident and competent readers, children need to have access to a range of reading experiences

Reading Strategies: 

• Pause, Prompt and Praise
• PAUSE to help them work out the new words
• PROMPT by using some of the things below.
• PRAISE them for trying whether they are right or wrong. It is important to use as many clues as possible to help your child when they encounter difficulty. Below are the reading strategies we teach when tackling reading words.

If your child comes across a word they do not recognise:

• Look at the pictures
• Say the initial sound
• Sound talk the word
• Use your memory
• Read to the end of the sentence and then come back to the word

Talking about the book with your child at the end will help your child in their enjoyment and understanding of the book.

• Did you enjoy that book? Why? Why not?
• Who was your favourite character? Why?
• Which part did you like the best? Why?
• Was there any part you didn’t like? Why?
• Would you choose this book/story again? Which books are best?
• Books your child likes.
• Books suggested by your child’s teacher
• Books your child chooses from a library or bookshop that they want to read
• Never be afraid of re-reading books

What else can your child read?

• Comics or Magazines
• Instructions or recipes
• Information books
• Newspapers
• Poems
• Recorded stories

Websites to help the development of Reading at Home & School:

DfES Parents Centre www.parentscentre.gov.uk

Help them read www.helpthemread.co.uk

Parent Link www.parentlink.co.uk

Read Together www.readtogether.co.uk

Silly Books www.sillybooks.net