The hidden benefits of reading aloud — even for older kids
Educator Jim Trelease explains why reading aloud to your child, no matter what her age, is the magic bullet for creating a lifelong reader.
by: Connie Matthiessen | January 14, 2016
Can you explain the link between reading aloud and school success?
It’s long established in science and research: the child who comes to school with a large vocabulary does better than the child who comes to school with little familiarity with words and a low vocabulary. Read more »
Educator Jim Trelease explains why reading aloud to your child, no matter what her age, is the magic bullet for creating a lifelong reader.
by: Connie Matthiessen | January 14, 2016
Can you explain the link between reading aloud and school success?
It’s long established in science and research: the child who comes to school with a large vocabulary does better than the child who comes to school with little familiarity with words and a low vocabulary. Read more »
Reading Aloud
Reading aloud is one of the most important things parents can do with their children. Reading aloud builds many important foundational skills, introduces vocabulary, provides a model of fluent, expressive reading, and helps children recognize what reading for pleasure is all about.
Personal connections and new vocabularyFarms and farming are the themes for the day. Watch how volunteer Shakara Helaire engages the kids in active conversation about vegetables, and how an outdoor "milking station" turns into a memorable way to learn new vocabulary words like "pasteurizing."
Opening books, changing lives
Why a Reading Connection?Supporting our community starts with the children. Improving the chances of success for children in crisis starts with reading.
A love of reading can make all the difference between academic success or failure.
Research has shown that reading aloud to children "is the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading." (from Becoming a Nation of Readers, 1985)
For over 20 years, The Reading Connection (TRC) has been reading with kids who have no one else to read to them and giving books to kids who had none.
Why a Reading Connection?Supporting our community starts with the children. Improving the chances of success for children in crisis starts with reading.
A love of reading can make all the difference between academic success or failure.
Research has shown that reading aloud to children "is the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading." (from Becoming a Nation of Readers, 1985)
For over 20 years, The Reading Connection (TRC) has been reading with kids who have no one else to read to them and giving books to kids who had none.
Reading Tips for Parents (in 11 Languages) By: Reading Rockets
A child's success as a reader begins much earlier than the first day of school. Reading, and a love for reading, begins at home. Our one-page parent tips offer easy ways for parents to help kids become successful readers. Although we've divided these tips by age, many of them can be used with children at various ages and stages — we encourage you to choose the ones that work best for your child.
www.readingrockets.org/article/reading-tips-parents-11-languages
A child's success as a reader begins much earlier than the first day of school. Reading, and a love for reading, begins at home. Our one-page parent tips offer easy ways for parents to help kids become successful readers. Although we've divided these tips by age, many of them can be used with children at various ages and stages — we encourage you to choose the ones that work best for your child.
www.readingrockets.org/article/reading-tips-parents-11-languages
If you want your child to be a successful reader (and of course you do!), it’s so important that you know how to teach your child to rhyme.
Do you know what’s one of the best predictors of how well a kindergartner will learn to read?It’s if he knows his nursery rhymes.
Jack and Jill went up the hill.
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Baa, baa, black sheep, have you any wool?
Jack Sprat would eat no fat. His wife would eat no lean.
All those nonsensical verses from your childhood really do matter. They matter, because they rhyme. Rhyming is fun. And it’s a very important part of reading success.
Why Is Rhyming Important?
1. Rhyming teaches children how language works. It helps them notice and work with the sounds within words.
2. Rhymes help children experience the rhythm of language. As they recite nursery rhymes they learn to speak with animated voices. Someday they’ll read with expression, too.
3. When children are familiar with a nursery rhyme or rhyming book, they learn to anticipate the rhyming word. This prepares them to make predictions when they read, another important reading skill.
4. Rhyming is important for writing, too. It can help children understand that words that share common sounds often share common letters. For example, the rhyming words cat and bat both end with –at.
5. When listening to rhyming songs and poems children create a mental picture, expanding the imagination.
6. Because rhyming is fun, it adds joy to the sometimes daunting task of learning to read.
Jack and Jill went up the hill.
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Baa, baa, black sheep, have you any wool?
Jack Sprat would eat no fat. His wife would eat no lean.
All those nonsensical verses from your childhood really do matter. They matter, because they rhyme. Rhyming is fun. And it’s a very important part of reading success.
Why Is Rhyming Important?
1. Rhyming teaches children how language works. It helps them notice and work with the sounds within words.
2. Rhymes help children experience the rhythm of language. As they recite nursery rhymes they learn to speak with animated voices. Someday they’ll read with expression, too.
3. When children are familiar with a nursery rhyme or rhyming book, they learn to anticipate the rhyming word. This prepares them to make predictions when they read, another important reading skill.
4. Rhyming is important for writing, too. It can help children understand that words that share common sounds often share common letters. For example, the rhyming words cat and bat both end with –at.
5. When listening to rhyming songs and poems children create a mental picture, expanding the imagination.
6. Because rhyming is fun, it adds joy to the sometimes daunting task of learning to read.
Online Reading Resources
Online reading resources make it easy and convenient to help students. Here is a list of websites that offer reading tools, activities, and ideas to help you address any of your child’s needs.
AdLit.org
AdLit.org, or All About Adolescent Literacy, supports parents and teachers of students in grades 4–12. Take a look at this site if you have older children, because it offers information on college readiness and awareness. Another highlight is the “Ask the Experts” page, which allows you to submit questions about students and reading so a team of experts can help you find answers.
K12 Reader
This site offers free reading instruction resources for teachers and parents. If you’re looking for practice materials for your child, you can find worksheets and detailed program supplements for reading, spelling, sight words, grammar, phonics, comprehension, writing, and more.
Oxford Owl
This is a reading and math website that helps children ages 3 to 11. The “Expert Help” tab of the website’s Reading portion offers resources on helping struggling readers, encouraging reading, and working on issues including phonics, grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Check out the ideas Oxford Owl suggests for games and activities.
PBS Parents
PBS Parents offers two reading-related sections under the “Education” tab. The age range extends from infancy to third grade. The “Reading Activities” section lists great ideas for reading on the go, making it easier for you to fit in practice throughout the day. If you’re looking for book recommendations, the “Bookfinder” feature is an excellent tool that allows you to search by age, book theme, keyword, and whether your child intends to read aloud or silently.
Reading Rockets
On Reading Rockets, visit the “Helping Struggling Readers” page if your child is having trouble learning to read. Click on “Start the Target the Problem!” activity to open a tool that defines a variety of reading difficulties, such as fluency and comprehension, and explains how kids, parents, and teachers can recognize signs of the difficulty. This tool also links to a “How to Help” page, which offers tips to both children and their parents regarding how they can work on the issue.
ReadWriteThink
The International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English are a couple of the partners sponsoring ReadWriteThink, a website that offers resources for grades K–12. Under the “Parent & Afterschool Resources” tab, visit the podcast section to find book reviews for different age groups. You can also find links to the “Activities & Projects,” “Games & Tools,” “Tips & How-To’s,” and “Printouts” pages.
Scholastic
In the “Parents” section of Scholastic, look for resources under the “Books & Reading” tab, such as Reading Resources & Help for Ages 8–10. A new feature that stands out is the e-reader app, Storia.
Online reading resources make it easy and convenient to help students. Here is a list of websites that offer reading tools, activities, and ideas to help you address any of your child’s needs.
AdLit.org
AdLit.org, or All About Adolescent Literacy, supports parents and teachers of students in grades 4–12. Take a look at this site if you have older children, because it offers information on college readiness and awareness. Another highlight is the “Ask the Experts” page, which allows you to submit questions about students and reading so a team of experts can help you find answers.
K12 Reader
This site offers free reading instruction resources for teachers and parents. If you’re looking for practice materials for your child, you can find worksheets and detailed program supplements for reading, spelling, sight words, grammar, phonics, comprehension, writing, and more.
Oxford Owl
This is a reading and math website that helps children ages 3 to 11. The “Expert Help” tab of the website’s Reading portion offers resources on helping struggling readers, encouraging reading, and working on issues including phonics, grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Check out the ideas Oxford Owl suggests for games and activities.
PBS Parents
PBS Parents offers two reading-related sections under the “Education” tab. The age range extends from infancy to third grade. The “Reading Activities” section lists great ideas for reading on the go, making it easier for you to fit in practice throughout the day. If you’re looking for book recommendations, the “Bookfinder” feature is an excellent tool that allows you to search by age, book theme, keyword, and whether your child intends to read aloud or silently.
Reading Rockets
On Reading Rockets, visit the “Helping Struggling Readers” page if your child is having trouble learning to read. Click on “Start the Target the Problem!” activity to open a tool that defines a variety of reading difficulties, such as fluency and comprehension, and explains how kids, parents, and teachers can recognize signs of the difficulty. This tool also links to a “How to Help” page, which offers tips to both children and their parents regarding how they can work on the issue.
ReadWriteThink
The International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English are a couple of the partners sponsoring ReadWriteThink, a website that offers resources for grades K–12. Under the “Parent & Afterschool Resources” tab, visit the podcast section to find book reviews for different age groups. You can also find links to the “Activities & Projects,” “Games & Tools,” “Tips & How-To’s,” and “Printouts” pages.
Scholastic
In the “Parents” section of Scholastic, look for resources under the “Books & Reading” tab, such as Reading Resources & Help for Ages 8–10. A new feature that stands out is the e-reader app, Storia.