The most effective tactics to improve reading skill

Аннотация

Many people have trouble with reading. Reading well takes time, patience, and practice! The most important thing to figure out is the purpose of your reading: looking at instructions to build furniture and studying a textbook are not the same thing! Once you’ve figured out your purpose, you can choose to focus on what are known as intensive reading techniques that stress things like vocabulary and speed, or instead on extensive techniques that will help you engage with the meaning of a text in a deeper way. Key words: practicing phonics skills, reading comprehension skill, instructions, intensive reading Developing reading comprehension skills is incredibly important for early readers, starting as early as picture books. As school-aged children get older, it will help them understand textbooks, newspapers, and other more complex texts. Scholastic offers plenty of grade-appropriate reading comprehension activity books that can help your child practice, but in addition, here are six tips to sharpen reading comprehension skills in your early reader. 1. Have them read aloud. This encourages them to go slower, which gives them more time to process what they read and in turn improves reading comprehension. Plus, they're not only seeing the words — they're hearing them, too! You can also take turns reading aloud. 2. Provide books at the right level. Make sure your school-aged reader gets lots of practice reading books that aren't too hard. They should recognize at least 90 percent of the words without any help. Stopping any more often than that to figure out a word makes it tough for kids to focus on the overall meaning of the story. If your child needs help transitioning from picture books to chapter books, try Scholastic's Branches books, which are designed to bridge that gap for growing readers. 3. Reread to build fluency. To gain meaning from text and encourage reading comprehension, your child needs to read quickly and smoothly — a skill known as fluency. By the beginning of 3rd grade, for example, your child should be able to read 90 words a minute. Rereading familiar, simple books gives your child practice at decoding words quickly, so they'll become more fluent in their reading comprehension. Learn more about the multiple benefits of rereading books! 4. Talk to the teacher. If your child is struggling with reading comprehension, they may need more help with building their vocabulary or practicing phonics skills. (This Peppa Pig Phonics Box Set and this Pete the Cat Phonics Box Set are fun ways to help your child build necessary phonics skills.) A teacher can weigh in on the best next steps to take. 5. Supplement their class reading. If your child's class is studying a particular theme, look for easy- to-read books or magazines on the topic. Some prior knowledge will help them make their way through tougher classroom texts and promote reading comprehension. 6. Talk about what they're reading. This "verbal processing" helps them remember and think through the themes of the book. Ask questions before, during, and after a session to encourage reading comprehension. (Read about all the questions you should ask during story time here!) Forexample: • Before: "What are you interested in about this book? Whatdoesn'tinterestyou?" • During: "What's going on in the book? Is it turning out the way you thought it would? Whatdoyouthinkwillhappennext?" 329 • After: "Can you summarize the book? What did you like about it? What other books does it remind you of?" Many people have trouble with reading. Reading well takes time, patience, and practice! The most important thing to figure out is the purpose of your reading: looking at instructions to build furniture and studying a textbook are not the same thing! Once you’ve figured out your purpose, you can choose to focus on what are known as intensive reading techniques that stress things like vocabulary and speed, or instead on extensive techniques that will help you engage with the meaning of a text in a deeper way. Make sure you understand the type of text you have. Ask yourself: What type of work am I reading? Is it information-based, like a newspaper, textbook, or manual? Or is it more creative/artistic, like a novel or short story? Thismatters![1] • For instance, if you’re reading to follow instructions (like a recipe or assembly guide), you’ll need to understand the exact meaning of each step. • If you’re reading a text that has lots of information, like a textbook, then you’ll be reading most of all for new information on things you don’t know or understand. Decide on the purpose of your reading. The reason why you’re reading has an impact on how you read. For instance, reading a novel for a class can be different than reading a novel for pleasure, since you’ll be expected to understand and remember the text rather than just enjoy the experience of reading it. Askyourself: Whatam I readingfor? • If you’re reading to gain information (for instance, to meet work or scho