5 things NOT to say to emerging readers
…and what to say instead
another resource fromhttp://teachmama.comto help our little ones learn while they play. . .
In no particular order — What Not to Say to an Emerging Reader:
•
DON’T SAY:
Stop. Re-read this line correctly.
INSTEAD:
If the mistake didn’t interfere with the meaning of the text(like if it was ‘a’ for ‘the’ or ‘fine’ for ‘fun’) let it go.Do. Not. Interrupt. Your. Child’s. Reading.Period.How would you feel if you were putting your heart out on the line,trying something you weren’t totally comfortable with, in front ofsomeone who you were afraid would challenge you, only to havethat person stop you, interrupt your flow, and make you start over before you even finished? Over and over and over again?Right. So that’s why if your kiddo’s reading and makes a mistake inreading a word, let it go. We want our kids to be comfortablereading with us–we want them to feel safe–so let it go.Just make the correction when you read it the next time.
•
DON’T SAY:
C’mon, speed up–you have to read a little faster!OR Slow down–you’re zipping through this!!
INSTEAD:
Model appropriate pacing and fluency.Fluency–or reading with appropriate speed, pacing, and intonation–issomething that is best taught through parent or teacher modeling andtons of reader practice. Seriously. Fluent reading sounds like conversation,or natural speaking, and it’s something that has to be learned.So if your kiddo is a total speed-reader or if, at this point, she’s as slow asmolasses, it’s time to switch gears. Grab a level-appropriate book andsay,
Hey! I found this awesome book for us, and it’s going to be our bookthis week. We’re going to read this book until we become experts on thisbook– we’ll be book-reading super-stars by the end of this week, mark myword. . .
And the first day,
you
read the whole thing in its entirety.
And then do an echo read, page by page. An echoread is really just like an echo–a portion of a text is read and then re-read by a second person (or class if you’rein the classroom). You can echo words, phrases, or whole pages. In this case, with an early-emergent text, it’sgreat to echo read page-by-page. First, you read a page and then your emerging reader reads that samepage. And then you read the next page and she reads that very same page, like an echo.
And on day two, you read it in its entirety the first time, and then together, you echo read every two pages.
Or
5 things NOT to say to emerging readers
…and what to say instead
another resource fromhttp://teachmama.comto help our little ones learn while they play. . .
every three pages.
Day three, you read it the first time, and either echo read by three pages or try a chorus read. A chorus read iswhere you read it together, in unison, like a chorus.
Sometimes these are hard, but for pacing, it helps.
Day four, you read it the first time then hand the book over to your kiddo for an entire kid-read.
Give her specific praises for her super-star parts:
I really like how you paid close attention to the punctuation here (pointto the specific part). You noticed the question mark, and you knew that meant that [the character] was askinga question, so you made your voice go higher at the end. Awesome.
Maybe on day four, you can tape yourselves reading or put it on video (not a big deal–just grab your flip camor camera–it doesn’t have to be a huge, complicated video production) and talk about what sounded greatand what you both need to work on.
Day five, it’s showtime.
You both give yourselves ‘practice reads’– start by reading the book yourself and thengive it to your child. Then it’s the BEST READ EVER–you both get to go on ‘stage’ for the most awesome,perfect, wonderful read ever. Video tape it, audio tape it, or Skype-read with your faraway aunts, cousins,grandparents, or friends. You both practiced all week–now show off your skills!
•
DON’T:
Laugh.
INSTEAD:
Think about something serious and ugly and breathe deeplyuntil you regain composure.Even if your kiddo replaces ‘bat’ with ‘butt’ or ‘fact’ with ‘fart’ don’tlaugh. The fastest way to kill confidence is to have the person a kiddoloves and trusts the most laugh in his face.If you can laugh together, that’s one thing; most likely if your kid isreading aloud and says ‘butt’, he’ll break out into hysterics and you willtoo. But if he’s working hard, concentrating, and trying his best and stillmanaged to make a mistake that tickles your funny bone, then justmove on.
•
DON’T SAY:
You know this. . .
Search History:
Result 00 of 00
00 results for result for
p.
Recommended
More From This User
Notes
Load more
