Easy Does It
Do you remember learning to tie your shoes? Make two bunny ears with the laces, cross one over the other, make the bottom ear go over the top ear and through the hole and pull tight. You concentrated hard and repeated the steps until you got it right. It took a lot of tries but after a while, you could do it without thinking.
Doing anything well requires a lot of practice. Reading well is no exception. To be a good reader you have to read a lot. Good readers develop automaticity or fluency when reading. They don’t have to repeat the steps of reading (phonemic awareness and phonics) every time they read. Fluent readers read smoothly, accurately, and automatically. Non-fluent readers focus so much on decoding words that they lose comprehension and interest.
Fluency is an indicator of reading success. How can parents help their children become fluent? Easy does it.
- Read with your children: Research suggests that you begin reading aloud to your child in utero. No, you don’t have to get inside with them. Hearing the rhythmic patterns of reading can comfort your child. Comforting reading may work better than lullabies for getting fretting children to sleep. After your children are born, share books whenever you can. Share your favorites and let them choose their own. Keep favorites in a special place. Read them often.
2. Model Reading: Read aloud all the time. Read books, screens, instructions, and signs aloud. Ask your child to repeat a sentence you have read. Read smoothly and with expression. Stop to make comments and to allow your child to ask questions. Talk about the story as you read and summarize major plot points. Wonder aloud.
3. Read along. When my daughter was little, we tape-recorded books for her to read by herself later. For her children today, we record audio-files and send them through cyberspace. They love reading along with Grandpop even when he isn’t holding the book. If you can’t record your own reading, read-along recordings are available in the library or online.
4. Choral Reading: Read a passage aloud to your child. Then, invite your child to join in as you read the same passage together. Add siblings or older children to the fun.
5. Reader’s Theater: Find a familiar story and assign roles. Practice reading it with your child and then plan a performance for another family member or friend. Performing reading helps develop “prosody”— rhythm and intonation. Good actors and good readers add emphasis and emotions to speech.
6. Independent Reading. Provide books that reflect both your child’s reading level and interests. Ask your librarian to suggest titles. Create an individualized reading space. Carve out time for reading in your child’s schedule.
By receiving explicit modeling, practicing often, and adding expression, readers become fluent. With fluency comes fun. Once readers feel confident, reading becomes less of a chore and more of a pleasure — as easy as tying your shoes.
(This is the fourth in a series about reading success.)
