Family At Home Tip Sheet

Reading and Handwriting at Home Tips You Need to Know Each new year provides opportunities to encourage your young students to read more. This year, reading outside of the school environment is even more important as families try to make up for learning loss and potentially accelerate their students to reading success.

Tips for Reading to and with Your Reader Pre-K to Second Grade Here are some top learning benefits of reading to and with your young reader.

Vocabulary and Word Recognition Read the same book routinely. When a child reads or hears the same story multiple times, they become familiar and comfortable with a greater number of words.

Fluency Fluency is the ability to read text accurately, quickly, and with expression. Repetitive reading helps a child learn to read fluidly, without stumbling or stopping.

Pattern and Rhythm Hearing favorite stories read aloud helps children become aware of the pattern and rhythm of text.

Reading stories aloud demonstrates to children that language is more than just words—it’s how words sound and connect with each other.

Comprehension Comprehension is the essence of reading.

Each time your young learner reads or hears a book read to them, it allows them to dive deeper into the story’s meaning, preparing them for more complex narratives.

Engage with the story and your young reader before, during, and after reading.

Before Reading Choose a book together. Introduce the book by looking at its cover–what can we see? Introduce the title of the book and the name of the author and illustrator.

During Reading Take a look at the pictures. Look for funny, sad, or familiar images and talk about them as you show the words. As you read, run your finger along the bottom of the words to model up-to-down and left-to-right directionality. Allow your reader to guess what might happen next.

After Reading Ask questions: Encourage children to revisit specific pictures or parts of the story to answer the questions and share their reactions.

Illustrate a favorite part: After several readings, have children remember a favorite part of the book and draw it. Children share and discuss their drawings with classmates.

Watch YouTube videos: If the book brings up a marching band, or the setting is in New York or Paris, find a YouTube video the children can watch and discuss, so they develop a strong mental picture.

Turn for tips for Second to Fifth Grade

Tips for Reading to and with Your Reader Second Grade to Fifth Grade and Beyond Reading aloud with your growing readers will help them prepare for more complex narratives. Yes, they may already be reading independently, but it is still very important to continue to read aloud with them. Read-aloud time helps to boost their reading comprehension, vocabulary, and opens important moments of dialogue to talk with your learner about their life, their concerns, and their hopes for the future.

Before Reading Choose a book together. Introduce the book by looking at its cover—what do we think the book will be about? Is it fiction or nonfiction?

If your reader is ready for chapter books, you might read one book together over a number of days. Begin each new chapter with a question, such as, “What happened to our characters in the last chapter?” or “What do we think is going to happen to our character in this chapter?”

During Reading Ask questions and encourage your reader to do the same. This will ensure they are following the story or understanding the topic. What does that word mean? What did that character mean when she said that? What is the character doing in this illustration?

After Reading Encourage children to share their reactions and ask questions that take them back to a specific word or part of the story that you can re-share together.

Make a “W” Chart: After you and your learner read books together, make a chart filling out the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the book as your learner discovers them.

Create a character map: • Draw a picture of the main character and write words that describe them • Write words to describe aspects of the main character as revealed in the text.

If needed, use the below as a starting point:  Thinks:  Says:  Acts:  Feels: Create a “tweet” summary of the story: In 280 characters or less, ask your reader to review the story.

Weekly Schedules for All Ages Dedicate 30 minutes to reading each day.

There are several studies that indicate students’ reading abilities decline or stall during the summer because of a lack of exposure to literacy. However, students who read at least 30 minutes each day encounter more vocabulary and reinforce important reading skills.

Practice handwriting each week.

Commit to 10–15 minutes of writing, three times a week. That’s all it takes to help students improve letter and sentence formation.

• L etter Formation and Handwriting: Children who master handwriting are better, more creative writers.

The earlier they become comfortable the more likely they are to succeed in school, writing with speed and ease in all subjects. Start with letter formation skills and good handwriting practices. Go here to find free, Handwriting Without Tears® downloadable practice bundles: LWTears.com/resources/starter-pack-downloads •W riting in Response to Reading or Experiences: Encourage your reader to respond to their reading or fun experiences (like going on a hike) through drawing and writing. Some students might create a drawing that includes some labels or dictated words. Older students will be ready to write more sentences.