Why (and How) Your Child Should Practice DIFFERENT Types of Reading

“So there are different types of reading?” you might wonder. “What are they?” you might ask.

1.Reading aloud to your child

Reading aloud is the first type of reading you will do with your child. You should do it when your child is a baby. But, let’s say this area has been neglected a bit due to a busy job or not being aware of its extreme importance. If that is the case, START NOW!  It’s like dieting: when you fall off the wagon and life gets too  busy, prioritize and TRY AGAIN. Recommit to reading aloud to your child and buckle down. Trust me. The practice is worth it!  

To a baby and toddler you will read:

--rhyming books

--baby books (objects named with simple pictures)

--picture books (a picture on each page with a storyline that goes with the pictures)

For a preschooler and young children you will read:

--rhyming books and poetry

--picture books (a picture on each page with a storyline that goes with the pictures)

--signs you see as you’re out and about

--menus

--instructions

--labels on products

--chapter books that keep your child’s attention (Don’t give up. Listening skills get better over time. Start small and gradually increase the time.)

For children and teens you will read:

--poetry

--instructions

--chapter books that are higher level with more pages or more complex themes (allows for discussion)

--textbook excerpts

--current event articles

--historic text

--other forms of nonfiction (true) text

**Just because your child can read independently doesn’t mean you should stop reading aloud. You might read aloud less than you did when your child was younger, but you can share so much discussion and information from books. It is a bonding experience as well as a time to gauge just how much your child understands about a certain topic. (Audio books are great for what they are, but they cannot do everything a parent reading aloud can).

2.Read with your child.

As your child learns basic phonics skills to sound words out, you may begin buddy reading or “shared reading.” Some books are specifically written for this with a “parent page” and a “child page,” which is more simple. Otherwise, take the approach of “I read a little. You read a little.”

There are different ways to adapt buddy reading. For some, it might be you read a page, I read a page. For others, it might be the parent reads the page and the child reads the caption. The other day my son and I were reading a Magic School Bus picture book. He wanted to read the dialogue bubbles, so I read the paragraphs telling the story. If my child is tiring of a particular book, I sometimes offer to finish the book or pick up my load and read two pages for every one page he reads.

I even have had a child just read one sentence on the page while I read the rest (especially if they don’t have much stamina or confidence). 

For a fun game, I’ve read the page and paused periodically to see if the child is following along to say the next word. Sometimes they might guess the word, so be sure to follow along with your finger to double check.

3.Your child reads aloud TO YOU.

Reading is a skill and takes practice. Each book is different. Your child will need practice seeing how different books are laid out. Be sure your child is not skipping over sections of words on the page and that they are reading in the correct order. 

Children need to hear their own voices reading the book aloud. It also helps with comprehension. Think, “Did you ever read something that was difficult to understand so you read it aloud to yourself just to be sure of the meaning?”  

When you hear your child read aloud, you can notice mistakes that your child is having. 

I have tutored reading students for a long time and it is a common problem that parents think their child is reading a book (silently) when the book is actually too difficult of a level for the child. When I have the child bring the book to read aloud (usually they have one from library checkout time at school), it almost always is too hard. The child misreads too many words on the page and cannot retain what’s actually happening in the story. In short, it is a level of book the child is not yet ready for. 

My own daughter picked a book off the shelf to read to me last night. She opened it up and looked at the words and said, “I think you better read this one to me. It’s a little too hard for me.” I have modeled for her how to pick a book that is a good fit. I have a video on how to find a good fit book (a book near your child’s reading level) that will work. Watch it HERE. You can also read about it HERE.

It doesn’t take a long time for your child to read to you. Daily is best, but if you can’t fit it in one day, make up for it the next day. If your child is particularly struggling, my best advice is to NOT stop practicing on school breaks and weekends. How else are they to make gains and “catch up?” I’m not saying to torture your child with reading. You can still make it fun, but don’t STOP. Ideal is 20 minutes a day, but something is better  than nothing. Five minutes and ten minutes daily will still make a difference ESPECIALLY for lower level readers!

4.Your child REREADS a story or book.

Rereading a book or story actually builds fluency and confidence. Take care that your child is not merely memorizing the words. It will help if you are nearby to check them on their reading. So if your child read a book to you and was a little slow reading it. Allow your child to practice reading it again the next day. You can even practice rereading page by page if you’re reading a longer book.

If your child is in public school, you likely will have some booklets or reading passages sent home for fluency practice. Parents usually must sign that the child read the passage each night of the week.

Sometimes decodable readers, or small printable booklets, are sent home.

Please understand that while decodable readers and passages have their place to build confidence and fluency in reading, they are not the only type of reading your child should see. If it is, it might be the reason why your child finds reading boring. 

Homeschool parents often use wonderful reading programs (curriculum) that have decodable leveled readers that come with them. My children all loved the books that came with All About Reading Level 1. But, make no mistake, my children did not become good readers by ONLY reading the leveled readers that came with a program.

We regularly visit the library for books outside of the reading program so that they can have:

a). Some excitement reading about topics that interested them.

b). A trip to the library associated with a good memory.

c). A choice that involves them so they feel some ownership. 

d). Exposure to REAL books (disclaimer here: I NEVER tell a child they aren’t actually reading a real book if they are reading a decodable book. I use this basic terminology so you, the parent, can understand there is a difference between a book you pick up to read off the shelf and a decodable reader with a reading program).

What do I mean by real books? 

Those are books you pull off the bookshelf at home or in the library. A good fit one may have an occasional word that the child is NOT familiar with. That is your opportunity to teach your child something in passing that may not be in a structured lesson. For example, if they encounter a word that has “tion” at the end, you can tell them that “tion” says “shun.” Some children will remember this after the first couple of times. Some children take more repetition. 

It doesn’t mean that you won’t teach that in a lesson at some point, but certainly you can expose them to words, word patterns, and spelling patterns even if they haven’t had it in their lesson yet.

Don’t mistake me. I’m not saying to promote guessing words.

I’m saying that you can find books that a have a few “new rules” to exposure your child to. Any book that has 1-2 words per page that make your child struggle a little will be good practice for you to read with your child and allow him to apply the rules he DOES know. I will say here that it is LIFE-CHANGING when the parent understands the rules so that they can show how the rules apply within a word in these books. So read up on syllable types, phonograms, and exceptions to those rules.

When we, as adults, read something we have never read, we encounter words and phrases that aren’t familiar to us from time to time. We can show our child how to handle those circumstances when they encounter them as well. It’s basically practice applying specific rules they have learned over time with books that interest your child.

Don’t forget that all other subjects involve reading---even math!

I love that my children learned to read well in a timely manner so that they could read the instructions for math problems or directions for any other school work they might have to do. It can be freeing for you as a parent and a definite confidence boost for your child to have adequate reading practice.

Remember, YOU are your child’s MOST INFLUENTIAL teacher.