Back to School 2020 is looking different than in years past. It’s looking more like Back to the Dining Room Table 2020; Back to Virtual Learning 2020. I know this isn’t ideal for some children, but I want to point out that others might actually be excelling. All children learn differently; some learn through reading (visual), some through hearing (audio), and some through experiencing (tactile). Ideally we want to teach through a bit of all these methods but virtual learning obviously makes that more challenging. I want to point this out because while some children may struggle without the classroom atmosphere and the in person interaction, others may actually like learning virtually.
Just like how not all children learn the same, not all children read the same! This is an important distinction to make; providing your child space to explore different reading materials and methods may be the difference between cultivating a love of reading or not. I always ask parents to question what the motivation is:
To work on reading skills simply for word count or page count?
Or to build imagination? To find enjoyment and be entertained?
If you find yourself pushing your child into “challenging” books, ask yourself why? Chances are they are already receiving age and skill appropriate material in school (they’ve got the word count and SAT words covered). I’m going to let you in on a little secret… Your child can learn imagination, empathy, and comprehension while reading AND enjoying it- you just have to give them permission too. I have one more little secret for you: just because they CAN read that 500 page book with High School level words DOESN’T mean they should (or have any emotional understanding of what they’re actually reading).
These “Best Practices” are similar to the flexibility of learning methods mentioned above; one may work extraordinarily well in your home while another… just doesn’t. But my hope is that these Reading Best Practices for Kids Studying at Home will help them to continue to enjoy learning AND reading, even if it looks a bit different. Give them a try:
Reading Scales- re-reading books is to readers as practicing scales is to a pianist. A few years ago a tutor once gave me this example: “Just because you can make Thanksgiving dinner, would you want to every single night?” Just because a child can read at a certain level does not mean that they want to or need to read every book at that level (or higher). So often I see parents picking out books with their kids and I hear, “that’s too easy for you, pick something harder” or “you’ve already read that one, pick something new”. And then they complain to me that they can’t get their kid to read! If YOU’RE not cooking Thanksgiving dinner every night, don’t make them. (If you are, PSA: Mac and Cheese is delicious too!). Let them reread books they love as many times as they want! Let them read the easy ones! Because these books are the scales of reading. These books will foster the love AND prepare them for the challenge books. I read “A Day with Wilbur Robinson” every chance I get!
Add on Activities- Now this one is easier to do with younger children but I do it with my older kiddos too (a crafting Teen will even be down for a really great theme DIY). There are millions of possible craft ideas on Pinterest that make theme crafting super easy. Pick a book, do a craft. For the younger children (early literacy: 18 months- 5 years old) this helps with vocabulary building and memory. We read about an elephant, we make an elephant out of a paper plate (Elephant Craft and Story Time). Learning and remembering: ELEPHANT. With your Kindergarten- 1st graders, it promotes imagination and understanding of more abstract concepts. We read about friendship, we explore what it means to be a friend or thinking about your friends (Nobody Hugs a Cactus Craft). With older ones, the activity could be more creative: an opportunity to build a life connection to the book OR just a positive association (creating an experience that is tied with the book in memory). I.E. Once for Dias de Muertos, we read Ghost Squad by Claribel A. Ortega and then made Mason Jar Lanterns.
PRO TIP: TRY TO KEEP THE ACTIVITIES FUN NOT LESSONS. Children get enough lessons; you don’t need to turn it into a learning experience, just let it be fun, creative, playful, and maybe even a bit messy! **For More Story Time and Craft Ideas Click HERE!
Read Aloud Together- Don’t underestimate reading aloud and its influence on an early reader. Before your child begins to read, reading aloud promotes language development and vocabulary word bank (hearing how words are said and learning new ones). Both of which have a significant influence on the learning process. Once a child does begin reading, reading aloud is still important. Allowing them read to you helps them practice the words they already know, sounding out new words, and also working the speech muscles to improve pronunciation. It also provides moments to practice comprehension (as you talk about what you’re reading). Giving them a break and reading TOO them is super beneficial as well; this is less about skill development and more about emotional support. Reading to a child at any age, creates a place where they can rest and enjoy books while receiving attention and affection (a bonding experience). Yes, I love being able to read books on my own… BUT I truly believe that my love of reading began with the books my mom read to me as a child, the story times at the library, the books the school librarian read, and the chapter books my mom continued to read as I got older. There’s a reason we continue to enjoy audiobooks, being read too is wonderful. Don’t forget the influence reading to a child of any age will have on them!
Read for Fun Means READING FOR FUN- Okay I know not every school assignment is going to be a great book. Some books are torture. Which makes it that much more important to make sure that any reading done outside of schoolwork is strictly for the love. I teach my kids the Double-Your-Age-Rule: I ask them their age and then we double it. Then I say, “Okay here’s my rule- You have to read (agex2) pages before you decide if you hate it or not. Some books take a little getting into before they get good. BUT if you get to that page and still hate it, CLOSE IT. STOP reading. And come back to the library. We’ll find a new one to try. There are waaaaay too many amazing, mind blowing books to ever read one that you don't like, when it’s supposed to be for fun.” They love this rule because they are finally being given permission to hate a book AND it gives them hope that the right one is out there. I think sometimes kids read one or two books they don’t like and they think, “Books suck.” But when they’re told, “Yeah. Some books do suck” they get excited to find the ones that don’t. P.S. Sometimes the only books that don’t suck are graphic novels and comic books!
