If you are really interested in learning more about improving your child’s reading comprehension, or you are a home schooler, or you are a teacher, this is the book to get.  We were very blessed to have the author, Lori Oczkus do a workshop at our school last year.  She has tremendous ideas that help children with the comprehension skills of: predict/infer; question, monitor/clarify; summarize; and evaluate.  The book and cd include many reproducibles to support the strategies.  I have tried many of her ideas in my classroom.  They are fun, upbeat, and memorable.  The children learn.  Give it a try!

One thing I LOVE doing with my class is reading predictable books aloud - usually rhyming books - and have them fill in the blank. This is great for the comprehension skill of prediction and you will discover if your child is paying attention or not (-;

This is how to do it - when reading a book aloud to your child, leave out a word or words he/she should be able to predict from context and let him/her fill in the missing word. I just read right up to that word and then don’t say a word until they fill in the blank. For example: You read “Hickory, dickory, dock; the mouse ran up the _____.” Have them fill in the blank. That’s a simplistic example, but the only one I could think of off the top of my head.

If your child suggests a word that has a similar meaning to the word left out, don’t mention it and keep going. If your child suggests a word that makes no sense at all (and they will), stop reading and help him/her use picture clues or beginning sounds to come to a meaningful word in context.

By filling in the missing word, your child will be concentrating on MEANING which is a great deal of what reading is all about. ENJOY - this is fun!

I think it is important that children make pictures in their minds while they read. This will help with comprehension. I am amazed at the number of children I’ve had in classes who do not do this. Just a few weeks ago, I was reminded of this when a little girl (who is really struggling with reading right now) told me that her dad told her to do this. She said she never did this - aha! I think it is important that when reading a chapter book with your child that you stop periodically and ask, “what do you see in your mind?” Then you can share your visualizations. By practicing and modeling this skill, your child should do it automatically, but I would still ask after they read independently, “are you seeing pictures in your mind about what you are reading? Tell me about them.” Simple little things like this help quite a bit.

Choose a special project to complete with your child such as making cookies, building a model, putting together a bird feeder, or some other craft. Have your child read the directions to himself/herself or have him/her listen to you as you read them aloud. Ask your child to follow each direction step by step after you read it. If your child is not following a step correctly, reread that step. Offer help if needed. Display the project proudly. Here is an easy recipe to try.

Super Snack

1. Place 2 cups of popcorn in a large bowl.

2. Add 1/3 cup small pretzels, 1 tablespoon shelled peanuts, and 1/4 cup animal crackers.

3. Stir in 1/8 teaspoon powdered butter and a pinch of salt.

4. Stir the snack.

5. Eat it up!

I came across this idea and it fits right in with our second grade California standards. I thought others would find it interesting and useful as well. The directions you follow should be fairly simple and do-able. Have fun providing this special and important experience to your child!

When introducing your child to a challenging text, take some time and provide adequate exposure to what he/she will be reading.  First, ask your child to read the title to the text aloud, then discuss what they think the story will be about.  Then YOU read the entire text to your child first as he/she listens.  Ask your child to read it silently a second time then aloud for a third time of reading (this is not overkill - children need this).  Discuss the text and ask your child to retell the complete story.  This way you will know if he/she understand what they have read.  By doing this, you will give your child ample opportunity to understand (comprehend) what has been read. 

As a teacher it never fails to amaze me how many children can read or at least “call” words, but don’t have any earthly idea about what it is they just read. Our emphasis on phonics is paying off big time, but we also need to develop vocabulary and comprehension skills. I’d like to share a few ideas on how to do that in the next few weeks. The first idea is take a “picture walk.” Make sure you are familiar with the story before you begin. Show the cover page and ask your child to tell you all the things he/she observes in the picture and ask your child what he/she thinks this book will be about. Then go page by page covering up the print and asking your child to predict what the story is about after each page. This sets a really good tone for beginning readers and they will be excited to see how accurate their predictions are. This takes time, but it pays off. You can do this occasionally to build your child’s skills of observation and prediction. The kids usually enjoy it and do a great job! Happy reading!

 (this post has been submitted to Rocks in my Dryer’s Works for me Wednesday)

An important part of your child’s reading development is connecting them with the greater world of readers out there. This can be accomplished in different ways.

1) Attend story hour! Libraries almost always have story hour and I can remember just how much fun that was when I was a kid. In fact, I have very specific memories of sitting in the story room and getting swept away about all sorts of adventures. Another place to check are the local bookstores.

2) Start a book club for kids! Kids Reads has some great tips to get you started and also provides some guides for different books.

3) Visit the library and the bookstore.

4) Leave books out for your kids so they can look at the pictures and talk about the stories when they have their friends over.

5) Subscribe to a magazine for children.

You will demonstrate the importance of reading in the world by making sure your children see the natural and delightful way reading is a part of our lives! Try these out and recommend some more ideas in comments!

(this post has been submitted to Rocks in My Dryer’s Works for Me Wednesday)