Literacy

Reading at Home:

Here are some things you should know, to help your young reader grow! You are your child's first and most important teacher! Studies show that it's vitally important for children to have a good start in reading. What you do at home is what will help your child become a successful, confident reader!

The Reading Rockets website is a helpful tool for parents to use. On that website you will find:  

  • Reading tips in English - Infant - 3rd Grade
  • Reading tips in 10 other languages - Infant - 3rd Grade
  • Reading tips for parents of children with disabilities

http://www.readingrockets.org/article/reading-tips-parents-11-languages#disabilities 

The 5 Essential Components of Reading are: 

  • Phonemic Awareness
  • Phonics
  • Fluency
  • Vocabulary
  • Comprehension

Below you will find activities by components that you can do at home with your child:

Phonemic Awareness:

Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear and distinguish sounds. This includes:

  • Recognizing sounds, alone in words
  • Adding sounds to words
  • Taking apart words and breaking them into their different sounds
  • Moving sounds

Activities to do with your child at home:

Kindergarten - 1st Grade - Phonemic Awareness Activities
2nd - 3rd Grade - Phonemic Awareness Activities

Phonics:

Phonics is the ability to understand the relationship between letters and the sounds they represent. This includes:

  • Recognizing print patterns that represent sounds
  • Syllable patterns
  • Word parts (prefixes, suffixes, and root words)
  • Common Consonant Digraphs and Blends:

bl, br, ch, ck, cl, cr, dr, fl, fr, gh, gl, gr, ng, ph, pl, pr, qu, sc, sh, sk, sl, sm, sn, sp, st, sw, th, tr, tw, wh, wr

  • Common Consonant Trigraphs:

nth, sch, scr, shr, spl, spr, squ, str, thr

  • Common Vowel Digraphs:

ai, au, aw, ay, ea, ee, ei, eu, ew, ey, ie, oi, oo, ou, ow, oy

Activities to do with your child at home:
Kindergarten - 1st Grade - Phonic Activities
2nd - 3rd Grade - Phonic Activities

Fluency:

Fluency is the ability to read with sufficient speed to support understanding. This includes:

  • Automatic word recognition
  • Accurate word recognition
  • Use of expression

Activities to do with your child at home:

Kindergarten - 1st Grade - Fluency Activities
2nd - 3rd Grade - Fluency Activities

Vocabulary:

Vocabulary is the student's knowledge of and memory for word meanings. This includes:

  • Receptive Vocabulary
  • Words we understand when read or spoken to us
  • Expressive vocabulary
  • Words we know well enough to use in speaking and writing

Activities to do with your child at home:

Kindergarten - 1st Grade - Vocabulary Activities
2nd - 3rd Grade - Vocabulary Activities

Comprehension:

Comprehension is the ability to understand and draw meaning from text. This includes:

  • Paying attention to important information
  • Interpreting specific meanings in text
  • Identifying the main idea
  • Verbal responses to questions
  • Application of new information gained through reading

Activities to do with your child at home:

Kindergarten - 1st Grade - Comprehension Activities
2nd - 3rd Grade - Comprehension Activities

What More Can We Do? The Importance of Early Literacy Exposure - YouTube