Yes, amazing reading by kindergarten students happens every day. Students are reading when they practice the act of reading. There are many ways to help beginning readers start the reading process. Way before they are actually reading words, students need to be practicing reading with books and poems.
Beginning Readers Can Read Before They Can Read Words
Beginning readers really work hard on learning to read words. There are many things that beginning readers can do before learning to read the actual words in the books that counts a reading. Taking time to read books in different ways will help develop concepts about print, an important skill needed for reading and writing.
How to read before words are known!
There are many ways, but here are a few:
1. Look at the pictures and tell yourself a story.
2. Look to see if you can find any letters in your name.
3. Count the letters you find on each page.
4. Search for capital letters. Where do you see them?
5. Search for lower case letters. Where do you see them?
6. Search for words you know.
1. Look at the pictures and tell yourself a story.
2. Look to see if you can find any letters in your name.
3. Count the letters you find on each page.
4. Search for capital letters. Where do you see them?
5. Search for lower case letters. Where do you see them?
6. Search for words you know.
7. Point and read words known.
Be sure to provide time for students to read (teach them to do the things above👆🏾). Try to start with 5 minutes and progress to 10-15 minutes. I always have the students use their reading bags, pick 5 books from our class library, and their Sight Word Poems anthology. Click here for ways to read Easy Sight Word Poems.
By having so many choices, students stay engaged. I also start with 5 minutes and slowly move to 15 minutes based on my observations of the students’ engagement during independent reading time.
I hope you’ve found my tips on beginning reading helpful. You can also find a few games to play with beginning readers to help develop letters and sounds (Fun Games for Letters and Sounds). If you have any additional tips that might help a teacher, please share in comments!
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