Developing early reading comprehension is incredibly important for growing readers. Children can start to understand as early as picture books from a young age. As they get older, they’ll need to understand textbooks, newspapers, and other more complex reading materials. Children should be practicing their reading in and outside of school every single day. Here are tips to help reading comprehension skills in an early reader.
Reading Level Books
Make sure your child is getting practice reading books above their current reading level. If they don’t recognize at least 90 percent and need a lot of help, consider giving them books from a lower level. Children have a hard time reading when they keep stopping to figure out what is going on and how to pronounce a word.
Reread for Fluency
In order for children to gain meaning from text and encourage reading comprehension, your child needs to read at a good pace and smoothly. Rereading the same books will allow them to get a better understanding of how reading should sound normally. Halfway through elementary school kids are expected to be able to read 90 words a minute. Practice always makes perfect!
Read Out Loud
This forces children to go slower with their reading and gives them more time to process what they just read. They’re not only seeing the words but they’re hearing them too which can greatly improve reading comprehension. It’s common for children to read in their head but forget what they read very quickly. Reading out loud allows them to take more of the reading in.
Talk about what they’re reading
Verbal processing helps children remember and think through what happened in their book. Consider asking questions before, during, and after their reading to encourage reading comprehension. This will encourage them to pay more attention to reading and not rush through it without actually taking the reading in.
Connect to The Classroom
If your child’s class is studying a specific theme, look for books on the topic to keep at home. Some prior knowledge will help them make their way through classroom readings and promote reading comprehension from home. Also, remember to reach out to your child’s teacher and ask if they’re struggling with reading. If this is the case, ask for ways you can help them with their reading with at-home practices.
