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Literacy is “reading, writing, speaking, listening and viewing and involves the knowledge and skills required to engage in activities required for effective functioning in the community” (Hill, 2012).

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According to Shomos & Forbes (2014), higher literacy and numeracy skills are associated with better labour market outcomes, which includes higher chances of employment and higher wages earned. In order to be literate, we need to know how to read.

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Reading is the process of constructing meaning from print and other symbols (Hill, 2012).

It involves decoding and understanding modes in order to deduct and deduce meaning (Carabott & Cronin, 2019).

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Evidence suggests that children who read for enjoyment daily perform better in reading tests compared to those who don’t and also develop a broader vocabulary, increased general knowledge and a better understanding of other cultures (Pearson, 2019).

Levels of independent reading is also directly related to life outcomes (Shomos, 2010; Shomos & Forbes, 2014).

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Literacy also encompasses viewing, which is “complex act of meaning-making using still or moving images. As with understanding written text, viewing images requires learners to make connections, determine importance, visualise and critique” (Frey and Fisher, 2008).

Visual modality is used to inform, entertain, instruct and persuade viewers.

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Phonics is one of the elements of reading and is an important component as it enables children to read fluently and grasp the meanings of the words. It focuses on sound letter relationships in reading and writing. As well as understanding the alphabetic principle, and that spoken language is made up of sounds.

Phonics consists of 5 stages;
1) The letters of the alphabet; Consonants & Vowels
2) Onset and rime
3) Blends
4) Digraphs & other letter combinations
5) Structural analysis

Children have to be able to achieve the initial stages in order to easily grasp the latter stages.

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Phonics is built on children’s prior knowledge of graphemes and phonemes. According to (Hill, 2012), when children can easily and confidently identify letters, it is easier for them to learn phonemes. In addition, it helps children to blend and see words in sections rather than as a whole chunk, and as a result learn to read better.

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Fluency is the ability to read a text accurately, quickly and expressively (Carabott & Cronin, 2019).

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Comprehension is the ability to make meaning from text (Wilson, 2003). All readers establish meaning from texts differently, determined by their motivation, their background and mental state. There is often no single, absolute meaning in a text.

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Without comprehension, children will not be able to relate what they have read to their life experiences and as such, prevent them from creating new knowledge and meanings from their existing knowledge. Comprehension also allows children to develop the knowledge, skills and experiences to become competent readers  (Texas Educational Agency, 2002). Readers undergo complex comprehension processes in order to construct meaning from texts.

For children to be good readers, they have to attain a highly complex, well developed and well- practiced skills and abilities, which they have to coordinate before, during and after reading a text.

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Facilitating repeated practice of reading aloud is a key to developing fluency.  To achieve fluency, we also need to know about grammar and punctuation.

Opportunities for developing reading fluency include Modelled Reading, Guided Reading, Peer reading, Choral reading and Readers’ theatre. Through modelled reading, the teacher demonstrates how it should be read, for example, in an expressive manner.

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To comprehend a text, the reader takes on Four Roles : Code Breaker, Text Participant, Text user and Text Analyst. This is illustrated by the Four Resource Model  by Luke and Freebody.

Teachers can organise teaching opportunities around these four roles through modelled, shared and guided reading.  During the reading sessions, teachers can scaffold them by asking questions that promote critical thinking and allowing them to connect ideas, summarise, infer and evaluate the texts and images in order for them to make meaning from what they have read (Fountas & Pinnell, 2001; Harvey & Goudvis, 2000; Duke & Pearson, 2002).

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This resource offers children access to reading models and this relates to the Fluency concept, which is supported by the Education and Training Department of the Victoria State Government (2018).

It states that teachers or adults can demonstrate fluent reading by model reading, which involves students listening to a text read aloud by the adult. Through this, the adult models proficient reading behaviour, enjoyment and interest in a variety of different types of text.

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Imagine the best stories being read aloud to you by our favourite storytellers - well that's Story Box Library!

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This resource offers teachers and children a variety of readers’ theatre scripts, which they can read during lesson.

This relates to the Fluency concept, which is supported by Prescott, J. (2003) that showed that Reader’s Theatre is an effective strategy in improving reading fluency and helps readers learn to read aloud expressively.

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Reader's Theater Scripts and Plays

Readers Theater is a dramatic presentation of a written work in a script form. Readers read from a "script" and reading parts are divided among the readers. No memorization, costumes, blocking, or special lighting is needed. Presentations can easily be done in a k-3 classroom. Scripts are held by the readers. Lines are not memorized. The focus is on reading the text with expressive voices and gestures. Making comprehending the text meaningful and fun for the student! Once you start Reader's Theater in your classroom you and your students will be loving it!!!

"Reader's Theater proved to be almost a magic solution for Griffith: In just 10 weeks of using RT, every child in her class had gained a full grade level in reading. After a year, the children's gains had jumped to three years of growth. Griffith calls the transformation in their reading fluency totally remarkable." Quote taken from The Power of Reader's Theater, Scholastic Instructor

Update - July 08

Plays and Scripts To Print and Read

Reader's Theater Resources!!

Click the books to learn more...

Look what THOUSANDS of Teachers Use and Love!!!
Teaching Heart - 2001-2008

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Reader's Theater Scripts and Plays for the Classroom

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Reader's Theater Scripts and Plays Readers Theater is a dramatic presentation of a written work in a script form. Readers read from a "script" and reading parts are divided among the readers. No memorization, costumes, blocking, or special lighting is needed. Presentations can easily be done in a k-3 classroom.

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This resource offers teachers and children different levels of fiction and non-fiction texts to develop children’s reading skills. PM Readers books are suitable for choral reading as they are at an appropriate reading level, contain dialogue or rhythm and are relatively short.

This relates to the Fluency concept, which is supported by Hasbrouck (2006) and Texas Reading Initiative (2007) that state that choral reading provide a model for fluent reading as students listen.It also aid the students in their ability to read sight words.

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PM Starters Activity Sheets and
Teacher Support on CD

The PM Starters Activity Sheetsand Teacher Support on CD provide high-quality, levelled student activities and teacher notes to support each book in the PM Starters series.

Each of the 30 PM Starters is supported by six activities that link to the following areas:

writing

meaning

visual features

structure

In addition, teacher support for each book is provided targeting high-frequency words, curriculum links, guided reading strategies and additional activities that link to other key learning areas. Reading record pro formas for all three levels are also provided.

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PM Starters Activity Sheets and Teacher Support on CD The PM Starters Activity Sheetsand Teacher Support on CD provide high-quality, levelled student activities and teacher notes to support each book in the PM Starters series.

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This resource offers children an opportunity to develop the skill of sequencing and this relates to the Comprehension concept, which is supported by Moss (2005) which states that story sequencing skills assists with comprehension, especially for narrative texts. Sequence structures help students of differing abilities construct and arrange information and ideas efficiently. This book allows teachers to ask inferring questions that helps to develop their comprehension ability.

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This resource offers teachers opportunities to conduct shared reading sessions with children. This relates to the Comprehension concept, which is supported by Hill (2012) that states that enlarged books can be used to explore the conventions of print and the reading process. It also allows teachers to demonstrate decoding and comprehension strategies and engage in problem solving using structure and visual information.

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Colorful illustrations are what make these big books for kids fantastic at keeping students engaged and eager to sit on the reading rug.

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Provide and allow children opportunities to familiarize themselves with each letter and their sounds. Continued exposure to the graphemes and phonemes through meaning texts and contexts and knowing what the children need to learn will contribute to helping children with phonics (Victoria State Government, 2018).

Teachers can utilize songs and flashcards as aids to assist their teaching. It is important for the teacher to ensure that children have fully grasped the knowledge of identifying and naming the letters before moving on to the sounds.

Organizing games that involve using children's name in identifying the letters and sounds in each name can be helpful, as children's names are important to their identity (Hill, 2012).

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This resource offers both parents and teachers to learn skills and methods on how to teach phonics to children, from an experienced and  recognized speaker.

It includes take home materials that can be used to assist the lessons in school and for parents to help their children get a head start in language learning.

In addition, the skills and knowledge shared involves teaching children with additional needs. Which according to the Victoria State Government of Australia (2019), it is important to also ensure that the individual learning needs of all children are met.

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In this workshop, the author of "Where is Dan?", Lydia Lok will share writing tips on how she created the story, and also how the food characters from her book were developed. Participants will then be guided to develop their own characters too.

View Event →

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Jolly Phonics Training Workshop - Curious Thoughts Academy

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This is a Jolly Phonics workshop by a UK accredited trainer based in Singapore. Skills-future credit approved! NTUC UTAP approved! Preschool teachers can clock 16 ECDA CPD hours! Find out for yourself why our workshop is a hit among parents and teachers.

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Reading fluency is important because it builds a bridge between word recognition and comprehension (Carabott & Cronin, 2019).

Fluency is an important goal for children to become accurate, efficient, and therefore fluent readers (Victoria State Government, 2018). When decoding becomes easy and automatic for children, this allows them to free up their attention to focus on the meaning of the text. However, fluency alone does not indicate good comprehension of the text.

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This resource offers both children and parents to be actively involved in the child's learning, and for teachers to use it as a form of communication with parents.

It allows children to decorate their own watches with the letter and sound they have learnt for the week. As children gets hands-on, it allows creativity, individuality and as well as taking ownership and autonomy in their learning.

As families are the core of nurturing children's language skills (Swick 2009; Reese, Sparks & Leyva 2010; Bennett & Tayler 2006), actively involving the parents  holds them accountable to reinforce what the children have learnt, back at home, benefiting children's phonics skills.

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This resource offers teachers resources such as lesson plans and online activities to help them cultivate problem solving and comprehension skills in reading. Skills such as questioning, inferring and evaluating help the children in making meaning from texts.]

This relates to the Comprehension concept, which is supported by the research done by Duke and Pearson (2002), which states that for children to effectively make meaning from texts, they need to have clear goals in mind for their reading and evaluate whether the text is meeting their goals. Hence, the resources will aid the teachers to cultivate these thinking skills in children.

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The Into the Book website will be retired on December 31st, 2023. Content will not be available after this date.

Student activities now available in English and Spanish!

Into the Book is a reading comprehension resource for elementary students and teachers. We focus on eight research-based strategies: Using Prior Knowledge, Making Connections, Questioning, Visualizing, Inferring, Summarizing, Evaluating and Synthesizing. Try the online interactive activities, or click below to find out how to get our engaging 15-minute video programs.

Please choose a language.

(Bilingual offers both English and Spanish texts, which you can switch between during each activity.)

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Into the Book is a multimedia package designed to improve elementary students' reading comprehension, as well as their ability to think and learn across the curriculum. For Grades 2-5.

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This resource offers both parents and teachers a song they can use to teach the children phonemes. It also allow both visual and audio appeal to children for better interaction and learning. As supported by Hill (2012), the song's repetitive tune provides familiarity enabling children to sing along with ease and then remembering the phonemes.

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This resource offers children opportunity to familiarize, recognize and identify letters, as they read the given letters and then match them accordingly. Letter recognition is the building block towards learning phonics (Strickland & Cullinan, 1990). and this activity aims to achieve that.

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This resource offers teachers an opportunity to keep anecdotal records on what reading strategies their students are using independently or during guided reading.

This relates to the Comprehension concept, which is supported by the Education and Training Department of the Victoria State Government (2019) that explains that the principal goal of guided reading is to support students in using reading strategies while they read for meaning independently. The teacher guides the children in their reading by selecting a text by matches to the learning needs of the small reading group.Hence, the teacher need to make use of anecdotal records to keep track of the children’s learning needs.

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This resource offers children to explore the different word families and allow them to learn word patterns. The words have similar sounds, it hastens children's learning as it helps them remember better (Hill, 2012).

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This resource offers children to find relation between the words and it's meaning through the pictures, allowing meaning-making which is necessary for comprehension of both texts and prints (Wilson, 2003).

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This resource allows children to learn about grammar rules, play word games and listen to songs that help them to understand and hear how grammar is used. This relates to the concept of fluency.

According to the Education and Training department of the Victoria State Government (2018), another component of the teaching of fluency is the teaching of grammar and punctuation, which includes discussing word types like noun and adjective and explaining differences between commas, full stops and exclamation points.

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Do you want to practise your English grammar and learn new words? In this section you can learn about grammar rules, play word games and watch fun videos. Watch the grammar videos, play the grammar games and print the grammar worksheets. You can also print activities, tests and reference cards and post comments!

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This resource consists of stories that involve characters, which are based off of alphabets. The characters help children to understand the sound of letters and offers teachers to conduct shared reading sessions with children. The stories also explain the sounds letters make when they come together in words. This relates to the Phonics concept, which is supported by Hill (2012) that states that it is important to make phonics enjoyable to learn and creating stories around the alphabets makes the learning more interesting for children. Teachers can hold mini-sessions focusing on one letter using the short story that surrounds the same letter from the Letterland book.

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This resource offers teachers to access children's understanding of words and sentences through decoding of the sentences given to them through problem solving and expressing them with their bodies. It also enable children to better relate to what they have learned and know, as according to Roskos, Christie, Widman, & Holding (2010), children learn better through play. Lastly, as children read to one another, the better readers encourages others to become good readers as well (Ontorio Ministry of Education, 2015).

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This resource offers children to read print, decode, deduce and then apply their understanding. Children are required to read the picture, decode the name of it, and then analyse the first letter of it in order to complete the mystery word. According to Luke and Freebody (1990), these are the necessary skills towards becoming a fluent reader.

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This source offers children to learn the flow and stresses of reading a sentence. Teachers can use sentences from books read in the class, and easily modify them as according to the needs of the children and the lesson plans.

According to Luke and Freebody (1990), it is essential to provide critical practices for children in order to ensure fluency in children's reading.

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Carabott, K., & Cronin, T. (2019). Decoding: Reading and Viewing: Day 3. Singapore. Retrieved from https://padlet-uploads.storage.googleapis.com/10445132/1a38b81dbd0d1327e28c87a1049d07cd/2019_EDF3034_Reading___1_.pdf

Carabott, K., & Cronin, T. (2019). Decoding: Reading and Viewing: Day 4. Singapore. Retrieved from https://padlet-uploads.storage.googleapis.com/10445132/2c2902af2b8674082ce1522837bb7e5c/2019_Reading_2.pdf

Duke, N. K., & Pearson, P. D. (2002). Effective Practices for Developing Reading Comprehension. In What research has to say about reading instruction (3rd ed.) (pp. 205-242). International Reding Association.

Hasbrouck, J. (2006). For Students Who Are Not Yet Fluent, Silent Reading Is Not the Best Use of Classroom Time. American Educator, Summer 2006, 30(2).

Hill, S. (2012). Developing Early Literacy: Assessment and Teaching. South Yarra, VIC: Eleanor Curtain Publishing.

Moss, B. (2005). Making a case and a place for effective content area literacy instruction in the elementary grades. Reading Teacher, 59, 46-55.

Pearson. (2019, January 20). Why is reading so important? Retrieved from Pearson: https://www.pearson.com/uk/learners/primary-parents/learn-at-home/help-your-child-to-enjoy-reading/why-is-reading-so-important.html

Prescott, J. (2019, August 13). The Power of Reader's Theater. Retrieved from Scholastic: https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/power-readerx2019s-theater/

Shomos, A. a. (2014). Literacy and Numeracy Skills and Labour Market Outcomes in Australia. Canberra: Productivity Commission Staff Working Paper.

Texas Educational Agency. (2002). Comprehension Instruction. 4-8. Retrieved from http://www.netxv.net/pm_attach/67/TRI-Comprehension_Instr.pdf

Texas Reading Initiative. (2007). Fluency: Instructional Guidelines and Student Activities.

Victoria State Government. (2018, October 1). Literacy Teaching Toolkit: Fluency. Retrieved from Victoria State Government: https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/teachingresources/discipline/english/literacy/readingviewing/Pages/litfocusfluency.aspx

Wilson, M. (2003). Discovery listening – improving perceptual processing. ELT Journal(57), 335-343.

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This resource offers children to practice their blending skills as they try out the different tongue twisters. As children continue to learn new words, learning to blend words can help them to break down the words into syllables and then read the words with ease (Hill, 2012).

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Last Updated on

Funny tongue twisters for kids have been around since generations, and not only are they fun, but they help you speak better and boost your repertoire of exciting and fun-sounding words. Here's our lowdown on some popular tongue twisters, and why you and your kids should recite them together.

What are Tongue Twisters?

In reality, tongue twisters are phrases, which have similar sounding words in a repetitive sequence. They aid language development, boost vocabulary, and are a lot of fun when recited together in a group.

Benefits of Tongue Twisters for Young Kids

Kids begin to develop their speech and diction at a young age, and tongue twisters can help them stretch the muscles that are necessary for speech. This helps them develop clear pronunciation and speech patterns.

Tongue Twisters for Children to Recite

Don't make your child recite tongue twisters, alone. Multiply the fun by participating in a group. Here are our 20 best tongue twisters in English for kids, which will give you a real challenge.

1. I Scream

I scream, you scream, we all scream, for ice cream!

2. Peter Piper
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers Where's the peck of pickled peppers that Peter Piper picked?
3. Betty Botter
Betty Botter bought a bit of butter. "But," she said, "this bit of butter's bitter, But a bit of better butter mixed with this butter might just make my bit of bitter butter better." So, Betty bought a bit of better butter to make her bitter butter better.
4. Susie Shine
I saw Susie sitting in a shoe shine shop. Where she shines, she sits, and where she sits, she shines.
5. Woodchuck
How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if the woodchuck could chuck wood? He would chuck, he would, as much as he could, And chuck as much wood as a woodchuck would, If a woodchuck could chuck wood.
6. Doctor Doctor
If one doctor doctors another doctor, Then which doctor is doctoring the doctored doctor?
Does the doctor who doctors the doctor, doctor the doctor the way the doctor he is doctoring doctors?

Or does he doctor the doctor the way the doctor who doctors doctors?

7. Thought A Thought
I thought a thought,
But the thought I thought wasn't the thought I thought I thought.

If the thought I thought I thought had been the thought I thought,
I wouldn't have thought so much.
8. Fuzzy Wuzzy
Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear, Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair, Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn't very fuzzy, was he?
9. She Sells
She sells sea shells by the seashore
And the shells she sells by the seashore are sea shells for sure.

10. All I Want is a Proper Cup of Coffee
All I want is a proper cup of coffee, Tin coffee pots and iron coffee pots
Brave, bleeding boys battle bald, biting babies Biting babies ride battle toys while bumbling boys brave bald biting babies. They're no use to me -Denise sees the fleece, Denise sees the fleas. At least Denise could sneeze And feed and freeze the fleas.
To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock, In a pestilential prison, with a life-long lock, Awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock, From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block! If I can't have a proper cup of coffee Luke Luck likes lakes. Luke's duck likes lakes. Luke Luck licks lakes. Luke's duck licks lakes. Duck takes licks in lakes Luke Luck likes. Luke Luck takes licks in lakes duck likes.
In a proper copper coffee pot While these fleas flew, freezy breeze blew Freezy breeze made these three trees freeze Freezy trees made these trees' cheese freeze That's what made these three free fleas sneeze
Black background, brown background, Brown background, black background, I'll have a cup of tea.
Why do you cry, Willy? Why do you cry? Willy, Willy! Willy cry, why you cry, Willy? Made in a proper copper coffee pot Ned Nott was shot and Sam Shott was not. Some say Nott was not shot.
But Shott says he shot Nott.
Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Spread it thick, say it quick! Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread, Spread it thicker, say it quicker! Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Don't eat until you are spreading it like a spread! Either the shot Shott shot at Nott was not shot, Chester cheetah chews a chunk of cheap cheddar cheese If the chunk of cheese chunked Chester cheetah, What would Chester cheetah chew and chunk on?
Also Read: Fun and Clever Riddles for Kids with Answers
English Learning Games and Activities for Kids
Smart Ideas to Teach Kids to Rhyme Words and Sounds
What is Child Speech Therapy?
Speech and Language Delay in Children Or Nott was shot.
So it is better to be Shott than Nott.
I may be off my dot
But I want a cup of coffee
From a proper coffee pot.
11. Bleeding Boys

12. Denise Sees

13. Dark Dock

14. Luke Luck

15. Cheese Trees

Through three cheese trees three free fleas flew

16. Black And Brown Background

Background background, black, black, brown, brown.

17. Why Willy?!

18. Ned Nott and Sam Shott

If the shot Shott shot shot Nott, Nott was shot.
But if the shot Shott shot shot Shott,
Then Shott was shot, not Nott.

However, the shot Shott shot shot not Shott, but Nott.

19. Butter And Jelly

20. Chester Cheetah

Try out these tongue twisters at home with your kids and see if you can recite them at breakneck speeds. Let us know how it went, by getting in touch with us.

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20 Short and Easy Tongue Twisters in English for Kids

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Last Updated on Funny tongue twisters for kids have been around since generations, and not only are they fun, but they help you speak better and boost your repertoire of exciting and fun-sounding words. Here's our lowdown on some popular tongue twisters, and why you and your kids should recite them together.

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This resource offers children the autonomy and creativity to create words using the blocks provided, increasing their vocabulary and language complexities (Victoria State Government, 2018). Teachers can also provide words cards that the children can use as a reference, to recreate the words with the blocks. This encourages both letter and words recognition and as well as decoding the words , all essential skill towards fluent reading (Hill, 2012).