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#1 Compare a Story: The student will analyze similarities and differences in the stories to draw conclusions and evaluate their reflection of cultural values. Based on their evaluation, the student will form an opinion on the impact of these stories on the culture and their contribution to the development of modern culture. Furthermore, the stories can be used to shape and inform the future.
#2 Cause and Effect Match: The student will identify the relationship between cause and effect. They will be able to explain how one event produces another event. They will learn when to use causal reasoning in problem solving. They will also be able to interpret cause and effect relationships in the world around them. Additionally, they will gain an understanding of how to make accurate predictions based on cause and effect relationships, which will help them to make informed decisions (FCRR, 2023).

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#1: Elkonin boxes are a useful tool for developing phonological awareness skills as they assist in breaking down words into individual sounds or phonemes. They aid students in grasping phonological awareness by segmenting words into sounds or syllables. They teach students how to count the number of phonemes in a word, which may not always correspond with the number of letters. Furthermore, they help students comprehend the alphabetic principle when it comes to decoding and spelling (Elkonin Boxes | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets, 2023). For example, Elkonin Boxes can help students to map out the number of phonemes in a word, such as the word 'cat', which has three phonemes: /k/, /a/, /t/.

#2: Another effective way to prepare preschool and elementary school children for reading is to engage them in activities that promote phonemic awareness. The clapping game is a great example of such an activity, as it helps children become aware of syllables. By clapping and counting the syllables in their own names, children can learn about the nature of syllables and use this knowledge to identify syllables in other words, including those found in stories they read. Additionally, the game can help children grasp the concept of phonemes and their relationship to syllables. To enhance the learning experience, children can hold two fingers under their chins and feel their chins drop with each syllable. Encouraging them to elongate or stretch each syllable can further reinforce this technique (Phonemic Activities for the Preschool or Elementary Classroom, 2022).

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As a parent, you have a vital role in enhancing your child's reading abilities by practicing pre-reading oral skills with them at home. This can be done by helping them recognize letters and sounds, and creating stories together. Reading stories aloud is an excellent way to bond with your child while also improving their comprehension of books. You can also check out the Reading Rockets website for at-home activities that include word families, rhyming, tongue twisters, syllable shopping, and sound scavenger hunts. (Phonological and Phonemic Awareness: Activities for Your Kindergartener, 2022).

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That's a complicated sounding term, but it's meaning is simple: the ability to hear, recognize, and play with the sounds in spoken language. Phonological awareness is really a group of skills that include a child's ability to:

Identify words that rhyme

Count the number of syllables in a name

Recognize alliteration (words with the same beginning sound)

Segment (break) a sentence into words

Identify the syllables in a word

The most sophisticated phonological awareness skill (and the last to develop) is called phonemic awareness - the ability to hear, recognize, and play with the individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words. When playing with the sounds in word, children learn to:

Blend individual sounds to make a word

Stretch out a word into its individual sounds

Swap in a different sound to the beginning, middle, or end of a word to make a new word

Strong phonemic awareness is one of the strongest predictors of later reading success. Children who struggle with reading, including kids with dyslexia, often have trouble with phonemic awareness, but with the right kind of instruction they can be successful. Learn some of the warning signs for dyslexia in this article, Clues to Dyslexia in Early Childhood.

Parents can make a big difference in helping their children become readers by practicing these pre-reading oral skills at home. Try some of the simple rhyming and word sound games described here.

Try these speech sound activities at home

Rhyme time

"I am thinking of an animal that rhymes with big. What's the animal?" Answer: pig. What else rhymes with big? ( dig, fig, wig)

Road trip rhymes

While you're out driving in the car, spot something out the window and ask your child, "what rhymes with tree or car or shop?" Then switch roles and have your child spot something and ask you for a rhyme. This can turn into a game of nonsense rhymes ("What rhymes with tree stump?") but that's great for practicing sounds, too!

Word families

Word families are sets of words that rhyme. Start to build your family by giving your child the first word, for example, cat. Then ask your child to name all the "kids" in the cat family, such as: bat, fat, sat, rat, pat, mat, hat, flat. This will help your child hear patterns in words.

Silly tongue twisters

Sing songs and say silly tongue twisters. These help your child become sensitive to the sounds in words.

Tongue ticklers

Alliteration or "tongue ticklers" - where the sound you're focusing on is repeated over and over again - can be a fun way to provide practice with a speech sound. Try these:

For M: Miss Mouse makes marvelous meatballs!

For S: Silly Sally sings songs about snakes and snails.

For F: Freddy finds fireflies with a flashlight.

Syllable shopping

While at the grocery store, have your child tell you the syllables in different food names. Have them hold up a finger for each word part. Eggplant = egg-plant, two syllables. Pineapple = pine-ap-ple, three syllables. Show your child the sign for each and ask her to say the word.

"I spy" first sounds

Practice beginning sounds with this simple "I spy" game at home, on a walk, or at the grocery store. Choose words with distinctive, easy-to-hear beginning sounds. For example, if you're in the bathroom you can say, "I spy something red that starts with the "s" ssss sound ( soap)."

Sound scavenger hunt

Choose a letter sound, then have your child find things around your house that start with the same sound. "Can you find something in our house that starts with the letter "p" pppppp sound? Picture, pencil, pear "

Which letter sounds do I teach first?

Reading expert Linda Farrell recommends that you begin with teaching the letter names, and then focus on the letter sounds that are closest to their letter names (such as /v/). And here's a great tip for teaching the trickier letter name-letter sound combinations - use arm motions. In this video, Linda demonstrates motions for /x/ and /y/. (From our video series Reading SOS: Expert Answers to Family Questions About Reading.)

Sound games

Practice blending sounds into words. Ask "Can you guess what this word is? m - o - p." Hold each sound longer than normal.

First sounds

When you're reading together with your child, pick a word from the book and say it with emphasis on the first sound. Pick another word and compare them. "Zzz-zookeeper and rrr-rhinoceros. Can you hear what sound zzz-zookeeper starts with? Is it the same as rrr-rhinoceros?

Jump, skip, hop!

Create simple picture cards that you draw or cut out of magazines. Have your child, identify what's in the picture, and then break that word into its individual sounds. For example dog is d-o-g, three sounds (phonemes). Three sounds? You and your child do three jumping jacks, skips, or hops (followed by a high-five). You can also do this game outdoors without the cards, just call out simple words for your child.

Snail talk

Tell your child you're going to communicate in "snail talk" and they need to figure out what you're saying. Take a simple word and stretch it out very slowly (e.g., /fffffllllaaaag/), then ask your child to tell you the word. Switch roles and have your child stretch out a word for you.

"I spy" blending

Here's an easy phoneme blending game you can play while talking a walk. For blending, you can say, "I see a sign that says s-t-o-p" Then your child has to blend the sounds to guess your word - stop. (Remember to say only the sounds in the word - not the letters.) Keep the words short, moving from two to three to four sounds depending on your child's skill level.

Sound counting

Using LEGO bricks, beads, or pennies, say a word and have your child show you how many sounds the word makes. For example, top = t-o-p = three sounds, so your child would place three objects in a row. Then have them tap each object as they say the sound. Remember, your child is just showing you the sounds they hear. So the word bike would be = b-i-k (silent e) = only three sounds.

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Phonological and Phonemic Awareness: Activities for Your Kindergartener

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Phonological and phonemic awareness are important pre-reading skills, related to the ability to hear, identify, and play with the sounds in spoken language - including rhymes, syllables, and the smallest units of sound (phonemes). Children with strong phonological awareness skills are ready to become readers.

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#1 Matching Books (Decodable Texts): A clear understanding of phonics enables children to read unfamiliar words and improve their reading skills significantly. This is especially beneficial for students who face reading difficulties and require additional support in boosting their phonemic awareness (Phonics and Decoding, 2023). In decodable texts, words are gradually incorporated that are consistent with the letter-sound relationships taught earlier. To provide individualized instruction, utilize picture books along with oral guidance for younger or less skilled students. For instance, the teacher can instruct students to identify pictures that start with a specific sound or end with a particular word group (Matching Books to Phonics Features | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets, 2022).

#2 Four in A Row, to play this game, each participant is given a unique colored pen marker and takes turns coloring a picture after saying a word. The winner is the first to discover four consecutive squares that start with the same letter or share the same sound. The color used must be the same as the one issued to each player. Players can also challenge each other if they think they have found a consecutive set of squares. The game ends when the picture is filled with colors.

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PBS KIDS Raising Readers is a wonderful website that provides families with resources for home learning. Engaging in daily activities is a great way to introduce letters and words to your young child in a natural and effective manner (Grocery Store Literacy Activity Sheets, 2023). For example, you can encourage your child to write out labels for items around the house, sing alphabet songs, and practice writing with crayons or chalk. You can also introduce your child to books and help them practice sounding out words. Grocery store literacy is a fun way of teaching, PBS provides these worksheets scholars can take along for the trip to the store.

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Everyday activities are a natural and effective way to begin teaching your young child about letters and words. Download and print these colorful "take-along" activities the next time you go to the grocery store or farmer's market. Turn your regular trip into a reading adventure!

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#1 Word Hunts: Word hunts offer an effective technique for concentrating on spelling patterns within words. This activity is typically integrated into word study, where students are encouraged to search for previously encountered words. By identifying other words that share the same spelling features as those studied during their word or picture sort, students can establish a correlation between spelling and reading, making word hunt activities a valuable tool for language acquisition (Word Hunts | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets, 2023). Adding pictures to the hunt can differentiate the instructions.

#2 List-Group-Label: List-group-label is a strategy for semantic mapping that helps students enhance their vocabulary and categorization abilities while learning to organize ideas. By grouping and labeling listed words, students can effectively categorize new concepts in connection with previously acquired knowledge (List-Group-Label | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets, 2023). This strategy also helps students improve their problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. As students become better at categorizing concepts, they can make connections between different ideas and develop a deeper comprehension of the subject matter.

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Children's vocabulary is mostly acquired through regular language exposure in their daily lives. This includes reading books, interacting with the media, and engaging in conversations with others (Reading Rockets, 2023). By spending time with family members, peers, and other adults, children are able to hear the language being used in context and learn how to use it correctly. Additionally, they are able to fill in gaps in their comprehension and expand their vocabularies by asking questions and engaging in conversations.

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Getting the Most Out of Nonfiction Reading Time

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Nonfiction books give kids a chance to learn new concepts and vocabulary, as well as broaden their view of the world. Learn how to take a "book walk" with a new nonfiction book and how to model active reading.

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#1 Teacher Modeling: Decoding words and understanding them are linked by the ability to read fluently. When students listen to good fluent reading models, they learn how the reader's voice can make text more understandable. Your students should be read to daily. When you read effortlessly and expressively, you show your students what it means to be a fluent reader (What Is Fluency? Why Is Fluency Important? :: Read Naturally, Inc., n.d.).

#2 Readers' theatre: Readers' theatre involves students rehearsing and performing a play for their peers or others. The students read from scripts that are adapted from books that contain rich dialogue. During the performance, the students take on the roles of characters who deliver lines or a narrator who provides essential background information. This activity encourages students to reread text and practice fluency while also promoting cooperative interaction with peers and making reading more engaging. The activity also helps students to better understand the text, as they can identify with the characters and visualize the scenes. Additionally, readers' theatre can help to build confidence in public speaking (Fluency: Instructional Guidelines and Student Activities, 2013).

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Echo Game:To help improve your child's reading skills, select a book that matches their level and read a sentence with the right pauses and expressions. Encourage your child to repeat the same sentence with the same intonation and pauses. You can repeat this exercise every few paragraphs as you read through the book.

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By the end of first grade, kids should be reading books at their grade level with ease and expression.

Your child's teacher will give "timed reading passages" where kids read a story and are timed for one minute to record how many words they can read in that time. By December, most first graders can read 50 words correct per minute. And by the end of the school year, children should be reading 70 words per minute.

Try these fluency activities at home

Choose the right books

Help your child choose books that he can comfortably read. The "five-finger test" is a useful guideline for beginning readers. As your child reads, count the number of words he cannot read per page. In general, there should be five words or fewer that give him trouble on each page. If a book contains several pages on which you count more than five words that he can't read, consider reading that book to your child until he develops more reading skill.

Listen every day

Once you've found a collection of books that your child can read, listen to your child read every day. Be patient - new readers often read slowly! Offer help when your child gets stuck, and always give lots of praise and encouragement.

Reread favorite books

Building fluency takes a lot of practice! Keep a collection of books that your child can read quickly and easily. Encourage your child to reread favorite books over and over again. With each reading, you may notice your child reading a bit easier, a bit faster, and with a bit more confidence and expression.

Read to your child every day

Model your own fluent reading as you read and reread books with your child. Even though your child may be able to read on her own, continue to find time each day to read books to her that are just beyond her reading level. She will enjoy listening to more advanced stories, and she will hear a great example of fluent reading - how you change your expression throughout a story and read with ease. Your child will hear how you raise your voice at the end of question sentence or how you change your voice for different characters.

Family poetry jam

Start with playful, rhyming poetry about topics that are familiar to your child like animals, food, and bedtime. Nursery rhymes and Mother Goose collections are early favorites. Read the poetry aloud slowly. Emphasize the sound of the words and the rhymes. Read dramatically to emphasize the breaks and phrasing of the poem. Have fun with the colorful language and word play. Reread the poem several times. Once a poem is familiar to your child, take turns reading! First you read one line or one stanza, and have your child read the next. See if you can do that while maintaining the rhythm of the poem. Learn more in this article, Poems at Home (in English and Spanish).

Reader's theater

You don't need a script or costumes or props. Just choose a favorite picture book that your child is familiar with, and one that has lots of dialogue. Take turns reading the passages aloud, using dramatic voices and gestures appropriate to the story. This activity can get pretty silly right away, but it's a great way to practice expression in reading aloud.

Record it

Another fun way to practice reading and build fluency is to have your child create her own audio books. This can be done simply with a tape recorder or audio recording feature or app on your phone. Your child might need a few "takes" to get his reading just right. Sharing your audio recordings with family and friends is a great motivator!

Paired or "buddy" reading

Take turns reading aloud. You go first, as your reading provides a model of what good fluent reading sounds like. Then, ask your child to re-read the same page you just read. You'll notice that your child's reading will start to sound more and more like yours. Do this for several pages. Once your child is comfortable enough, and familiar enough with the book, take turns reading page for page.

Echo game

Choose a book at your child's reading level and read a sentence aloud using appropriate expression and pauses. Then, have your child mimic you, reading the same sentence and using the same expression and pauses. Repeat the game every few paragraphs as you read through the book.

Choral reading

Choose a book at your child's reading level and read a page or passage together in unison. You may have to slow your reading down a little to keep pace, but don't slow down too much. Encourage your child to copy your pace and expression.

Practice fluency 3 ways: echo reading, partner reading, and repeated reading

This video is from Home Reading Helper, a resource for parents to elevate children's reading at home provided by Read Charlotte. Find more video, parent activities, printables, and other resources at Home Reading Helper.

How to coach your child to read fluently

This video is from Home Reading Helper, a resource for parents to elevate children's reading at home provided by Read Charlotte. Find more video, parent activities, printables, and other resources at Home Reading Helper.

Sight words

Sight words are common words kids have to recognize instantly without sounding them out. Many sight words are tricky to read - they aren't spelled the way they sound. The activity and videos below discuss how sight word recognition supports fluency, and offer easy ways to help your child learn them. Here's a list of common sight words for first grade.

Sight word spy

Tell your child that sight words are "hiding in plain sight" everywhere around us. Your child's "mission" is to spot the sight words out in the world (in the grocery store, on a sign, cereal box, or movie poster) and announce "aha, I found you! This silly game can get your child excited about recognizing words - as well as a boost of confidence from knowing how to read them.

Getting stuck on sight words

Many striving readers struggle with sight words. Reading expert Linda Farrell suggests this teaching sequence: first, be sure your child knows all the letter names, then all the letter sounds - and then you can introduce a few short high-frequency words such as was. Choose words that don't have regular phonetic spelling. (From our video series Reading SOS: Expert Answers to Family Questions About Reading.)

More fluency resources

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Fluency: Activities for Your First Grader

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By the end of first grade, kids should be reading books at their grade level with ease and expression. Your child's teacher will give "timed reading passages" where kids read a story and are timed for one minute to record how many words they can read in that time.

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Five-finger retell

After reading a story together, have your child tell you five things about the story, using her fingers to talk about each one:

1. Characters: who was in the story?

2. Setting: where did the story take place?

3. Events: what happened in the story?

4. End: how did the story end?

(Comprehension: Activities for Your First Grader, 2020)

1. Favorite character or part of the story

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First graders are quickly developing impressive skills as active readers! Here are some of the things your first grader can do:

Independently read and retell familiar stories.

Notice when a text doesn't make sense, and begins to use strategies such as rereading, predicting, and questioning to understand it.

Read and understand fiction and nonfiction and know the difference between made-up stories and facts.

Predict what will happen next in stories.

Think about and share prior knowledge before reading a nonfiction book.

Discusses how, why, and what-if questions in sharing nonfiction texts.

Answer simple written comprehension questions.

Here are some basic things you can do to boost your child's comprehension skills:
Just 15 minutes each day makes a big difference! Although your first grader may be reading independently, reading aloud allows you to introduce your child to more sophisticated vocabulary and stories, including chapter books. It's also one of the best ways to help children learn about the world and make connections between their own lives and what's in the book - and that helps children see the world with empathy. And last but not least, it's a wonderful time to snuggle up with your child and share the experience of reading and discovery together.

Remember that reading together should spark curiosity, joy, and a desire to explore and learn. Conversations about books should be enjoyable, and not a set of quizzes and questions. As you try some of the activities listed below, remember to keep it light and lively for your child.

Sharing family stories out loud and listening to audiobooks are wonderful ways to expose your child to language, how stories are built, and knowledge about the world.

There are so many great nonfiction and informational books for very young kids (such as the popular DK Eyewitness series and National Geographic series). Try to include some of these during your next trip to the public library. Children love learning about the real world and are proud to share what they know!

Even a walk around the neighborhood or a trip to the grocery store can be a rich learning experience for young children. On a walk, your child may watch what's going on at a construction site, and then be able to connect it to stories about building and the big machines that make it happen - bulldozers, cranes, cement mixers, and more. These personal connections help children connect what they read with what they know - a powerful way to build comprehension skills!

Try these comprehension activities at home

"I predict ..."

When you sit down for a read aloud, look at the book's cover together. Ask, "What do you think this book might be about? Why? Can you make some predictions?" Guide your child through the pages, discuss the pictures, and brainstorm what might happen in the story. Talk about any personal experiences your child may have that relate to the story.

Five-finger retell

After reading a story together, have your child tell you five things about the story, using her fingers to talk about each one:

1. Characters: who was in the story?

2. Setting: where did the story take place?

3. Events: what happened in the story?

4. End: how did the story end?

5. Favorite character or part of the story

Active reading

Model active reading when you read with your child. Talk about what's happening as you're reading. Stop and discuss any interesting or tricky vocabulary words. Help your child make pictures of the story in his mind. Ask your child, "What just happened here? How do you think that character feels? Have you ever felt like that? What do you think will happen next?" Not only will this develop your child's comprehension, but critical thinking skills as well.

Mind movies

When you come to a descriptive passage in a book, have your child close her eyes and create a mental movie of the scene. Encourage her to use all five senses. Read the passage over together, looking for details that bring the scene to life. Ask questions like, "How do you know it was a hot day? Which words help you understand that the child was lonely?"

Tell me about it

After a read aloud, one of the best and easiest ways to check for understanding is to ask your child to summarize what the book was about in their own words. You can ask a question or two to help your child clarify her thinking or to add more detail.

Think alouds

Connect the book to your child's own life experience. For example, A River Dream: "This book reminds me of the time my father took me fishing. Do you remember the time we went fishing?"

Connect the book to other books they have read. For example, Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters: "This story reminds me of Cinderella. Both stories are about sisters. Do you know any other stories about nice and mean sisters? Let's keep reading to find out other ways the stories are similar."

Connect the book to big ideas/lessons. For example, Stellaluna: "This story helps me understand that we are all the same in many ways, but it's our differences that make us special."

Wordless

Wordless picture books provide your child with practice using clues to create meaning. There are no wrong stories with wordless picture books, only variations based on what the "reader" sees and puts together. Rosie's Walk, Good Dog, Carl, and Beaver Is Lost are all interesting and fun wordless picture books to explore. Find more wordless books on BookFinder.

Map this book!

Draw a map of the book's setting, and be sure to include the places where the main action happens!

Beginning-middle-end

This is a great way to see if your child understands the main parts of a story. After reading a book together, give your child three sheets of paper, with "beginning" on one sheet, "middle" on the second sheet, and "end" on the third sheet. Ask your child to think about the three parts of the story, and then draw what happened on each on the sheets. Arrange the sheets in order, left to right. What happens if you re-arrange the sheets? Does the story still make sense?

Words, words, words

Be sure to include books with rich vocabulary in your read alouds and call attention to interesting words and phrases from the story. This may include repeated phrases or idioms (such as "get cold feet" or "I'm all ears"). Offer a kid-friendly definition and connect the new word or phrase to something your child already knows.Talk about how the author used language or words to make the text interesting, informative, funny, or sad.

Illustrated timelines

After reading a story, have your child create an illustrated timeline of events from the story. Tape together five sheets of paper along the 8-1/2-inch side to create one very wide sheet that is 55 inches X 8-1/2 inches. To help plan the timeline, your child can add numbers that mark important points of the story. Then it's time to fill in the sequence of events with words and pictures. Once the timeline is complete, ask your child to re-tell the story - acting it out is okay, too! Variation: Create the timeline using Post-Its on a wall or outside using sidewalk chalk.

Talk show

Set up a talk show set with two chairs facing each other. If you like, make two microphones out of paper tubes or other craft supplies. You are the host and your child is a character from the book. Ask questions about the character, such as who you are, why you are important to the story, what happened to you in the story, what is the craziest interaction you had with another character, etc. Then switch roles!

Book trailer

Using a cell phone camera or other recording device, make a short video of your child talking about about why he recommends this book. Encourage your child to show the book cover and some of the inside pages when talking about a certain character or action sequence. Share the book trailer with family and friends!

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Comprehension: Activities for Your First Grader

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First graders are quickly developing impressive skills as active readers! Here are some of the things your first grader can do: Independently read and retell familiar stories. Notice when a text doesn't make sense, and begins to use strategies such as rereading, predicting, and questioning to understand it.