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The National Reading Panel is a U.S. government-appointed group of experts tasked with reviewing and summarizing research on reading instruction. In their report, they identified five essential components of reading that are critical for successful reading development. Let’s define each component and discuss why they were chosen.

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Phonemic awareness and phonics lay the groundwork for decoding and word recognition. Vocabulary knowledge equips learners with the ability to derive meaning from words and interpret the nuances of language usage. Fluency enables efficient and automatic reading, freeing cognitive resources for comprehension. Finally, comprehension ties all these components together, ensuring that the reader can understand and make sense of the text. The panel found that effective reading programs and interventions address each of these components explicitly and systematically.

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If you are a teacher, which reading skill is the most challenging for your students? If you are a parent, which reading skill is the most challenging for your child? 

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1. Rhyming Bingo: Create bingo cards with pictures of things. Say a word, and the children must mark the corresponding picture on their board if it rhymes with the word you said.

Differentiation: For some students, simplify the bingo cards for some students by reducing the number of choices. For students who need more of a challenge, include words on their bingo card with multiple syllables.

2. Sound Puzzle: Create sound puzzles by cutting out pictures of familiar objects and then cutting each picture into three parts, one for each sound in the word. For example, a picture of a “sun,” would be cut up into three pieces. The children will be asked to put the puzzle together, and then say the individual sounds (the presence of three pieces hints at the three sounds in “sun”).

Differentiation: For students with exceptionalities, offer sound puzzles with fewer pieces, containing only two sounds in a word, to make it more manageable. Alternatively, increase the complexity of the puzzles by introducing digraphs.

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1. Sensory Letter Tracing: Fill a shallow tray with sand or shaving cream. The teacher says a sound out loud, and children use their fingers to write the letter that matches the sound.

Differentiation: For students with exceptionalities, provide options for different sensory experiences such as using clay or textured cards for letter tracing. For learners who need extra support, offer letter templates to guide their finger movements.

2. Phonics Fly Swat: Students are divided into teams and given fly swatters. The teacher calls out a sound, and one member from each team rushes to the whiteboard to swat the correct letter that represents the sound. The first person to swat the correct letter gets to keep it. The team with the most letters at the end wins.

Differentiation: For students with mobility challenges, allow them to start closer to the whiteboard or use a finger pointer stick so they can actively participate in the game.

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1. Label Mix-Up: Prepare labels for different classroom objects, but intentionally mislabel some of them. When the children enter the classroom, ask them to identify and correct the mislabeled objects. Encourage the children to explain where the incorrect labels should belong.

Differentiation: Provide verbal prompts or cues to help students who may struggle with reading or recognizing isolated words.

2. Word Scramble: Hand each child a worksheet with sentences and blank spaces. Give them a set of words to cut out. Children need to fill in the blanks by choosing the right word and gluing it in the appropriate space.

Differentiation: Use high-frequency words or sight words for students who are at an earlier stage of vocabulary development, and more challenging vocabulary for advanced learners.

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1. Pyramid: Prepare sets of sentence pyramids on various topics. Pair up students and have them take turns reading their pyramid to a partner. The listening partner circles the matching scene once the reading partner has finished reading the entire sentence. After that, partners rotate roles.

The

The blue

The blue train

The blue train is

The blue train is fast.

Differentiation: For students with exceptionalities, provide sentence pyramids with larger font size. Allow students to choose from topics they are interested in to increase engagement and motivation. For more advanced learners, use longer and more complex sentences to challenge their fluency.

2. Echo Reading: Choose a book to read with your class. I recommend “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!” by Mo Willems. Read a sentence or phrase, and then have the children repeat after you, echoing what you read by mimicking exactly how you read.

Differentiation: Provide visual cues or hand gestures to help students with tracking and pacing while reading. Offer repeated readings of the same sentence to build confidence.

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1. Story Sequencing: Provide the children with picture cards representing different events in a story. Have them arrange the cards in the correct sequential order and verbally retell the story.

Differentiation: For students with exceptionalities, use story cards with fewer events to sequence. For students that need more of a challenge, you could include cards that don't belong to the story.

2. Question Jars: Teacher should prepare five jars – who, what, when, where, and why – each filled with popsicle sticks containing corresponding questions about a book. After reading that book, have the children take turns spinning a wheel to determine which jar they’ll choose a popsicle stick from. After selecting a stick, they should answer the question on it. They can phone a friend for help if they are struggling.

Differentiation: Offer choices or multiple-choice options for students who may find it challenging to generate complete answers independently. Provide additional wait time and allow students to use alternative communication methods, such as drawing, to respond to the questions.

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“I Spy” Sound Hunt - Go on a sound hunt around the house, a walk outside, or at the grocery store. Encourage your child to listen carefully and identify objects or items that start with a specific sound. For example, “I spy something that starts with the /f/ sound.”

Website: Starfall

Why? This activity benefits both young learners with and without exceptionalities. Children without exceptionalities develop sound recognition skills by identifying objects that match those sounds. For those with exceptionalities, the activity offers a multisensory approach, catering to diverse learning styles and encouraging active participation. Starfall offers interactive games and activities that help young learners practice phonemic awareness skills through engaging and colorful activities.

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Create a hopscotch grid with letters instead of numbers. Call out a letter sound and have your child hop to the corresponding letter.

Website: Teach Your Monster to Read

Why? This activity addresses the reading needs of both young learners with and without exceptionalities. Children without exceptionalities can reinforce letter-sound associations through physical movement. For learners with exceptionalities, the kinesthetic nature of the activity provides a tactile learning experience. Teach Your Monster to Read helps kids with phonics by offering interactive games and with tasks that engage children in learning letter sounds and blending them to form words.

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Choose a “Word of the Week,” display it somewhere visible in the house, and discuss its meaning with your child. Throughout the week, use the word in conversations and encourage your child to do the same.

Website: Speech TX

Why? For children without exceptionalities, this activity helps them expand their vocabulary by introducing new words and encouraging their use in everyday contexts. For those with exceptionalities, the consistent exposure to a “Word of the Week” and its meaningful application provides additional reinforcement and practice in a structured manner. Speech TX has plenty of ideas and activities, such as word association games, that parents can use at home to help their kids build a strong vocabulary.

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Set a timer for one minute and have your child read a passage as quickly and accurately as they can. Count the number of words they read correctly in that time and challenge them to beat their record.

Website: Reading Rockets

Why? For children without exceptionalities, timed reading motivates them to improve their reading speed and accuracy over time. For children with exceptionalities, the elements of this activity (the timer, the text) can easily be tailored to suit their abilities. It takes a goal-oriented approach and is measurable. For both, it adds a fun element of competition. Reading Rockets offers a variety of tips, activity ideas, printable resources, and video demonstrations to help parents support their child’s reading development, including fluency.

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Before reading a new book, take a “picture walk” with your child. Look at the cover and flip through the pages, discussing the pictures and making predictions about the story.

Website: PBS Kids

Why? For children without exceptionalities, the picture walk technique enhances their comprehension by activating prior knowledge and sparking predictions. For those with exceptionalities, the visual approach provides additional support in understanding the story’s content and composition. PBS Kids offers a variety of games, activities, and videos based on popular children's shows that promote comprehension skills through storytelling.