Reading Strategies and Tips for Improving Reading

Reading Strategies and Tips for Improving Your Reading

A good reader does as many of the following things as possible:

• Sounds out the words slowly while associating letter/sound connections

• Seizes the main idea

• Concentrates on what is being read

• Remembers as much as possible

• Applies what is being read to personal experiences

The Five Finger Rule
While reading with your child, hold up a finger for each word he/she cannot decode. If you are holding up 5 fingers by the end of a hundred-word section, the book is too hard for your child.

How do I determine my child's reading level?
1.  Use the Five Finger Rule
2.  Examine the fluency of the reading. If your child is struggling with reading smoothly, the vocabulary is probably too hard.
3.  Ask questions at the end of each passage. Your child may be able to read on a 5th grade vocabulary level, but do they understand what they are reading?

"What kinds of things should we discuss after reading?"

• You should discuss the five story elements: Characters, Setting, Problem, Solution, and Plot

• You should also make connections to your reading. Connections are reminders of our daily life, books we've read, movies we've seen, or people we know.

• Talk about your likes/dislikes of the book and what you might change if you were the author. Talk about the author's language and phrasing of what was written. Determine meanings of quotes and think of ways to rephrase what the author was trying to say. Summarize the story in your own words.

Some Tips For Reading:
1.  Without reading the words, look through the book and take a "picture walk" to see if you can predict what will happen just by looking at the pictures.

2.  Skim the words before you read them. Do you see any familiar words? Do you see any new words that you can sound out? Write down all the new words you have learned.

3.  Read for comprehension. Make a note of important parts. Write down new vocabulary that you have learned. Re-read ideas that you are not sure you understood.

4.  Retell the story to someone after you have read it, using your own words. Discuss what you have learned.

"What do I do if I come to a word that I don't know?"

1.  Sound out by letters or blends
2.  Break up the word into smaller words
3.  Read past the word. Finish the sentence and go back to see if it makes sense.
4.  Look at the pictures. 

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