Reading Advice for Parents

Useful phonic video to support the correct pronunciation of sounds Please watch! This is a really helpful video especially if phonics is new to you! It is really important that children do not add the 'uh' sound onto the end of sounds, e.g. instead of saying 'mmm' some children will say 'muh'. This will hinder your child's phonic development.

How often should I read with my child?

The reading book will be sent home each night, we ask that you read it at home at least 4 times across the week (this could be part of the book or the whole book). Remember that we don't want this to replace all reading, trips to the library, books off the shelf and favourite rereads are all incredibly important when building reading skills. Children love to hear their loved ones reading to them! Reading with your child is so important to prepare them to succeed as a reader. We ask that you bring the reading book to school each day. Books will be changed every Monday ready for the week ahead.

Why do we ask you to reread the books with your child?

We want the children to become confident and fluent readers. By reading the book more than once, children have the opportunity to build on different skills with each read. Often with the first read, children are decoding, reading tricky words and taking in the main events of the story. We also want the children to develop other reading skills...

Develop an understanding of vocabulary in the book.
Link what they read and hear to their own experiences.
Become familiar with the story.
Being able to sequence, discuss and answer questions.
Recognise predictable patterns.
Make a prediction.
Checking that the text makes sense by rereading.
Make inferences based on what is being said, done and from the illustration.
Clear understanding of the text.
Expressing their opinion of what they are reading.

There are lots of skills to build on and by supporting fluent readers, children are more confident to build on these complex skills!

Suggested reading list for Reception Children

Letter about reading in Year R and Year 1

reading-scheme-book.doc

Reading for Pleasure

Research has shown that reading for pleasure can make a huge difference to children - not only academically (even in subjects like maths) but also socially and emotionally. There are lots of different ways to support children with reading for pleasure. It is important that they see you enjoying reading... there is your excuse to curl up with a cup of tea and enjoy a good book! You are modelling positive reading behaviours. You also do this in the way that you speak about reading, share your positive experiences of reading. Visit the library or bookshops together and enjoy browsing the wealth of books.

We all enjoy different genres of books and so it is important to introduce your children a wide variety of rich and inspiring books (see below for ideas). But don't worry if your child keeps asking for the same book, they are passionate and developing their understanding. Read aloud to your child, they love to hear you creating the characters with your voice and so have fun together. Think about where you love to read - is it in bed, on the sofa, in a den? Create a fun reading space together. It is important to make time for reading, it is something fun to do together with incredible benefits!

The book trust has put together some advice for parents who are struggling to ignite the passion for reading in their child (link below)...