Helping your child with reading and writing at home can give him an edge when he goes to school. The one-on-one attention your child gains from your working with him helps aid in reading comprehension and word recognition. Whether you simply try to read to your child a few minutes each day, or you think of interesting and engaging ways to teach about letters, words and sounds, you can help your child with reading and writing a little each day to help him improve at school in a big way.
Step 1
Read aloud to your child each day. Reading is Fundamental notes that reading to your child every day helps improve his recognition and comprehension skills. It can also prepare him to learn about reading and writing in a classroom setting. Make it a daily goal to read to your child for at least 10 minutes each day, and then take time to talk about what you've read and explain any large words your child may not have understood.
Step 2
Engage your child in reading and writing activities. It's easy to think of ways to play small games or participate in activities that will improve reading and writing. You might ask her to spell out signs to you as you drive or have her spot letters on license plates. Even if your child can't read and write at all, doing these things with her can help ready her to learn to read and write.
Step 3
Play computer games that can teach your child about story structure, letters and first words. Free websites like Starfall.com, NickJr.com and PBSKids.org all have easy-to-play games that can help your child develop his reading and writing skills, while still being entertained by his favorite characters.
Step 4
Help your child draw and label a picture of her favorite things, suggests the university of Delaware. As you write the name of each item in the picture, such as house, tree, car or cat, sound out the words as you write. This will help strengthen your child's knowledge of the correlation between objects and their names, basic writing skills and spelling. As your child becomes more confident with her spelling, she can do the labeling.
Step 5
Practice your child's reading and writing daily through everyday activities. Try turning off the sound to your television and turning on the closed captioning device instead. Or, have your child read a recipe to you as you cook in the kitchen. Take every opportunity you can to help your child with his reading and writing, urges Iowa State University. You'll find dozens of ways to improve your child's skills.
