Enrich your kids’ reading skills
Help your child crack the reading code with online resources
By Ilona Biro
One of the most thrilling moments in any parent’s life comes when a child reads his or her first words. For Penelope St-Laurent of Kingston, N.S., her son Alex’s sudden ability to recognize words even before his third birthday seemed to come out of the blue.
In hindsight, St-Laurent realized that it was the many hours she’d spent with her son reading books, using Reader Rabbit software and exploring the wider world of words which helped him to finally “crack the code” to reading magic.
Reading skill options
“Kids learn to read by being exposed to a wide variety of things — books, software, even store signs,” says St-Laurent, whose son was reading books by the age of five.
The reading experts agree. “Anything you can do to expose children to language in a meaningful way will contribute to their learning how to read,” says Linda Cameron, a professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. “That can be magnetic letters on the fridge, writing letters to Santa or researching questions on the Ask.com site.”
Both online reading programs and reading software provide valuable methods of helping kids learn to read. The entertainment factor and “gee whiz” element of interactive programs can work wonders on kids, particularly more reluctant readers.
Not all computer reading programs are equal, however, and it’s important to find the right online resources and software to guide your child on the road to reading. “If it looks like a textbook, avoid it,” says Cameron. “Children should be able to click and see things come alive on the screen. They need to be excited about the process and motivated to learn.”
Determine if a book is appropriate
Beginning readers use a number of strategies to try to decode words. Context, pictures and word chunks are all valuable clues for figuring out what an unfamiliar word might be. Look for word play and rhyme schemes as well as visual and narrative cues in reading programs to ensure kids get adequate support when tackling this major milestone.
Parents should also take different learning styles into account, explains Janette Pelletier, a professor at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Child Study. “Some children may rely on picture cues when they need sound cues, and other children may use sound cues only, but don’t use meaning cues or grammar cues.”
In order to accommodate all types of learners, look for reading programs that use
- rhythm and rhyme
- fill-in-the-blank activities
- pictures to help predict words and phrases
- a connection to things children are already familiar with
- repeated or cumulative word-family phrases
- auditory support and narrative cues
- a fun, playful approach that engages children’s interest and makes them want to click
Cameron warns against programs that focus solely on phonics. “Single letters and sounds aren’t helpful when kids try to sound out words like honesty or machine,” she notes. “What does work is helping kids learn prefixes, suffixes, common words and word families.” Think Cat in the Hat, with its loony characters, crazy scenarios and repetitive rhyming schemes and you’ll be on the right track.
Learn-to-read web sites
Starfall is a free web site that helps children learn to read using a highly entertaining four-step process. Kids and parents alike love the interactive stories, games, poems, movies, wacky tunes and activities.
Reading A-Z is an award-winning subscription-based learning system that delivers downloadable, printable books and other materials over the Internet. The advantage of being online is that the site is constantly being updated with new books, lesson plans and other resources. The site has thousands of teaching materials. It’s also available in French and Spanish.
PrimaryGames has lots of word and spelling games. Choose the Language Arts tab at the top of the page.
Between the Lions from PBS Kids is a popular show that focuses on learning to read and expanding one’s vocabulary. Its irreverent approach to learning is popular with kids who will enjoy the web site’s stories and games.
Words and Pictures is a great site from the British Broadcasting Corporation. Choose activities from the menu on the left, such as Consonant Clusters, High Frequency Words and Long Vowel Sounds.
Clifford the Big Red Dog is popular with kids. This site provides a number of stories and games all based on a Clifford theme.
Learn-to-read software
Reader Rabbit is a pioneer in reading software programs, winning more than 175 awards and accolades since 1993. It’s also the most popular software used by kindergarten to Grade 6 teachers. The Reader Rabbit I Can Read program offers over 100 phonics, word recognition and comprehension lessons, with more than 1,000 practice words.
JumpStart is another tried and true software program that builds academic skills such as mathematics, science, art and reading for toddlers up to Grade 5. More than 50 skills are taught with seven learning styles represented. Reading skills include phonics, consonants, blends, syllables, vocabulary and reading comprehension. JumpStart also features a separate phonics program.
To learn more about the different kinds of reading software available, consult sites such as SuperKids and Review Corner which have independent reviews of popular programs.
