To teach reading is to put in sustained effort and gain rewards as a student and teacher. The first three years of elementary school can be very stressful for students who are a bit behind on their reading development. Sight words, simple sentences, and decodable books either picture or chapter allow kids to get the practice they need in a focused manner. By building student confidence, you are helping them become confident and fluent readers. We have to build fluency before we can expect students to build their reading comprehension skills. As a teacher, I love decodable books. They offer practice in class and at home. They are designed to provide exposure and build writing skills as well as reading skills. Chapter books allow students to proceed to the next level, away from pictures which while helpful for inferencing can serve as a distraction for students needing to focus on decoding words.
Thankfully, in recent years, the amount of decodable book resources has grown giving teachers and parents options.
FREE Decodable Books:
FREE First Sight Word Sentences Pack:
Free High Frequency Word Sentences FREEBIE
This isn’t my first post about teaching reading and I have a sense not the last. Every teacher a reading teacher – has been a mantra of teachers everywhere. We all teaching reading, no matter the grade or subject that we teach at the time. Reading is the most important skill that we teach our kids. From reading comprehension to analyzing math questions, it all comes down to reading. For anyone trying to help their child learn to read or figure out the science behind reading progression, Coursera is offering a free course: “Supporting children with difficulties in reading and writing“. It’s informative and will make a huge difference whether you are a parent or a teacher.
Kids Read 