Reading in Kindergarten
Learning to read is a lot like making a puzzle. First, you gather all the pieces. Then, you begin fitting them together. With hard work, and patience, soon the pieces are all in place and you have a complete picture.
In kindergarten, teachers and parents can help children learn to read by making sure that all the pieces of the reading puzzle are there and then helping children fit those pieces together.
Some of the pieces children need are:
- An understanding of the concepts of print, or the rules for how books "work"
- Knowledge of how letters and sounds work
- A vocabulary of high-frequency words that children can read automatically
While children are gathering all the pieces, they can also begin learning to fit some of those pieces together. Teachers and parents can help children learn how to fit these pieces together by helping them learn good reading strategies.
Some of the strategies children need to practice are:
- Looking at and talking about the pictures in the book
- Making predictions about the story based on the title and the pictures
- Thinking about what would make sense when trying to figure out an unknown word
- Thinking about what would sound right when trying to figure out an unknown word
There is no one way to teach reading. However, over thirty years of research into how children learn to read has identified these principles and strategies as crucial to reading success.
Every child learns differently and children often excel at one part of reading while struggling with another part. What is important is that teachers and parents are aware of all the pieces that go into making the complete reading picture and help children develop in all those areas.
Like any other skill, children need practice to be successful readers, so get out there and READ!
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