The parent's role in assisting with IRLA reading at home is essential for reinforcing the literacy skills students are building at home. Your role is to support, encourage, and make reading enjoyable. By doing so, you help build your child's confidence, fluency, and love for reading. Each day your child will be bringing home their IRLA book bag. The bag will contain several leveled books, a skills card for your child's current reading level and a reading log.
HOW CAN I SUPPORT MY CHILD AT HOME?
1.Support Daily Reading Habits
Ensure daily reading time: Encourage your child to read every day for 30 minutes at home. This can look like you reading to your child, your child reading with assistance, your child reading independently, your child practicing power words, or your child practicing letter naming and sound fluency.
Create a quiet, distraction-free space for reading.
Make it part of a routine, such as before bed or after school.
Return your child's IRLA reading book bag daily so new selections can be routinely made and shared at home.
2. Know Your Child's IRLA Level
Check your child's IRLA reading bag for a "Skills Card." This will indicate your child's reading level and learning skills to practice within this level.
Choose books that are "just right" for their level- challenging enough to grow skills but not so hard they get frustrated.
3. Ask the Right Questions
Comprehension skills are as important to becoming a successful reader as decoding skills. Support your child's understanding of what they are reading by asking questions like:
"What's happening in the story?"
"Who are the characters?"
"Can you tell me what that word means?"
"What do you think will happen next?"
"Can you retell me the story in your own words?"
4. Practice Word Attack and Vocabulary Skills
Practice letter naming and letter sounds (automaticity is the goal).
Help sound out new or tricky words.
Talk about word meanings, synonyms and figurative language.
Practice IRLA power words.
5. Encourage Variety
Allow your child to read a mix of fiction and nonfiction within their level.
Visit the library together to explore new books aligned with IRLA.
Access online reading apps: Raz Kids, IXL, ARC Bookshelf, Epic Books for Kids.
5. Track Steps on the Reading Log
Help your child track at home reading using the daily reading log:
1 step = 15 minutes of reading
Goal = 2 home steps per day
To complete the reading log, date, initial and circle one house for every one step of reading completed at home (15 minutes). We will be doing the same at school. The goal is 4 steps (60 minutes) per day: 30 minutes in school and 30 minutes at home. For every 100 steps completed, students receive a medal and have their names announced on the GLP morning announcements!
