Dear Parents,
I am excited to have your child in my class this year. I believe that working together with you is a very beneficial way to help your child succeed in second grade. Please let me know if you have any questions and I will be happy to help you. Below are some ideas of how to help your child have a successful year in second grade.
Tips to Help Your Child Become a Better Reader
Most educators now realize that the single most important thing parents can do to ensure their child’s success as a reader is to read to him or her every day. Included below is a list of tips on how to make story time pleasurable and beneficial for both of you.
1. Pick a time when you can devote your full attention to your child. Make this time as pleasurable and comfortable as possible so that your child develops warm feelings for books and reading.
2. Take time to talk about the cover of the book before you start to read. Point out the author and the illustrator. Ask your child to predict what the story is about on the basis of the cover illustration and refer back to those predictions as you read.
3. Help your child connect print to speech by pointing to the words in the text as you read.
4. Try different ways of reading…
Read to your child when he/she is not yet able to read the book on their own. Make sure he/she is following along.
Have your child echo read after you.
Take turns reading each page.
Listen to your child read.
Encourage your child to read part of a book silently and tell you about it.
5. When your child gets stuck on an unfamiliar word:
Wait for a few seconds so the child can think about it.
Suggest that the child look at the illustration for a clue.
Remind your child to look at the first letter, get his/her mouth ready, and make a guess.
After your child has made a guess, cue him/her to reread the sentence to see if the guess makes sense.
6. When your child comes to an exciting part, ask him or her to guess what might happen next, then check to see if the prediction was correct.
7. When your child finishes reading, talk about the story and the illustrations. Tell each other the parts you liked and didn’t like, or what the story reminded you of in your own lives. Take time to retell the story in your own words.
8. Some things you can look and listen for when your child reads:
Was the reading fluent or word-by-word? (By the end of first grade, students should be reading 45-60 words per minute.)
Does your child pay attention to punctuation?
Do the errors make sense? (If so, this shows you that your child understands the story.
After an error, did your child self-correct or keep going?
9. Read your child’s favorite books over and over. Studies show that each time a child listens to the same story; new kinds of learning take place.
10. Build language by talking to your child, visiting interesting places, reading environmental print from the car (signs, labels, etc.), and reading daily! Make weekly visits to the public library and help your child begin establishing his or her own library. Good luck and Happy Reading!!