It is easy to tell your child that they have done a good job, but an even better response is to tell them what they have done well. If you give them a specific compliment, then they know how to repeat the thing that made them successful. Below you will find suggestions on how to provide specific compliments for your child and avoid that "You have to say that because your my mom/dad/grandparent" remark.
You made it sound like the character was talking.
You made the story sound interesting. It kept me listening!
You made that word sound important.
You sounded (excited, happy, scared) when you read that part.
You made your voice go up and down to show expression.
You used the punctuation marks to add to your expression.
You read the words correctly.
You used what you know about sounds/syllables to help you figure out new words.
You noticed and corrected your mistakes on your own.
You kept your words close together like talking.
You slowed your rate to help you (decode or understand or add meaning).
Your rate was at a pace that will help you understand.
Your eyes were moving ahead on the text.
You read from capitals to punctuation marks.
You sounded smooth and natural like talking.
Your words were close together.
You read smoothly.