Parents as teachers:
Children learn best by doing things — and they love doing things with you! Reading together will help your baby:

• Grow in confidence
• Grow in imagination.
• Get ready for school, and succeed in school.

Sharing books with your baby or toddler...

• Is enjoyable!
• Teaches your baby to talk and listen.
• Teaches your baby to think and understand.
• Helps your baby be aware of the world.
• Boosts brain development.
• Gets your child ready to read by herself or himself.

When to share books:

• Begin when your child is born.
• Set aside a special time each day, such as nap time, bedtime, or after meals.
• Share a book with your baby every day. Twenty minutes is ideal, but even just a few minutes will make a difference.
• Share books when you both need some quiet time.
• Bring a book when you know you’ll be waiting; at the doctor’s office, bus stop, out to dinner, etc.
• Find books that connect to something in real life, for example: dogs barking, going to the zoo, fire trucks.

How to share books:

• Turn off distractions — television, radio or stereo.
• Have your child pick the books to read.
• Re-read your child’s favorite books whenever asked.
• Hold your baby in your lap; show your baby the book.
• Interact with the book and your baby: point to pictures, ask your child to point out objects in the pictures, talk together about the story, pictures, or the book. (“Look what’s on the back cover!”)
• Point to the pictures or words as you read, or ask your child to point out objects in the pictures.
• Read aloud in your most dramatic voice.
• Let your baby play with the book if he or she wants to.
• Stop when your baby loses interest or gets upset. Try again later.

Even when you’re not reading:

• Talk with your baby about what is going on around you.
• When your baby or toddler “talks” to you, listen carefully, and answer. Don’t worry if you misunderstood!
• Speak in the language most comfortable for you.
• Tell your child stories.
• Encourage your toddler to tell you stories. Listen closely and ask questions about the stories.
• Tell your child nursery rhymes or make up rhymes.
• Sing songs to your baby or toddler.
• Have the alphabet available to play with in blocks, magnets, foam shapes, or pasta.

Most Importantly: Have Fun!

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Help Your Preschooler Get Ready to Read

Oakland Public Library Children’s Services Department

Reading Together:
Reading to your children helps them become good readers and succeed in school. Here’s how to help:

• Read to your child as much as possible, at least 20 minutes a day.
• Be a reader, and have lots of reading material in your house.
• Choose books you and your child will enjoy.
• Find a quiet, cozy place away from other distractions such as T.V.
• Let your child look at the book and ask questions before reading.
• Act out feelings as you read: sad, happy, silly, etc. It gets easier the more you do it!
• Ask questions about the story and invite your child to ask them, too.
• Read the same book again and again if your child wants to.
• Visit the library as a family at least once a month and take your child to story times as often as possible.

Some activities that support reading:
Listening, speaking, reading and writing are connected. Here are some suggestions that will help your children develop these skills:

• Talk with your children often ; you are teaching them new words. For example: Describe an orange as you peel it: “This orange is round, shiny, juicy; it’s a citrus fruit; the peel is thick.”
• Ask your children questions ; you are teaching them to think. For example: “What did the ladybug say in the story?” “What did you have for a snack today?”

3. Play word games with your children ; you are teaching them that words are fun. For example:

• “I’m thinking of a big pig! It’s a big pig wearing a wig! The big pig’s wig looks like a fig!”
• “Willaby, wallaby, wee, an elephant sat on me. Willaby, wallaby, woo, I don’t know what to do!”
• “Nicky, nicky, bo-bicky, banana-fana fo-ficky, me, my, mo micky, Nicky.” This is a traditional rhyme, where you put your name in place of “Nicky”, then make the rest rhyme: Emma, emma, bo-bemma, banana-fana fo-femma, Emma.”

4. Point out words and letters you see every day ; you are teaching your children to recognize words in the environment. For example:

• “I see the word milk right here!” “Look, there is the exit.”
• “Mmm, milk starts with M.” “There’s a B sound in baby. (or bat, or bubble)” “There’s a T sound in cat, out, boot.”

5. Write stories with your children ; you are teaching them that they can create a story with words, and that stories can change or grow. For example:

• Write your child’s words, then let him or her illustrate the story.
• Kids sometimes like to act out a story, with dress-up clothes or with dolls or action figures. Ask them if they’d like to write it down.

Most Importantly: Have Fun!

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Help Your Kindergartener Get Ready to Read

Oakland Public Library Children’s Services Department

The skills you teach your kindergarten-age children now will help them become good readers for the rest of their lives!

Telling Stories — Being able to describe things and to tell stories .

• Listen attentively to your child when he or she talks.
• Ask your child to tell you about something that happened or about a picture he or she drew.
• Choose a book that your child already knows, and let your child tell you the story while you listen. Ask questions.
• Talk about something your child has done or seen that’s like something in a book you are reading.

Learning the Alphabet — Knowing letters are different from one another, knowing their names and sounds.

• Teach your child to write his or her name.
• Create letters from clay or paper or pebbles.
• Point out letters on signs, labels, or when reading books together.
• Write words that interest your child, and make words with refrigerator magnet letters.

Handling Books and Print — Noticing print, handling books, and knowing how to follow the words on a page.

• Read aloud every day and everywhere, from everything!
• Let your child turn the pages, hold the book, and point out words on the page.

Developing Vocabulary — Knowing the names of things.

• Tell stories together.
• Talk about the things around you.
• Add detail to what your child tells you.
• Speak in any language that is comfortable to you.
• Read with your child every day and talk about the story and the pictures.

Using Phonics — Being able to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words.

• Say two words, and ask if they rhyme.
• Play games with words, for example: “What word would we have if we took the ‘buh’ sound away from the word ‘bat’?” or: “If fisherman is ‘fisher’ plus ‘man’, what about ‘rainbow’?”
• Say rhymes and make up your own silly rhymes together.
• Sing songs, or read poetry together. Make up your own!
• Sing, speak, and read in any language that is comfortable to you.

Continuing Interest — Being interested in and enjoying books at every level and for different purposes.

• Make book-sharing time a special time of closeness between you and your child.
• Let your child see you reading books, magazines, signs, instructions, etcetera, for fun but also
• Make it a habit to visit your public library often.

The library can help, too!
The library has programs and books to support children’s development of pre-reading skills and to provide ideas for parents. Your librarian can suggest books for you and your child. Ask about library programs that you and your child can enjoy together.

The most important part is that you enjoy reading together!

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Help Your Child Learn to Read
Home learning instructions for parents or tutors

Oakland Public Library Children’s Services Department

Reading should be pleasurable and fun. This is a guide to help adults support a child's independent reading and to make it enjoyable.

Choosing books:
Choose books that match the child's interest and appeal to the child's sense of humor, excitement and enjoyment.

Let your child select books.

Accept books that are easier, to improve fluency.

Limit choices if the last book was frustrating. Look for:

• short words
• white space around words
• repetition or rhyming
• drama or action
• familiar or interesting topics

Re-read favorite books.

Collect books:

• Visit the library together: Choose a special place to keep library books, such as a basket or shelf.
• Buy books at used book stores, garage sales, flea markets or new book stores.
• Swap books with friends or relatives.
• Make your own books! (See “Fun Ideas for Brand-New Readers” booklet.)
• Keep a variety of books: different reading levels, genres and styles.

Find "just right books":

• Appealing in concept and/or pictures.
• Engaging story right up to the end.
• Not too difficult. (See “Correcting Mistakes”, page 5.)

Setting:
Be sure to hold the book so your child can see it well.
Ideally, your place for reading should be:

• Comfortable.
• Relaxed.
• Well-lit.
• Quiet.

Set aside about 15 to 30 minutes.
Keep it a loving time together.

Getting started:
Talk about the book before you start, using the title and cover illustration — to provide context and reading clues.

Describe your observation of the "Who, What and Where" of the story. Guess what the story is about together.

• “It looks like a story about a dog.”
• “I see two kids on bikes.”

Relate it to child's experience in life or in books.

• “Hey, this kid has a baby sister just like you!”
• “Didn’t we read a story about this silly alligator?”

Ask an open-ended question, such as:

• “I wonder what will happen?”
• “What do you think this person is doing?”
• “What if you had wings like this butterfly?”

Listening and helping when asked:
Invite your child to read the book aloud to you.
Here are the key practices:

Listening:

• Listen attentively.
• Practice being non-judgmental.
• Appreciate skills and/or progress.

Wait to help until asked:

• Let your child say when help is needed.
• When asked for help, first, ask: "Do you want to try it?" and wait, counting silently to 5: 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 .
• Next, suggest these steps to your child, waiting between each one for your child to absorb the idea:
  • “Skip this word and finish reading the sentence.”
  • “Look at the picture for clues about the word.”
  • “Use the first letter sound to guess the word.”
  • Talk about the story, reminding your child about vocabulary or context, to give the word meaning.
  • Supply the correct word for your child.
  • Take turns reading.
  • Read the entire book to your child.

Correcting mistakes:

• Let your child try.
• Encourage your child to try to figure it out.
• Reinforce even the smallest attempt with encouragement.
• Do not get discouraged yourself. Model a positive attitude.
• Do not interrupt to correct a little mistake.
• If your child stops reading, use ideas above for "Wait to help until asked."
• If a child makes more than 5 errors in 50 words or fewer, the book is too difficult. Limit choices to easier books next time you read together.

Encouragement:
Remember to praise specific actions, reinforce all attempts, and encourage in your own way. Examples:

• “I heard how you were sounding out each letter.”
• “You looked at the picture to get a clue.”
• “That was a good guess.”
• “You noticed it didn’t make sense, and you fixed it!”
• “The word you said is very close in sound (or meaning) to the word written here.”
• “You know some hard words!”

Take time during or after reading to reflect on the book, or plan to read more (or less!) by the same author or on the same topic.

Not yet ready to read alone?

Try not to feel impatient if your child doesn’t feel ready to try reading on his or her own. You will know by your child’s behavior that it’s not time yet. Instead:

Read the book aloud to your child. OR:

Take turns in shared reading.

Read the story straight through. OR:

Before, during or after reading, ask your child:

• to look for something in words or pictures.
• to visualize the images in the story.
• to guess what will happen.
• to give comments or opinions.

Reading with feeling and voicing your reactions to the story help convey deeper meaning.

Keep reading aloud to your child!

Even adults enjoy listening to books read aloud. Your child may understand more when listening than when reading alone, at first. This special time together can lead to interesting conversations that connect reading to other activities and people in your lives.

Your relaxed attitude and interest will bridge the time between loving to hear people read and loving to read independently.

If you feel yourself getting bored with the stories your child chooses, take a trip to the Library together and find some books in a different area: Picture books, Fairy tales, Poetry, Biographies, Science, Cooking, Jokes, Comic books, Plays, Crafts, Sports, Chapter books...

The most important part is that you enjoy reading together.

Reading suggestions:
New readers series:
These are the easiest books available, from simple to complex:

Rigby PM Starters
Scholastic Bob Books
Children’s Press Rookie Reader
Wright Group/McGraw-Hill Sunshine/Story Box
Scott Foresman Little Celebrations
Candlewick Brand New Readers
Harcourt’s Green Light Reader
Modern Curriculum Press Beginning to Read Series
Millbrook’s Real Kids Readers
Harper Collins My First I Can Read Books
Random House Beginner Books
Scholastic Hello Reader
Viking Easy-to-Read

Remember: If it’s interesting, it’s easier to read. Look beyond this list for authors, illustrators or topics that appeal to you.

Books for adults:

The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease
Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever by Mem Fox
The Between the Lions Book for Parents : Everything You Need to Know to Help Your Child Learn to Read by Linda K. Rath
How to Get Your Child to Love Reading by Esme Raji Codell
Bridges to Reading : What to Do When You Suspect Your Child Has a Reading Problem by The Schwab Foundation for Learning

Some websites to explore:
www.rif.org Reading is Fundamental
www.nea.org National Education Association
www.famlit.org National Center for Family Literacy

Getting more ideas:

Your child’s teachers may have specific observations and suggestions about your child’s learning style and reading habits. A conversation with the teacher will help both of you support your child better in learning to read on his or her own.

Your local librarian will be familiar with books that are available. Ask your librarian for a list of books for you to enjoy reading together. Stop by your library for inspiration, suggestions, resources and a batch of books to get started.

And...read more yourself!

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Updated 10/05