First Steps In Growing Successful Readers

In collaboration with Diane Talbot, Spiral Skills Tutoring and Academic Coaching. Diane is a reading, writing, and math specialist in Boulder, Colorado. She works with children and young adults with learning disabilities, as well as gifted and twice-exceptional children.

Ann Mitchell, Castle Rock Online Reading Tutor Ann is an online reading tutor that lives in Castle Rock, Colorado. She is a reading interventionist that works with elementary age students that struggle with reading. Additionally she is in the process of developing a small reading group for busy families. 

Both Diane and Ann share the love of gardening and teaching.

Do you have a garden? If so, does your child help you plant seeds and watch the new seedlings pop their heads out of the soil? First steps in growing successful readers is much like growing a garden. You need to prepare, plant seeds, care and nurture, and finally you have a gorgeous outcome. 

Preparing the ground

Just like preparing to plant a garden, we begin at birth to prepare our kids to read. We do this by talking and listening to our kids, singing and playing games and reading to kids. 

When planting seeds or seedlings, you don’t want to risk frost. Don’t start too early with flashcards or formal phonics.

Check out  3 tips for better reading. 

This will provide some everyday ways to help your child as they are beginning to read those tricky words. 

Planting seeds

You are always planting seeds of the love of literacy. You plant seeds when your kids see you reading and when you read to them. 

As you read together model finger-point reading with them. That means to follow the words with your finger from left to right as you read them. As well as which way to correctly hold and care for their books. Just like we care for our young plants. We need to support them in every stage.

Many parents wonder what type of books they should be looking for as their child begins to read. Just remember the words “Just Right” Even when those vegetables or even flowers look just right when you go to pick them you need to provide extra support as they grow.

Nurturing seedlings

When we nurture our seedlings we need to water, weed and watch them as they grow. When we nurture our beginning readers, read together and when your child is finished with a book, be sure to talk about what happened in the story, and maybe re-read favorite parts. Let them know how proud you are! By sharing a book with a child, you’re sharing the joys and excitement of reading.

When your child begins to notice letters and words around her, let her know how proud you are. When she writes a string of letters (or letter-like symbols) ask her to read what she wrote to you. If she brings you a “word” and asks what it says, show her how to sound it out, even if it doesn’t make sense. Ask her a word she wants to write just work with her to sound it out and write it. If she wants to write dog, ask what the first sound is, you can model pinching out the word, using your thumb and index finger, pinch and say /d/, then thumb and middle finger for /o/ and thumb and ring finger for /g/. Show her how to write the letters that represent each sound. Then go back and read her work. It is important that children learn the sounds before having to write them down. Make sure you model the letters for them. 

Just as we see the growth of our gardens you will definitely she the growth in your readers as long as you nurture and care for them.  

Celebrating The Harvest

“The harvest is my favorite part of gardening”, according to Ann. This is when all of the fruits of your labor have brought success. Whether it is your favorite flowers or a vegetable garden. Most importantly, it may also be that beginning reader that can blend sounds, recognize letters and read words provided on a page.