How to Teach Your Kids to Read and Love It!

Reading Stages for Kids

Reading is a skill that comes with age and practice. Typically, most children learn to read on their own in some capacity sometime between kindergarten and second grade. Some kids do take longer than others, and some children may have learning disabilities that can affect when and how well they read, but no matter what, there are several things that you can do to get kids jumpstarted when it comes to reading.

Just because babies and toddlers cannot read yet does not mean that you shouldn’t buy them books! Buying books can be incredibly beneficial to children and will help acquaint them with the book itself as an object with some importance in the world around them. This is why it is important to have books around from the time that children are first born. Baby books are designed to entice children with bright, colorful and engaging pictures and consist of pages constructed of thick cardboard materials that are meant to be played around with and explored. Having your baby look at the images in these books, flip through and even chew on the pages will do a lot for your child when it comes to getting them familiar with books in the first place.

Reading to your child helps, too. You can even start doing so when they are still in the womb. The act of looking through a book, reading aloud and relaying a story will help familiarize children with storytelling and can help bolster their communication skills, too. Kids learn by example and will not only develop an interest in books when you read to them but they can develop key speaking and enunciation skills from hearing you read aloud as well.

Playing games helps too! Kids love learning games and teaching children their letters can help acquaint them with the very letters that they will later see form words. Sound out letters and have your children repeat after you. Ask them to point out letters everywhere, whether it is in a book you are reading or on the box of their breakfast cereal. Once they get their letters down, you can begin playing and quizzing them by sounding out sequential letters and even words!

Familiarizing your children with letters, words and books is a great way to get them ready for school. Once they are in a place where learning is their goal, they will be able to learn to read and grasp concepts much more easily, especially since they are already familiar with the building blocks that they need.

KD Novelties provides personalized kids books for all ages. Get your little one their very own special book made just for them, either as an infant, pre-reader through intermediate reading level. Each book is sure to bring memories to last a lifetime.

How to Measure Your Child’s Reading Level before Kindergarten

Personalized Books for Kids
Education doesn’t have to stay in the classroom. For kids, learning should begin at home and there are plenty of things that parents can do to help foster their kids’ education. Reading plays an integral part in academic success and as a parent; you should make sure that your child is at the appropriate reading level throughout their childhood. This should begin as early as infancy through preschool.
Kids may not be able to read fully by the time they are preschool age, which is typically between the ages of 3 and 4, but children should still be familiar with the concept and all of its moving parts by the time they reach pre-school/kindergarten at ages 4-5. The following are helpful signs to see what category your child falls into.

Pre-Reader (typically from ages 2 to 4)
  1. They have been exposed to books and like to hear them read, but they don’t comprehend that the pages have words and that the words tell a story
  2. Can’t identify any letters or words on the pages but shows an interest in wanting to learn the alphabet
  3. They like to play with books as toys but don’t understand that books contain stories
  4. They love the bright colors and illustrations found in the books but do not understand that the pictures depict a story
  5. Pretends to write
  6. Enjoys looking through books on their own

Signs of a Beginning Reader (typically from 4 to 6 years)

  1. Recognizes their own name when written
  2. Familiarity with the letters of the alphabet and the sounds they make
  3. Spelling their own name
  4. Needs pictures on each page to help tell the story
  5. Memorizes books and tries to read them over and over
  6. Reads aloud without pausing for punctuation
  7. When not recognizing a word tries to sound it out from the beginning but if not successful, makes up the rest or skips over it.

Wherever the child lacks is where parents need to focus more on, however, we suggest making it fun and turn it into a game.  Kids will learn more and want to learn when they are having fun.  If your child is struggling, there is no need to worry.  You can read with them regularly, play letter based games, sit with them and practice their letters. By continuing to test their skills in a fun way will ultimately help boost their literacy and letter skills.
With that said have you checked out our personalized kids books? Personalized books can be especially helpful for kids who may be reluctant readers or quickly lose interest in books and other educational materials.  When they see their name, they will not only be excited, but they will have a better idea of what their own name looks like and how to spell it!