Ready for School gives reading development tips

Parents, you can make a huge difference in helping your young child get ready for school. This column features fun activities you can do at home. Together we build school success!

Activities to Support Reading Development

Fun Activities:
• Repeat rhyming songs and poems, identify rhymes, and generate rhyming words when playing a rhyming game
• Recognize the common sounds at the beginning of a series of words (alliteration: bag, ball and bug begin with "b.")
• Isolate the beginning sounds in familiar words
• Choose books to read aloud that focus on sounds, rhyming, and alliteration
• Have children sing or say a familiar nursery rhyme or song. Repeat it several times, raising your voice on words that rhyme. Then have your child join in, saying the rhyming words with you
• Invite your child to make up new verses of familiar songs or rhymes by changing the beginning sounds of words
Examples:
• Let's say "Humpty Dumpty" again, but this time I want you to make it "Lumpty Gumpty."
• Play word games with children. When possible, use children's names in the games
• How many words can you say that rhyme with clock?
• Which of these words rhyme: snow, lamb and go?
• Ask your child what word rhymes with his/her name.

Understanding Letters:
• Match letters in the alphabet with letters in his/her own name
•Hang a chart of the ABC s in a place where your child plays.
•Encourage your child to use the chart to trace letters he/she wants to learn or write.
•Point to the letters and sing or say the alphabet.
• Help your child learn the letters that spell their own name first.
• If they are ready to learn more letters use letters that make familiar or interesting words to your child.
• Place magnetic plastic letters that spell your child's name or other important words on your refrigerator.
• Play a game by mixing the letters up, ask your child to put them in order to spell the child's name.

Information in this column is adapted from "Getting Kids Ready for Kindergarten" published by Early Childhood & Family Services. It's available on line at the following url: www.mpls.k12.mn.us/departments/tis (Click on "School Readiness")

ECFE is Early Childhood Family Education, a program within Minneapolis Public Schools. Parents may register and join an ECFE class. Spring classes begin March 8 and continue through June 8. For more information find ECFE online at: www.mpls.k12.mn.us/ecfe or call 612-668-3927.

NEW - ECFE on TV! Catch an ECFE program every Wednesday at 7 pm on Mpls. Cable ch.15.

The ability to notice and work with sounds in language is to begin to understand the sounds and symbols needed for reading. Encourage your child to notice that words begin or end with the same sound, such as: bag, ball and bug. Let them know that words can rhyme; and that sentences are made up of separate words. Research shows that how quickly children learn to read often depends on how much "word awareness" they have when they begin kindergarten.