6 Steps to Teach Your Kids to Read This Back to School Season

Kids don’t magically become excellent readers overnight. They also aren’t going to improve at reading if they feel stressed or compared to others. Children learn to read when there is someone patient enough to help them connect the dots. Letters, sounds, words, and stories become exciting to learn instead of overwhelming.

Back to school season is the perfect time to start building those habits. Kids are getting into the groove of learning again, so it’s easier to add simple reading habits they can take with them into the classroom.

If you want your child to have a strong start in reading this year, these six simple steps can help them build confidence before school starts and well into their educational journey.

6 Simple Steps to Teach Your Kids to Read

1. Make Reading Part of Your Daily Routine

A lot of parents make the mistake of treating reading like a test. Children can tell the difference between reading for fun as a family and sitting down to do “reading homework.” When kids are constantly corrected as they read, they will eventually associate books with negative feelings.

Make reading a part of your regular routine. It doesn’t matter if it’s fifteen minutes or twenty minutes each night. What matters is that you’re consistent. Read together before bed, after dinner, or on quiet afternoons. Help your child build a habit of reading that will last them for years by letting them experience the joy of reading.

As you’re reading with your child, let your excitement over books be contagious. Laugh at silly stories. Ask about what’s happening with different characters. Cheer your child on when they read a sentence without needing any help. This not only builds reading comprehension but allows your child to feel that reading is enjoyable. Books aren’t something to be scared of.

2. Start With Books That Match Their Level

I see parents sabotage their child’s confidence every time they give them a book that’s too difficult. Pushing your child is good, but if they feel like they can’t read any part of the book, they will grow frustrated. Soon they believe they are just “bad at reading.”

Find books that challenge your child without overwhelming them. They should be able to sound out or recognize most of the words with only a few exceptions. Picture books, beginner readers, rhyming books, and books with a lot of pictures are great places to start.

As your child gains confidence, you can slowly introduce more challenging books.

Try to remember that children want to get better at reading. Every book they finish gives your child more confidence that, yes, they can improve at reading.

3. Teach Letter Sounds Before Long Words

I’ve seen kids who can perfectly recite the alphabet struggle to read a simple sentence. Just because they know the letters A, B, and C doesn’t mean they know they sound like “ah,” “buh,” and “kuh.”

Start by teaching your child the different sounds each letter makes. You can do this while your child is playing, eating breakfast, or getting dressed. Point to letters you see around you and ask your child what sound that letter makes. Don’t force lessons. Teach your child letters through play.

After they’ve grasped the different sounds, start helping them read simple words. Cat. Dog. Sun. Hat. Every word they sound out correctly is a moment to celebrate. Don’t be afraid to praise your child when they do well.

4. Read With Your Child Instead of Testing Them

This goes hand in hand with my last point. Some children develop test anxiety with reading because they feel like they’re being quizzed every time they pick up a book. Parents will pause after every word to correct their child.

Of course, teaching your child to pronounce words correctly is important. However, if you pause too much, your child will grow afraid to even try reading.

Instead, sit with your child while they read. Take turns reading paragraphs or pages. Help them through a word they might not know. Try and keep reading at a steady pace so your child can enjoy the story instead of feeling stuck on one word.

You’ll also grow closer to your child while reading with them. Your child will start to connect reading with feeling safe, loved, and comfortable. Emotionally, this can go a long way when trying to motivate your child to read.

5. Turn Everyday Situations Into Reading Lessons

Parents can do a lot to help their child read by showing them that reading isn’t limited to storybooks. Words are everywhere. Pulling your child out of the house for a few minutes is enough to give them hours of reading practice. Kids learn a lot by seeing that reading is a useful skill they will use their entire life.

While you’re out and about or running errands, have your child read anything they can. Signs, grocery lists, restaurant menus, cereal boxes, clothing tags, birthday cards, or text messages on your phone. Ask your child questions like, “Can you find the word ___ on this sign?” or “What does this word say?”

These mini lessons won’t take long, but they plant a curiosity in your child that reading is fun and exciting. It also builds on the reading skills you’re teaching them at home.

You can even encourage your child to write as well. Let them write grocery lists, label their drawings, or help you write notes around the house. Writing and reading complement each other, and the more your child practices recognizing and writing words, the quicker their confidence will grow.

6. Celebrate Small Victories

Every child learns to read at their own pace. Some kids may pick up words quickly. Other children might need more repetition before it clicks. Don’t compare your child to other students, siblings, or family friends. All kids are unique and will learn at different times.

Praise your child for trying. If they sound out a word you know is difficult or finally finish that book they’ve been trying to read, give them that extra praise they deserve. Rewards create confidence, and confident kids are more willing to try harder.

This also applies to when your child makes mistakes. Reading is a marathon, not a sprint. Your child will not learn how to read overnight. By staying calm when your child makes mistakes, you’re teaching them that it’s okay to get something wrong. Kids who learn to read with confidence end up becoming kids who aren’t afraid to fail at school.

Conclusion

Paying for expensive reading programs or reading to your child for hours each day isn’t the only way to teach them how to read. What’s most important is that you’re reading with your child consistently. Let your child reach a level of confidence with books by allowing them to enjoy reading.

You encourage confidence by letting your child grow their reading routine at home. By reading as a part of their daily routine, picking books that suit their reading level, teaching them phonics before expecting them to read long books, reading with your child versus overseeing them, taking every opportunity to read as a lesson, and celebrating your child’s progress along the way, you are setting your child up for success not just this school year, but for years to come.

Remember, your goals as a parent are not to have the best reader in the class. Your goal is to raise a child who loves reading. Back to school confidence is something your child can carry with them long after the season ends.

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6 Simple Steps to Teach Your Kids to Read This Back to School Season