It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! The holidays are a great time to incorporate activities which can promote your child’s reading fluency, as discussed in a recent continuing education course offered by Dr. Shari Robertson. Reading fluency simply refers to three parts of reading:
- How quickly your child reads
- How accurate they are- are they reading the right word?
- How does it sound- is it flat and choppy or does your child use lots of expression and sound “smooth”?
There are several ways you can help your child become a more fluent reader. First, fluency can be promoted by repeated readings. The holidays are a perfect time for this- you and your child can share the same story each week, year after year. Simply read it together several times. Reading these classic stories together is a great tradition, with each child picking a favorite book. Another way to promote reading fluency is simply adding lots of expression while reading the story. Try using different voices for characters or using extra stress for special words. You can also repeat different poems with your child. One example is “Up on the Roof Top”. This poem uses rhyming to help add rhythm to the story. Even a young child who is not yet reading can benefit from these strategies to help promote later reading fluency. These are great activities to promote your child’s reading fluency while also taking a break from the stress and hustle of the season. Have fun!
