|
Find ways to read, write, and tell stories together with your child. Always
applaud your young reader and beginning story writer!
-
Tell family tales.
Children love to hear
stories about their family. Tell your child what it was like when you or your
parents were growing up, or talk about a funny thing that happened when you
were young.
-
Create a writing toolbox.
Find a special box
and fill it with drawing and writing materials. Think of everyday
opportunities for your child to write — the family shopping list, thank-you
notes, birthday cards, or signs for the bedroom door.
-
Be your child's #1 fan.
Show interest in your
child's homework and writing assignments. Ask your child to read out loud what
he or she has written. Be an enthusiastic listener.
-
One more time with feeling.
When your child has
figured out an unfamiliar word, have him or her re-read that sentence one more
time. Often children are so busy figuring out a word that they lose the
meaning of what they've just read.
-
Create a book together.
Make a handmade book
together by folding pieces of paper in half and stapling them together. Your
second grader can write his or her own story, with different sentences on each
page. Ask your child to illustrate the book with his or her own drawings.
-
Do storytelling on the go.
Take turns adding to
a story the two of you make up while riding in a car or bus. Either one of you
could start. Try making the story funny or spooky. This will stretch the
imagination and foster a love for stories. It's fun, too!
-
Point out the relationship between words.
Show your child how
words relate and how this helps with both spelling and word meanings. If your
child is having a hard time spelling a word like knowledge, for
example, point out that it is related to the word know.
-
Invite an author to class.
Volunteer to invite a
published author to talk to your child's class about the writing process.
Young children often think they aren't smart enough if they can't sit down and
write a perfect story on the first try. It can be very helpful for them to
hear an author discuss how important revising and editing is to good writing.
-
Use a writing checklist.
Have your child
create a checklist to always use when writing a first draft. The checklist
could contain reminders such as, "Do all of my sentences start with a capital?
Yes/No." You might want to show the checklist to your child's teacher. That
way you both can be sure that you're giving your child the same instructions.
-
Quick, quick.
Once a child can read
a word, you can use it in lively speed drills. Show the word along with other
words that your child has learned recently. Either use flash cards or a
computer game. Make it fast so he or she doesn't get bored. These drills
sometimes help children automatically recognize and read certain words,
especially those that are used frequently.
By second grade, many kids are beginning to write
their own stories. Their writings are filled with the made-up spellings of
words that are based on what they hear. These misspellings are often cute and
are also a clue as to how well a child hears and understands language.
To become better readers and writers, kids must soon learn the conventional
spelling of words. Learning about spelling rules and patterns is helpful. So
is having your child do a lot of reading and writing on his or her own.
Reading and writing skills go hand in hand. Reading gives kids models of good
writing — they learn about punctuation, capitalization, grammar, storytelling,
and vocabulary. And writing builds important thinking skills such as how to
organize, sequence, and express ideas in a way that makes sense.
Try some of the tips above to sneak in ways to get your child to read and
write. What you want to avoid is making reading and writing a chore. Without a
doubt, one of the most important roles you play is that of cheerleader.
Applaud your child's efforts and successes. Give him or her the courage and
motivation to keep at it!
Would you like to read more tips? Click here to go to the
next set of parent tips. The tips are only loosely grouped according to
age level. Read them all, try them out, and see what works for your child.
Feel free to also take a look at a
one-page handout that contains shortened versions of the above tips for
parents of second graders. (You'll need the free Acrobat Reader available at
www.adobe.com to view and print the PDF file). You are welcome to print out,
photocopy, and pass out this handout if you wish. Or click here to send a
friend an e-mail version of any of
the parent tips.
Reading and literacy are important issues for public television. More
information about reading is available at the new
PBS Parents web site. Or check the main Reading Rockets web site at
www.readingrockets.org.
|
