What Every Parent Should Know

Did you know by Kindergarten children from low income families have been read to as little as 25 hours compared to the  1000 hours children from middle income families?  Did you know children that are read aloud to get a head start in language and literacy skills and start school better prepared?  Here are some things to try to help boost children's interest in reading.

1. Read aloud to your children as much as possible.

Sandra Boynton books are a great choice for kids 0-3



2. Let your children see you reading for fun. (This is my favorite one to practice!)

The "If you Give" Series is great for pre-school through 2nd grade



3. Practice the dialogic reading model with your kids.  This model encourages early readers to use the pictures to assist with words they may not be able to read yet.  And stresses that children don't have to know every word on the page. 

Fancy Nancy is wonderful!  Some of the words are very "fancy" so the series works well for several ages

4. Use programs at your local library to encourage your children to read.  We really like the summer reading program.  Also, a wonderful on-line resource is read aloud.org