One of the most important skills we can ‘give’ to our children is reading proficiency. Obviously, we just guide them and they learn it and then it becomes their skill, so we don’t exactly ‘give’ it to them. It is a gift from us to them, however, and one I believe is absolutely crucial to their success at school and in life. I personally feel that with a love of and a mastery of reading, a child has the world in his reach. I could probably, and would probably, carry on and on about this for several pages, so instead of that, let’s just get one with the great tips, shall we?

One – Use Flashcards With Text and Pictures

One of the best things you can do to help increase your child’s early reading skills is to purchase or create flashcards which incorporate both pictures and text. By reinforcing your child’s recognition of pictures with the word that corresponds to it, you can help them to better understand that words mean something – that they represent something more than squiggles on a page.

Two – Make Reading a Family Event

With all of the new toys on the market these days that will read to your children for you, it’s easy for parents to forget that their children need to actually be read to on a repeated basis by a live person.

Not only should you make a point to read to your child on a regular basis, you should also get your whole family involved in the process. Taking a family outing to the library is a great way to get your child excited about reading.

Three – Start Early Teaching Them to Write

Even though your children may not yet understand the purpose of letters, it’s never too early to start teaching them their alphabet. Children love learning to write their names, so teaching them to print early is a great way to enhance their reading skills.

Even if they don’t understand the full concept of the letters, they are easily able to recall the fact that certain letters mean their name if you work with them long enough. Children will begin to develop their writing skills on their own.

Most children will start pretending to write long before they actually understand what letters are. Once you notice your child doing this, it’s a good sign that he or she is ready to start learning to write their name.

Four – Teach Your Child Phonics

One of the biggest mistake that parents, and even some teachers, make is failing to teach their children phonics. Teaching phonics is actually a much simpler process than many would have you to believe. It’s no more than teaching your child the sounds that individual letters and letter combinations make.

By teaching your child what each letter sounds like, and teaching them to sound out words as they read, you will be giving them a tool which will help them throughout each level of their education.

Five – Be Consistent

If you’re serious about increasing your child’s early reading skills, then the most important thing you can do is remember to be consistent. Children need repetition in order to solidify the sounds of words and letters in their heads, as well as the concepts that words create.

By making sure that you make reading a part of their daily life, you are helping to reinforce these concepts in your child’s mind, and allowing them to grasp more difficult concepts earlier than their peers who do not experience this repetition.

Above all else, the most important thing to remember if you want to increase your child’s early reading skills is to make the reading process fun. If your child sees that you enjoy reading, both to them and to yourself, they will take a greater interest in the process and learn much more quickly.

And let’s never forget, of course, that….

Readers Are Leaders!!