As parents, you are your child’s most influential teacher with an important part to play in helping your child to learn to read. Here are some suggestions on how you can help to make this a positive experience.
- Choose a quiet time – Set aside a quiet time with no distractions. Ten to fifteen minutes is usually long enough.
- Make reading enjoyable – Reading with your child is the best way of helping your child learn to read. It should be an enjoyable experience for all. Try not to pressurise them if they do not want to read. If your child loses interest then do something else.
- Independent reading – When your child is ready to start reading by themselves, they will bring home a phonics reader book. Encourage them to ‘sound out’ words using the letter sounds not the ‘alphabet names’. If your child mispronounces a word do not interrupt immediately, allow them to self-correct.
- Be Positive – If your child says something nearly right, to start with that is fine. Don’t say ‘No. That’s wrong,’ but ‘Let’s read it together’ and point to the letters as you say the sounds. Boost your child’s confidence with constant praise for even the smallest achievement.
Brilliant Books to share at home
Brilliant Books to Share with Your Reception Child and Questions You Can Ask
Bookmarks to print at home
In reception, children will bring home library books to read every week. These books are for you to enjoy stories with your child, which will encourage them to develop a love for books and reading.
When your child is ready, we will send home Phonics Reader books for your child to read to you. You will receive a bookmark, which gives ideas on how to read with your child and the types of questions you can ask.
Reading and writing with your child – Some ideas.
In Reception, we send home topic based activities for you to do with your child in a Home Learning Folder each week, which are based on the children’s immediate interests.
The Home Learning folder also contains details of the phonemes and tricky words we have been learning each week in class for you to practise at home.
Tapestry Online Journal
You are encouraged to interact with your child’s online Tapestry journal. Your child’s journal includes observations, in the form of videos and photos, of your child’s activities in class. Seeing these observations will give you an idea of the types of activities you can do with your child at home.
Home Learning in Reception
The link below takes you to a PDF document with information about useful websites for Home Learning in Reception.
