Active Reading Strategies That Will Transform Your Readers
The best time of a teacher’s year is when students are working independently during learning time. This is the most beautiful sight to behold in a classroom.
As an early childhood educator, my favorite time to witness independent learning is during literacy!
A literacy block is typically when an elementary teacher teaches reading groups. Sometimes writing instruction is a part of this as well, but for today’s purposes, let’s stick with reading when we talk about literacy.
You guys know I am all about a WELL STRUCTURED literacy block. In fact, it’s MY PASSION! 🎉
Truth is, well structured reading time doesn’t just have to exist at school. It should also exist at home.
Yesterday on Instagram, I quoted the famous “Readers are Leaders.” It’s an oldie but a goody.
It’s also something I truly believe. Reading unlocks the world to us.
In early childhood, we have to remember that even before we read the words, we are readers.
If we can read the pictures, we are reading. That’s right ya’ll! No more allowing your kids to say “BUT MOOOOOM, I can’t read!”
Your come back:
Parent: “Can you read the pictures?”
Child: “Umm yeah.”
Parent: “Then you can read the words! Now tell me what you see in those pictures.”
You can grab a FREE copy of my 3 Ways to Read poster HERE.
Hang this up in your classroom or at home where your child reads. It’s a great visual reminder.
Once kids realize they are readers no matter which way you look at it, it’s time to work on reading stamina.
Reading stamina is how long they can read for. This becomes really important once they are school aged because it allows them to dive deep into books and entertain themselves in the best possible way.
One of my best friends, Kristi, was a great example of this. Whenever I would run into her family at a restaurant, her kids would be reading while waiting for their table. It seems like this is rare anymore and we see kids on phones or devices.
Teachers want their students to read silently for pleasure and also so they can teach reading groups.
The best way to work on reading stamina, is to talk about what stamina is. In my classroom, we always say that reading stamina is like building your brain’s muscles.
Every day we practice building our reading stamina until the entire class has reached 15 minutes of sustained silent reading.
We keep track of our 15 minute goal by using this chart.
Starting on day 1, record how many minutes your class or child reached reading silently.
Continue this until they make the 15 minute mark.
The more our kids practiced silently reading, the better they will be at entertaining themselves, using their imagination, and focusing at school. Their reading comprehension will also shoot through the roof if they master this skill.
In fact, one reading comprehension strategy I suggest to teachers is teaching students how to read independently. If this isn’t taught in kindergarten or first grade, teachers see behavior issues go up.
Some of my high school teacher friends will say reading comprehension is seriously lagging in our high school students.
My last suggestion is to model, model, model. If kids see adults reading, then they will want to read.
In fact, when I think of my dad, I think of him reading. He’s an avid reader and because of that, I love reading as an adult.
Your top two takeaways from this post:
There are 3 ways to read
Reading stamina is key to reading success
How many minutes a day do you read? Let me know in the comments!
Happy Reading!