Top 10 Reading at Home Tips for Parents
By expert literacy educator Annie Facchinetti
Top 10 Reading at Home Tips by expert literacy educator Annie Facchinetti
Oxford University Press research shows that Australian children are missing out on vital literacy and communication skills due to time poor parents. Research suggests that 25% of Australian parents only read to their children once a week or not at all.
Expert Literacy educator Annie Facchinetti has shared her top ten tips for reading at home, helping children become better and more confident readers.
1. Find Books You Both Enjoy
Find books you both enjoy - If you’ve read a book that you both love, read it again! Running short of time? Let your child choose the book they want you to read.
2. Expand Your Book Search Parameters
You can find things to read everywhere, not just in bookshops - Try local libraries, op shops or markets. Friends and family are often keen to share their books too!
3. Books Aren't the Only Reading Material
Don’t think books are the only thing to read … you can read anything together, including the shopping list, road signs when you’re in the car, and posters in shop windows. Or explore some naudiobooks or podcasts at home or on the go.
4. Prioritise Reading Time
Set aside a regular reading time that works with your life - Make it a habit that you both look forward to and finish every day with a story before bed.
5. Enlist the Help of Siblings
Enlist the help of brothers and sisters - If your day gets too busy, siblings might like to read together! Ask them to tell you all about what they have read.
6. Familiarise Yourself With the Text Beforehand
Ensure you’re pitch perfect - Before reading, practice reading the book, so you know the story line and the expression required. Find any tricky words that you might need to explain to your child.
7. Take Your Time While Reading
Remember to read slowly - Take your time and make it interesting to listen to. Encourage your child to join in too.
8. Analyse the Cover
Judge a book by its cover - Look at the cover of the book together and have your child guess what it is going to be about. What is the book called? What can you see in the pictures? Talk about the book as you read.
9. Discuss the Stories Together
When you’ve finished the book (or a page or a chapter or whatever you are reading), talk about it together… who were your favourite characters, what happened, what was the ending like? This talk can happen while you’re doing other things, such as getting dinner ready, or driving to footy practice.
10. Change Up Your Reading Location
Reading together can happen anywhere - The living room floor, the back veranda, or the kitchen table all make great reading spots. Take photos and make a book together of the funniest or strangest places you can find for reading time.
Kangaroo Reads
Kangaroo Reads is a new series of 150 take-home readers for Years F–3. These finely-levelled readers allow students to practise and consolidate their reading skills either in small groups or independently.
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eBook Library
eBook Library for letters and sounds: Engage your students with this brand new eBook library, containing 100 eBooks aligned to Letters and Sounds Sets and Phases. Titles included in this online library are organised and searchable by Letters and Sounds Sets and Phases so that students can read at exactly the right level to match their stage of learning.
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All Stars
All Stars is a challenging series that will build reading stamina and strengthen the higher-order comprehension skills of more able readers. All Stars includes a comprehensive and engaging selection of titles an accompanying handbook that focuses on stretching and developing higher-order comprehension skills, and activity sheets for all 60 books.
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Little Blending Books
Little Blending Books have been created specifically to match Letters and Sounds Sets and Phases and can be used alongside any of your existing Letters and Sounds resources. The series contains 14 Little Blending Books, covering Phases 2–4, which are perfect for practising sounding and blending.
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ECP AlphaLiteracy
AlphaLiteracy Classroom Library Packs presents a range of titles with topics that students will find familiar and appealing. They contain a wide variety of text types displaying a full range of language and text features. Vocabulary is gradually introduced and high-frequency words are repeatedly used for practice and to maintain reader confidence.
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TreeTops
TreeTops encourages all children to read for pleasure. There is something for everyone in this series, making it the perfect choice for finding interesting and accessible reads for your students, including advanced readers.
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Find Your Reading Resource.
At Oxford University Press we want to help you find the right reading resources for your classroom. We understand that to be a successful reader, Australian primary school students need to be taught both phonics and comprehension skills. Use our product selector tool to find an Oxford reading series that best matches your needs.
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