How to Teach Your Child to Read

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Children learn many important skills in just their first few years of life. They learn to walk, to speak, to be polite, to play, and so on. However, one of the most foundational things your child will learn is how to read. A child who learns to read well will be much more prepared for life than a child who doesn't.

With all this riding on reading, you might be a little worried about exactly how you should be teaching your little one to read. After all, having a good method and maybe even holistic learning materials means that half the battle has already been fought. So here you'll find a few of the best ways to teach reading to your child.

Language Experience

This immersive reading method makes reading real for the child by making them read things that describe what they can see right in front of their eyes. By arranging words and sentences under pictures or things and having the child read with you, they associate the words with the things the words are talking about, making reading a more tangible experience.

Phonics

Phonics learning is a tried-and-true reading method. The child learns each sound or combination of sounds in order to be able to put them together into words. While initially more difficult and less rewarding than other methods, phonics is said to be the most dependable and thorough reading method because of its rooted approach to language.

Look and Say

This reading method is relatively new and focuses on teaching the entire shapes of words rather than the individual sounds. Learners use tools such as flashcards to memorize words and recognize them later. This method is fast but sometimes leaves readers unequipped for handling new words that they haven't encountered yet.

These are the three most common reading methods used in schools and by parents to teach children to read. How effective any given method is will vary depending on the child, as well as their learning speed and various needs, so above all, be patient and have fun!