What does reading 20 minutes a night really mean?
Kindergarten:
For this level, I would suggest reading each of those small books three times each.
– The first time you are reading to sound out the words and identify sight words.
– The second time you are reading for comprehension.
– The third time you are reading for fluency (to read at a faster rate.)
For Your Older Children:
I let our son (second grade) read his chapter book to me for about 15-20 minutes. He would prefer to read it silently, but he has to read it out loud because I can listen to him
-I can make sure that he doesn’t just skip over hard words.
-I can help him with his mistakes.
-When he is finished, I will ask him to tell me about the story (what happened, who were the characters).
-I also make sure to read a story to him every night. Hearing me read aloud is also important.
I know that time is tight. I know that you are busy. I know that your kids need to get to bed early.
I know that they will ask you “Mommy, will you lay with me?” at the end of the day, and you’ll wonder if you have time. You do. I promise… you do. It’s worth every second.
I also know that if you skip out on reading nightly, your child will slowly fall behind. Give your child the best advantage and read with them- twenty minutes a night.
They will thank you … one day!
