The Steps of How to Improve Reading Comprehension in Children
First of all, something which one has to be aware of is the fact that, phonemic awareness and phonological awareness which then leads to phonics is a crucial point in reading, spelling and writing skills for ANY child.
When those types of methods of teaching are applied from an early stage, it is more likely that the child will progress accordingly.
When you then move on how to improve reading comprehension in children, it is essential to understand the importance of decoding.
Decoding is an important skill in readiness.
Once the child can 'break the code', the learner can begin to understand what message the print is giving.
Breaking the code is when the child starts to decode.
Understanding what the message is given is decoding itself.
These 2 words refer to a very important part of any reading level.
If the child can't decode the words easily, he can't begin to understand and comprehend.
How to improve reading comprehension in children? The answer would be to help the child decode faster.
The faster this happens, the more energy the child has to use for comprehension of the given text.
If an adult takes time to read a difficult sentence, he will also experience lack of energy to comprehend what the sentence is actually "saying".
One can find himself having to re-read the sentence once he manages to break the code so as to put more energy into comprehending the sentence rather than just 'breaking the code'.
With 'breaking the code', I am referring to matching written symbols to a sound.
This is grapheme-phoneme correspondence.
The faster it happens, the easier it is for the child to understand.
Then, how to improve reading comprehension in children who are finding a problem with decoding? First, you would assess the child and learn what he is having difficulty with the most.
Pin-point the exact graphemes which are giving him trouble and he is still not confident when matching those symbols with a sound, thus, making it more difficult for him to 'break the code' at a fast pace.
When you have this information, use it to introduce him to sounds, which is Phonological Awareness.
How would you go about introducing phonological awareness? Firstly, focus on 1 or 2 Phonological Awareness skills per lesson.
Try to dedicate 15 minutes a day on this task.
Model and explain clearly.
Re-teach and clarify any doubts or questions.
Give guided and monitored independent practice.
Initially, use only CV or CVC words.
Provide scaffolding to show the child you're there for him and that you can give him the support he needs.
On this part, the child needs to be aware with the complex alphabet code which means that there are different ways how to write one sound.
For example, /f/ can be written as if, ff and pH.
One also needs to encourage visual recall of words.
Once he starts to see some particular words often enough when reading, every time he reads that word he will get faster in 'decoding' it.
This is due to this visual recall phenomenon that every person has the ability to use.
When re-introducing the child to Phonological Awareness, it is ideal to start off with stretchy sounds which are easier to pronounce.
Examples of stretchy sounds are so, m, and f.
Then, move on to bouncy sounds, such as p, b and k.
Always move from easier tasks to more complex tasks.
After he becomes confident in the sounds, is more aware of LISTENING and discriminating between sounds, help him become fluent in letter recognition.
I hope that you found this guide on how to improve reading comprehension in children helpful and that will assist you when facing such issues with children in the future.
When those types of methods of teaching are applied from an early stage, it is more likely that the child will progress accordingly.
When you then move on how to improve reading comprehension in children, it is essential to understand the importance of decoding.
Decoding is an important skill in readiness.
Once the child can 'break the code', the learner can begin to understand what message the print is giving.
Breaking the code is when the child starts to decode.
Understanding what the message is given is decoding itself.
These 2 words refer to a very important part of any reading level.
If the child can't decode the words easily, he can't begin to understand and comprehend.
How to improve reading comprehension in children? The answer would be to help the child decode faster.
The faster this happens, the more energy the child has to use for comprehension of the given text.
If an adult takes time to read a difficult sentence, he will also experience lack of energy to comprehend what the sentence is actually "saying".
One can find himself having to re-read the sentence once he manages to break the code so as to put more energy into comprehending the sentence rather than just 'breaking the code'.
With 'breaking the code', I am referring to matching written symbols to a sound.
This is grapheme-phoneme correspondence.
The faster it happens, the easier it is for the child to understand.
Then, how to improve reading comprehension in children who are finding a problem with decoding? First, you would assess the child and learn what he is having difficulty with the most.
Pin-point the exact graphemes which are giving him trouble and he is still not confident when matching those symbols with a sound, thus, making it more difficult for him to 'break the code' at a fast pace.
When you have this information, use it to introduce him to sounds, which is Phonological Awareness.
How would you go about introducing phonological awareness? Firstly, focus on 1 or 2 Phonological Awareness skills per lesson.
Try to dedicate 15 minutes a day on this task.
Model and explain clearly.
Re-teach and clarify any doubts or questions.
Give guided and monitored independent practice.
Initially, use only CV or CVC words.
Provide scaffolding to show the child you're there for him and that you can give him the support he needs.
On this part, the child needs to be aware with the complex alphabet code which means that there are different ways how to write one sound.
For example, /f/ can be written as if, ff and pH.
One also needs to encourage visual recall of words.
Once he starts to see some particular words often enough when reading, every time he reads that word he will get faster in 'decoding' it.
This is due to this visual recall phenomenon that every person has the ability to use.
When re-introducing the child to Phonological Awareness, it is ideal to start off with stretchy sounds which are easier to pronounce.
Examples of stretchy sounds are so, m, and f.
Then, move on to bouncy sounds, such as p, b and k.
Always move from easier tasks to more complex tasks.
After he becomes confident in the sounds, is more aware of LISTENING and discriminating between sounds, help him become fluent in letter recognition.
I hope that you found this guide on how to improve reading comprehension in children helpful and that will assist you when facing such issues with children in the future.
