Read and Spell Blog

Learning to read is one of the most important things a child will do in his or her life. That’s because we live in a society in which literacy skills are the key to success. When reading ability doesn’t develop overnight, some parents and educators worry they are on the wrong path to instruction.

But choosing the “right” books and the “best” way to teach reading depends on every child. No two individuals will master reading at the same time or pace, and patience and persistence is a must, particularly for kids who struggle with learning difficulties or differences.

Read and Spell Blog

5 Tips for teaching sight words

Sight words are the English words you most frequently encounter when reading. They're called sight words because if you learn to recognize them by sight, instead of having to sound them out, it makes reading easier.

This is why they are so important to teach.

When a student learns to recognize sight words automatically, it can increase his or her reading fluency and comprehension. They are useful for young children to know, but also a good idea for struggling readers.

English as an additional, second, or foreign language learners, especially those who are just getting started with reading and writing, will also benefit from studying sight words.

Sometimes you'll find sight words referred to as high-frequency words. That's because they are the most common English words used in writing. Mastering them frees up attention for processing harder and lower frequency words.

Read and Spell Blog

6 Early literacy skills

While reading and writing aren’t typically taught until after preschool, children can begin developing the early literacy skills they need to become strong readers from a very young age. Early literacy skills are actually pre-literacy skills and include wanting to look at books, following narratives, recognizing print, learning vocabulary and identifying letters and sounds.

How to build a homeschool reading program

Read and Spell Blog

How to build a homeschool reading program

Teaching reading is one of the first big challenges homeschool parents of younger children face. That’s because there’s a lot riding on successful literacy skills development. Learning to read is not only fundamental for the language arts part of your curriculum but necessary for most other subjects you teach.

This article will help you learn more about how reading works (and what phonics and spelling have to do with it), to help you choose the right reading resources and prepare your child for any bumps on the road to becoming a strong reader.

Read and Spell Blog

What are Dolch words?

Haven’t heard of the Dolch list? Don’t worry. If you’ve ever read Dr. Seuss you know a good portion of it already. In fact, every word in The Cat in the Hat is on the Dolch list.

Dolch words are high frequency English vocabulary commonly used to teach children to read. Learning to recognize them automatically can facilitate fluency in reading.

Think of the most common English articles, prepositions, conjunctions, adjectives, adverbs and verbs (a, and, away, big, blue, can, come, down) and you’ll get a good idea of the list.