“We were never born to read.” Maryanne Wolf

1. The kindergarten child is confident in spirit, infinite in resources, and eager to learn. Everything is still possible. ~Robert Fulghum

2. “Twice in your life you know you are approved of by everyone - when you learn to walk and when you learn to read.” Penelope Fitzgerald

3. “We were never born to read.” Maryanne Wolf

4. So what can I do to help my child become a reader? Talk to him. Engage him in conversation. Read to him daily as, long as he will let you!

5. The two most powerful predictors of learning to read words and reading comprehension are a child’s oral vocabulary and background knowledge. They are the broccoli and blueberries of becoming a skilled reader.

6. Reading and talking to your child and providing him with opportunities to learn about the world beyond are the best ways to build background knowledge and vocabulary.

7. Talking to Your Child • Talk about what things are, how they look, feel, taste, sound and smell, etc. ("That is a big, round, juicy delicious, orange!”) 2. Ask your child to tell you what happened in their day. (Tell me about your day from beginning to end. Oh, how I wish I could be there with you!) 3. Talk to your child in complete sentences and have them answer you in a complete sentence. (Not all the time!)

8. 4. Try to substitute less common words for common words. (cutlery for forks, spoons, etc.) (beverage for drink) (poultry for chicken) (weary for tired) Buy a thesaurus! 5. Use idioms. (It’s raining cats and dogs.) (I’ll give you a hand.) (Are you under the weather?) (You’re treading on thin ice.) Be sure to explain what they mean. 6. Call things by their real names. Correct (gently) your child when he says things like baby cat for kitten or baby dog for puppy.

9. 7. Build vocabulary and background knowledge by providing as many hands- on experiences as possible. 8. Take trips into the city and surrounding areas. Talk about what you see. 9. Go on virtual field trips. 10. Take advantage of the library.

10. Read Alouds

11. So is it important that my child has a good vocabulary and knows a lot about different things. Why? The child who has a large, rich vocabulary and strong background knowledge will have a big advantage when it comes to both word learning and comprehension.

12. Up until the 60’s and 70’s the theory of comprehension was that meaning was in the text or words, and the reader’s job was to read the words on the page and understand what they were trying to convey. “See it, read it, understand it.”

13. We know now that information or knowledge is organized in memory into “mailboxes” or abstract structures called “schemata.” The structures are frameworks for understanding and remembering information.

14. The richer a child’s background or world knowledge, the more easily he/she will be able to construct meaning and, therefore, comprehend.