From the Cradle to College Reading Techniques to Improve Literacy for Everyone Presented by the Huntington Park High School Library

Objectives To improve literacy in our community To improve CAHSEE pass rates To improve CST scores To improve our students’ chances to get into 4-year universities To provide information and resources that will help make improved literacy both possible and attainable

Reading From the day your child is born, you can teach him/her the importance of reading. It’s easy and fun! It’s a great way to bond.

The LAP Method Just pick up your child, put him/her on your lap, and read…anything (even a manual on how to operate a refrigerator is ok for an infant). Let your child hear your voice and see the words in front of you.

The Lap Method cont’d He may not be able to read the words, but he will learn that reading means time with family and that will create the positive feelings needed to foster good reading habits in the future.

Questions When your child is reading something, either alone or with you, ask questions.

Asking Questions… Encourages thinking beyond just reading the words on the page. Improves comprehension and understanding.

Kinds of Questions Ask the Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How of the story. As your child gets older, try to avoid asking questions that can be answered with a simple yes or no.

Yes/No/Basic Questions For young children who are just starting to read. What is the name of the story? Did the first pig build a house? Was the house made of straw? Did the wolf blow the house down?

Better Questions For more advanced readers In “The Three Little Pigs”, who are the characters in the story? What did the first little pig build? What did he build it out of? What was wrong with building it like that?

As they get older… Try to make more advanced questions. Ask why and how to get your child thinking about more than just the words on the page. Ask your child what he/she thinks about what is happening in the story.

The Why and How Asking these kinds of questions can help your child not only understand the story better, but relate it to his or her own life. Why do you think the wolf tried to blow down all of the houses? How do you think the pigs felt about having their houses blown down?

Connections As your child gets older, she should see connections between what she reads and her own life and you can help.

Connecting Questions Please note: these sometimes require a yes/no question to establish the connection. Have you ever been so mad that you wanted to destroy something that belonged to someone else? What did you do? Has anyone made you feel sad because he/she broke something of yours? What did you say to him/her after it happened?

The Most Important Thing… Your child needs to read. The more a person reads, the better that person becomes at reading. By reading with your child, you encourage him to build better reading habits and you improve your own reading as well.

And a Final Note… Remember that any kind of reading is reading. Read a magazine, a newspaper, a cooking recipe, a how-to manual, a comic book, the signs in your neighborhood… ANYTHING with words!