Below Darnell Wynn the education officer, reading explains some of the ways parents can help their children to read using some principles of the Reading Recovery Programme.

Critical thinkers as we read . . .

Parents can interrupt reading by making insightful comments about stories. This lets children see that when we read, we are also thinking and making connections to other things we have read or experienced.

Phrasing and Fluency right from

the start . . .

Alternating the tone of the voice and letting your children know why we do this helps them to understand that 'how we read print lets us in on meaning as well'. If someone is angry and shouting in a story, we read that more dramatically to get a deeper feel and understanding of what is occurring.

A word about punctuation . . . those dots and squiggles on the page...

The same can be done for pointing to common punctuation marks like the full stop or comma — parents can talk with their children about how we slow down at these marks and how that impacts the meaning of what we read.

What about letters and sounds . . . Funnicks (Phonics)

Letters and sounds are often the first place that parents go and this is good. However, always remember what is key for children is knowing how to use this information when reading. In other words, knowing the sound of S in isolation is of little help if you cannot use it to read the word 'sun'. Deliberate pointing to a letter and making its sound at the beginning of words gives a starting point for young readers to begin their problem-solving.

The writing on the wall . . .

Children love to explore with writing. In Reading Recovery, students write a message every day. We use their personal messages to help them with spelling and word construction.

Parents can make writing a natural part of their lives by having their children write the grocery lists, record the phone messages, or leave notes when they have issues to discuss. A favourite past time of mine was, when my children were little, we would write each other notes when we were frustrated with one another. I use to love the little notes that said, "Mommy, I'm upset with you for making me go to bed early."