Heidi Mulik
Mother of three
Audio books are a fantastic tool for encouraging older children to pick up a new series. I like to check out the first book of a series from the library and listen to it with the children in the car. Afterwards, I'll get the sequels in print for them to read.
Help your child pick up dozens of sight words effortlessly by using labels. Label the "door," "light switch," "refrigerator," etc. You'd be surprised how quickly they'll pick up words at a very young age.
Encourage your child to sound out words with this silly game: When reading your child's bedtime story, deliberately change some of the words. (i.e. instead of "princess" say "monster"). When your child objects, make her sound out the word to get the correct term.
Music teachers usually recommend 20 to 30 minutes of practice each day, but if your child has a short-attention span, that may be unrealistic. It could backfire and turn them off to music. Instead, start with 5 minutes each day, and slowly add time. Keep it fresh! Keep it fun!
Unsure how to start teaching your child to read? Start small. Choose one word that appears frequently in their bedtime story. Let them "read" it each time it appears in the text. The next night, choose a second word. By the end of the week, they'll know seven words!