Thank you
for reading our April 2009 newsletter!
Volume Three, Fourth Issue
WriteReading.com
is dedicated to Words that make the future brighter!
When can I begin teaching my child?
I have been asked this
question, and so I decided to make it the topic of this month’s newsletter.
May’s newsletter will resume with the fourth set of the top 50 words in the
Book of Mormon. (These important activities are not just for children on a
homeschool curriculum!) Eventually you and your child will enjoy a daily
routine involving reading together, letter or number name reciting and writing
practice, practicing a letter sound, and reviewing a “sight” word. These
activities are three-fold: they can become part of a family’s scripture reading
program, help develop a child’s individual scripture reading habit, and fulfill
part of a school curriculum’s at-home daily assignments.
Materials needed:
Refer to this age guideline:
|
Letters |
Years from |
Years to (and up) |
|
a, e, h, i, m, n, o, u, and “y” as a vowel |
1-1.5 |
2-3 |
|
p |
1-1.5 |
2.5-3 |
|
w |
1-1.5 |
3-3.5 |
|
b |
1-2 |
2.5-4 |
|
k, q |
1.5-2 |
3-4 |
|
f |
1.5-2.5 |
3-4.5 |
|
g (as in “go”) |
2 |
3-4 |
|
d |
2-2.5 |
3-4.5 |
|
y (as in “you”) |
2-2.5 |
3-5 |
|
t |
2 |
3-6 |
|
c (as in “city”), s (as in “see”), x (as in “exit”) |
2.5-3 |
5-8.5 |
|
j |
2.5-4 |
5-7.5 |
|
l, r |
2.5-5 |
5-8 |
|
v |
3-5 |
5-8.5 |
|
z |
2.5-5 |
6-8.5 |
Teaching your child sounds:
The above chart represents a
compilation of data from ten different sources and/or studies. (For some
letters, the “from” ages are the same as the “to” ages, so these statistics are
obviously from different sources.) The ages listed in the middle column
indicate a range when 50% of the children surveyed could correctly say the
sound. The last column shows the range when 90% of the children can say the
sound correctly. Refer to this chart when teaching your child the consonants
with only one sound. It will help you find an order to teach sounds that your
child can easily pronounce. Next, teach your child the two sounds for the
consonants c, g, s, and x, and lastly, teach the vowel sounds. The letters with
multiple sounds make them more complicated to learn, even though they are not
hard to pronounce. (See Sept 2008 newsletter, archived at the website above.)
The Head Start with the
Book of Mormon method begins by teaching your child the names of letters
and numbers. As can be seen by the ages on the chart above, children can be
taught these before they can correctly articulate all sounds. Teaching can be
done as early as a parent chooses, provided the activity is brief and relaxed,
and additional activities are added one at a time, over a period of many days.
Regularity is key, even if not achieved every single day. Much can be
accomplished before a child is five years old. Many children enter public
school with the advantage of being able to count to 20, knowing most of their
“ABC’s,” many letter sounds, some number recognition, a handful of words, and
the ability to use a crayon with confidence. Many do not, and struggle to keep
up, while a few can even read simple stories at this age.
This method uses three
activities: “point to and repeat,” “write and recite,” and “circle and recite”
(see March, April, and May 2008, newsletters for details). If your child easily
reads a flashcard the first time it is introduced, give lots of praise and
advance to the next card! Your child will not need to do the accompanying
activities for that card. When your child can remember a flashcard the next day
without any prompting, again advance to the next card! Sit by your child and
read your scriptures while your child uses theirs! When your child practices a
word flashcard, also review the flashcards learned on previous days, minus
those your child has mastered. (The names of letters and numbers are not
reviewed daily, but rather repeated alternately until mastered: i.e., teach
letters, then numbers, then repeat.)
Follow-up:
If desired, space the above
daily activities throughout the day. You may want your child to choose one of
the above activities before giving them permission to do other things. Remember
to include “storybook time” each day with your child! Show them how much fun it
is to read together, and always end while your child is still enjoying it!
This
unique program uses the Book of Mormon to help a child:
·
grow closer to the things of God
·
develop a scripture reading habit
·
learn how to read and write
Helping a child learn or practice reading and writing skills can be a daunting task. But it doesn’t have to be. Head Start with the Book of Mormon: Using the Scriptures to teach Children Reading and Writing Skills, by Vicki Lynn Rasmussen (42 brief pages + 70 pages of flashcards) will give parents and grandparents the skills needed to nurture great readers using a simple scriptural plan—based on the top 50 words in the Book of Mormon. From a toddler hearing a story read to them, to a child reading silently, the three included phases will benefit all learners. Watch as your child also develops the habit of regular scripture use!
Thank you for purchasing this book! What better gift can you give a child than the gift of literacy? As referenced on the back cover, the author’s entire royalties will be donated to the LDS Perpetual Education Fund. This book can be ordered at the website above, or through local LDS booksellers.
Please email any questions, comments, or success stories you
have to:
Thank you, and I hope to chat with you again soon!
Hugs & wishes, Vicki (o;`~
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2007©LittleRasCo