Just looking for some sage advice here.. Backstory: pulled dd out in October. Her confidence in reading was horrible, books scared her. Was initially taught sight words in ps, but now being taught phonics. Ok so here's the thing. We've been working for months now in reading. I'm using WJCR's phonics program, and that has been wonderful. I decided to take a break and just work on review for a bit because dd still isn't really applying what I'm teaching to actual books. I thought she didn't know some of the digraphs (a lot to learn, for sure!). So we went over them. And she knew them all, even remembering ar/er/ur/ir/or perfectly (which had been a stumbling block.). I then set the following sentence in front of her on a sheet of paper, with instructions to draw what was in the sentence (she loves to draw): "Meg got ten hens." For a girl that knows most of the digraphs, this sentence should have been a no-brainer. She balked. She didn't quite burst into tears, but she kept asking me to 'help' her (which I was doing), but what she wanted was for me to read the sentence TO her. Once we got past the balking, she read it just fine (I love the musicality of phonics readers!), and drew the pictures. This particular scene, with her not wanting to read sentences composed of words she'll zip through if presented individually, plays out over and over. I think she sees a ton of letters and gets scared. So how do I go about getting her confidence built up when she has more than one word to read? Really, she can do an entire list of words. She can do flashcards, she can read words from the list in WJCR. But when presented with a sentence, she goes into deer-in-the-headlights mode and forgets that she CAN DO IT. And.. that translates to this: I bought her a ton of phonics-based readers slightly below her reading level. She COULD read them if she'd try. But she won't try because, again, it's sentences. Would love ideas, advice, or thoughts on her thinking here. Ooh, I just had a thought... I wonder if I make her a 'picture window' to go around one word, that would train her focus on just one... and block out the others. I had to do that when I was teaching her to read initially. hmm...
I'm interested in hearing the answers, too. We have the same problem, except that the daunting task is switching from picture books (with adult-level words... things like non-fiction books, even) to chapter books (with page after page of tiny print words below his level). It's not that my son can't read them. He absolutely without a doubt can zip right through them if he wants to. He just gets overwhelmed by the amount of print on the page. I think you're seeing the same problem.
What about doing a lot more reading to her with great picture books, and following along with your finger under the words you are reading? We would check out 15-20 picture books every other week or so and sit down with them after lunch. Really good ones with simple to complex sentences. It seems that all she needs is a lot of confidence building before doing sit-down work. I tutored a couple of children besides hs'ing my own and reading really great books aloud next to them worked wonders. Even when they were older, I had them sit next to me and follow along in chapter books. It's amazing how a silent reader could mispronounce a word for years and not realize it.
Very true! Mine mispronounces things all the time. :lol: He loves reading chapter books with a CD, and he loves reading silently while I read aloud, but he won't read them alone.
I was going to suggest the same thing - a window card that lets just one word show at a time. Reading aloud to her while pointing with a finger is another great idea. Sorry, having a "senior moment" day all day -- what again is WJCR?
My fault "Why Johnny Can't Read"- I love the phonics system in the back and it works really well for dd (plus she LOVES the word lists LOL)
I agree. I would show her the entire sentence when she is done and praise her for what she just did. Let her see over and over again that she is able to read a sentence and then phase out the picture window.
Perception is a big thing with kids. My kids didn't have trouble with individual sentences, but with chapter books. My dd would sit and read 10 Dr. Suess books, but give her a simple chapter book and she would act like she was being tortured. As they have gotten older, they're book sizes have increased, but not at the speed that curriculums would like. As long as they are progressing, I'm not going to stress about the speed. Your picture window sounds like a good idea. I'd also take her to the library and encourage her to pick out her own books. It may surprise you what she finally decides to read.
Another choice would be to stop "teaching" reading for a while. Require her to do a half-hour of silent reading daily. Don't ask her to tell you what she's reading about. If she just wants to look at pages, that's fine. Do a lot of read-alouds. Do two seperate ones...one an exciting book like "The Secret Garden" or "Charlotte's Web". The other can be either short chapter books like Hank the Cowdog (from the other thread ) or even picture books. These you can have her illustrate what was read, and then write a few lines about what she drew. Have her do a journal daily, with a picture and then a few sentences. If writing scares her, have her dictate to you and YOU write it. Or you write it every other line, and let her copy it. Just some suggestions! (I REALLY like the "picture window", btw!)
Similar to what Jackie said, I would stop teaching her to read for a while. Don't make it part of school, or make it required. I wouldn't even have a mandatory silent reading time. But I would suggest going to the library a few times a week. Pick books for you to read aloud to her, not as school, but just for the sheer enjoyment of reading. Readers are okay, and if she likes the ones that are slightly below her level, fine, but consider other books that look less like schoolwork. Biscuit, Pinky and Rex, Cam Jansen, Junie B. Jones series, etc. I would use the library extensively during this period to find what level she's comfortable with and then keep getting that level and gradually, work up when she's ready.
The pic window seems like a great idea. I also agree with Jackie that taking the pressure off for awhile may help, too. Allowing her the freedom to flip through a book for fun & not because she NEEDS to read the words. Chances are she will begin to read them without even thinking about reading or not reading. Kinda like potty training, sometimes the harder we push the harder they push back! Just let it happen somewhat on her terms. Also like someone said that letting her pick out books at the library that SHE wants to LOOK at not read may encourage her. Good luck. Blessings!
At the library, along with allowing your daughter to choose books, pick some fantastic picture books yourself...I would recommend Caldecott award winners. Just check them out as well and plop them in a library basket to read when you want to read to her. Ask the librarian to help you find Caldecott medal and Caldecott honor books.
OK, this may be overly simplistic, and you have probably already tried it, but what if you let HER pick the reading material? Books, magazines, cereal boxes - who cares? Let her pick whatever she wants to read that day, at least for a while. Maybe it's just the stimulus she'd need to pique her curiosity? Unless she truly has a developmental problem like dislexia. People with dislexia often exhibit these types of symptoms.
