Reading Tools: Pacing

One. Word. At. A. Time.  Beginning readers often resort to this strategy to "get through" the page.  I  think of this as survival reading- where one is saying the words on the page, but not taking in any of the meaning.  But there is hope!  Here are a few easy steps to make reading a more pleasant experience for your child.

1. Familiar Text: Choose a book that you might consider to be "easy" for your child.  Familiar text means less sounding-out and allows the reader to focus on fluency.  Even better would be a book that you've read aloud to them when they were little.  This way they know how the text is supposed to sound (even little nuances that you both cherish, like voices and sound effects, which makes it delightful bonding experience).

2. Echo Read:  When we read out loud our eyes are looking a few words ahead of what we are saying. Echo reading allows new readers to do just that.  You read the sentence out loud, while they are reading it on the page.

"Someone has been sitting in my chair!"  

The reader repeats the words, following along in the text and echoing your voice.  Practicing this strengthens fluency as well as word recognition.

 3. Use a pacing tool:  Sometimes it helps to have a rhythm in the background for a child read to a beat.  When I was in college I used to sing my class notes to whatever was on the radio in order to commit them to memory.  It worked! If music is too distracting some readers appreciate a metronome to keep time while they practice fluency.