https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sat, 02 May 2026 09:23:51 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading/page/2#post-2692199 Mon, 06 Feb 2017 09:18:14 +0000 looch 2692199@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: I think you can't look at it by age, you have to look at it by grade unless the school has resources to address different levels in each grade. I mean, think about it, my son is 6, your daughter is 5.5. They're both in the same grade. I don't think when you're in public school, you have the leisure of just kind of letting them go at their own pace because the years get more and more intense and this is when kids fall behind. Being one level behind in kindergarten doesn't seem like a big deal, but if at the end of the year, a child is two levels behind, what does that mean for the beginning of first grade?</p> <p>I think you're doing the right thing by contacting the school. Maybe she can have another assessment in a different environment. Then you know the true baseline, that's where I would begin. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading/page/2#post-2692164 Mon, 06 Feb 2017 08:36:26 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2692164@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My goal today is to get some Reading Comprehension or simple Reading Passages worksheets that I can print and have at home. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading/page/2#post-2692163 Mon, 06 Feb 2017 08:36:00 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2692163@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs Green Grass: @brownie: Thank you. I dont want to use working as an excuse to not give my kid what they need, but its so hard to "balance" it all. Free time, Family time, Homework time, and then 1:1 reading practice. </p> <p>@looch: Thanks. The teacher has said over and over that she is not behind. She made straight A on her fall report card. But then they said she was a level behind on this one computer assessment but it also was tied to her lack of focus and she would spend their limited time in the computer lab getting logged out or not focusing. I may try to spend some time better understanding the resources the school does offer. I know they have a lot, especially for students that need assistance but I worry that since she's maybe just middle of the road, she's getting overlooked. I just want to keep up with everything so that she doesn't fall behind. Maybe my concerns about her being young Kindergartener? </p> <p>@Baby Boy Mom: Yes to life skills! We need to get her in the kitchen more, get her to start doing more chores like laundry, etc. So many other things that need to happen outside of school. </p> <p>@honeybear: Thanks! The PreK program last year did a great job trying to get them going on sight words and she just wasn't super interested. So we let it slide until now in Kindergarten. She's picking it up (she will write us notes and "sound out" the words to try to spell them). But its a good reminder that even by age 6, thats not late for reading. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading/page/2#post-2691969 Sun, 05 Feb 2017 13:43:56 +0000 honeybear 2691969@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: I was thinking about this thread and it made me wonder how old your daughter is, so I checked the K 2016 thread, and she's about a year younger than my child. My son really took off with reading (aloud, still phonetically sounding out words he's never read before) in the past few months. A year ago was sort of another story. I don’t see the point in pushing too much at 5. I’d do the early BOB books or something similar and practice letter sounds and blending when possible, but don’t double-down on drilling/lots of repetition at this point. I think that even if you can get in just 5 min/day, you’ll be advancing the ball considerably. Any other time you have, read aloud from harder books to increase her vocabulary so that when things do start to fall into place, she has a big reserve of words she’s already heard to attach to the printed words and the sounds they make. </p> <p>I think it’s important to remember that 5 or 6 is not "late" for beginning reading, except the school's arbitrary timetable and preschools that do reading instruction can make it seem that way. So I wouldn't worry or consider the possibility of a processing issue when she's working on long vowel sounds/silent e and not quite at digraphs (because those are one page/chapter apart in every phonetic reading text I've looked at!). Maybe next month it will all start clicking. Or the month after that, or next year. I would only consider the possibility of a processing problem is if there are other reasons you have concerns. </p> <p>Also, FWIW, I wouldn't bother with games or apps, but I am not a fan of screens as educational tools for young children. I really think it's best to read texts on a printed page, preferably in book form, when a child is learning to read. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691925 Sun, 05 Feb 2017 11:05:08 +0000 Baby Boy Mom 2691925@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@looch: your reply was very helpful. Thanks!</p> <p>To answer the question, we don't! I SAH and there is just no time. LO is way too tired after a full day of school. By the time he unwinds with an hour of play, we are already starting dinner and bedtime routine. On the weekends he only really has one day off so I feel like it's not fair to make him sit then too. I don't know. I do feel guilty because I know he would be advancing much more if we practiced at home. But on the other hand, all those hours at school they don't teach him life skills, so I feel like I need to focus on those. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691866 Sun, 05 Feb 2017 07:37:13 +0000 looch 2691866@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: So, to answer a few questions first...my son's main teacher is also a first year teacher. I was concerned about her ability to have materials, but that is addressed by the fact that there is a lead teacher that kind of keeps everyone on track and provides materials. </p> <p>Before I begin, I wanted to mention something that the principal said at one point...that reading isn't something that comes naturally to all humans, like spoken language. It clued me in to the fact that some of us have to work at it, while some of us might pick it up easier. It also was comforting to hear them talk about the literacy program across the district and the state...they have invested a lot of time and money into choosing the programs and materials because they understand the importance of being able to read in today's world.</p> <p>In terms of literacy, there is a full time Literacy Specialist at the school. It is her job to work with at risk students as well as to provide support to the teachers in terms of materials. I spoke to her for about 45 minutes in January, she was a fountain of knowledge.</p> <p>There are also several programs that the school district pays for, RAZ kids is the reading program. It has leveled books that the kids can both listen to and read aloud for "points" to build robots or some crazy stuff. There is also a program you can purchase, it's called GetEpic. For about $5 a month, you have access to a ton of books, again, at all levels. Might be worth looking into for materials.</p> <p>I found a sample of some material that came home, they seem to use Primary Phonics. Look it up on amazon. I know the subject matter isn't so fantastic, but the words are chosen so that a reader can be both challenged and accomplished at the same time.</p> <p>Classroom instruction for reading specifically is done via Power Teams. This means that the kids are grouped according to ability, in our case they use DIBELS to measure them. There are 6 kinder classes and each teacher has a level. The kids across the 6 classes are grouped, meaning that they may go to another class for this instruction. I think this is key, because there is no way one teacher can successfully address all the different reading levels that might be present in once class, not to mention the different types of learners! A book comes home about twice a week. Then, there are the comprehension worksheets I mentioned before. Those come in the homework package (all 6 classes of kids get the same packet).</p> <p>One more thing I found to work was a game called Pop for Sight words by Learning Resources, again, found on amazon. My son didn't react well to traditional flash cards, but for some reason, this game made him excited to learn them. </p> <p>Lastly, I would ask about what kind of screening they do for kids with learning disabilities. It's never to early to know what you're dealing with. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691860 Sun, 05 Feb 2017 06:27:59 +0000 brownie 2691860@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>As a woh parent we honestly don't do much reading. We put our efforts into weekends and whenever we can. But it's either sleep or reading and sleep wins out. He gets some time during after school care to do reading. He gets one book each week from school and has it memorized by the time we pick him up on Monday. </p> <p>As for leveled books it is so frustrating because they are either monotonous (the books school gives him) "I see the x, I see the y". Or they are too hard. I finally found a set at Barnes and nobles that was perfect but has very very limited titles. <a href="http://www.americanreadingathome.com" rel="nofollow">http://www.americanreadingathome.com</a> </p> <p>We have bribed him with earning Pokemon cards for reading specific numbers of pages. And then we integrate reading whenever we can. So we try to get him to read his Pokemon cards or video games. We try to get him to read signs and stuff when we are out. </p> <p>But honestly during the week we are in su rival mode and reading is prioritized out. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691834 Sat, 04 Feb 2017 22:02:55 +0000 Mrs Green Grass 2691834@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I really think the most important thing is that she enjoys reading. She will learn a ton just by you reading to her. My son and I will often alternate pages or character i.e. He reads elephant and I read piggie. Or I'll just pause a one word and he'all read that one... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691512 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:58:30 +0000 Mrs. Yoyo 2691512@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: I think these are well-worn books that all the teachers use for beginning readers, and I think they've been through at least one other neighborhood school. Some of them are not in great shape, lol.</p> <p>And as for Elephant and Piggie, I mean the Mo Willems series: </p> <p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_6?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&#038;field-keywords=mo+willems+elephant+and+piggie&#038;sprefix=mo+wil%2Cstripbooks%2C161&#038;crid=3L2TUJKVPPS01" rel="nofollow">https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_6?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&#038;field-keywords=mo+willems+elephant+and+piggie&#038;sprefix=mo+wil%2Cstripbooks%2C161&#038;crid=3L2TUJKVPPS01</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691511 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:56:17 +0000 MamaG 2691511@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our teachers at our school are fairly seasoned and I'm not sure who bought the books. But every kid in Kinder (100+ kids) has a book buddy bag and gets two books sent home. I've seen some of the books are scholastic and some are fairly old. We have read many of this style of books...<br /> <a href="https://clubs.scholastic.com/guided-science-readersand%238482%3B-spring-set/9780545463973-rco-us.html?cgid=N_6" rel="nofollow">https://clubs.scholastic.com/guided-science-readersand%238482%3B-spring-set/9780545463973-rco-us.html?cgid=N_6</a></p> <p><a href="https://clubs.scholastic.com/guided-science-readerand%238482%3B-pack-%28aand%23150%3Bd%29/9780545819176-rco-us.html?cgid=N_5" rel="nofollow">https://clubs.scholastic.com/guided-science-readerand%238482%3B-pack-%28aand%23150%3Bd%29/9780545819176-rco-us.html?cgid=N_5</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691508 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:49:23 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691508@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mamaof2: Thanks! Those look interesting. </p> <p>@honeybear: We may check those out. We just have the first set of Bob books and worked about 2/3 way through them. But they are SOO boring. </p> <p>@Pancakes: I dont think they have a reading group or a coach. I know they just did get a reading buddy but I'm sure thats only like a once a month type thing. </p> <p>@Mrs. Yoyo: Yes, I'm very surprised to hear ya'll say how much your teachers are sending home. Where are the teachers getting these resources/books? We have a first year teacher and I know she doesn't have a lot in the classroom. What are the Elephant and Piggie books? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691503 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:38:35 +0000 Mrs. Yoyo 2691503@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Oh, does she like Elephant and Piggie books? Those are often pretty simple with a lot of repetition but they're actually entertaining. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691502 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:35:00 +0000 Mrs. Yoyo 2691502@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I second the suggestion to get her teacher involved, since she'll have a good idea of her level. Ours has a take-home book program -- once she sees a kid starting to take off with reading, she starts sending home a few books at a time that are right on their level. We've progressed from tiny little ones to some decently long ones now. The idea is to read each one at least a few times, until they become fluent, ask comprehension questions so they actually understand what they're reading, too, and then send them back and exchange for new ones.</p> <p>Now, I will say that sometimes these books are kinda boring (some are cute, but most are stuff like "neighborhood helpers" and "good pets" etc.) and it can be hard to get him motivated when he's tired from school. I try to limit my harassment to one book on school nights; we hit them harder on the weekend. And yes, sometimes bribery is involved. I would be down with trying in the mornings sometimes if our school didn't start so early! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691488 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:09:35 +0000 Pancakes 2691488@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: Is she in a reading group at school? I would ask if her teacher can send home whatever they're reading at school, even if it's just one night a week. This is basically what my DD's teacher does, and it's very helpful to make the connection between what's happening in the classroom and it gives me an idea of the progress she's making. As for finding time to read, it really is hard. Maybe you can plan some built-in reading time during weekend mornings. I'll admit that we are very inconsistent about doing "homework" on weeknights. She has a monthly math caldenar that she usually completes over a course of 3 random days during the month, and we read to her at night but she is able to read fluently and silently to herself so she often reads to herself after we read to her. I probably only make her read out loud a couple times a week. It's definitely a challenge to fit it in and I SAH and only 1 other LO! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691483 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 15:01:38 +0000 honeybear 2691483@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: Oh, believe me, I know how boring the BOB books are (for both parent and child)! :silly: But they really are excellent for practice in the early stages, they're mercifully short, and they get quite a lot better as you go, so I'd recommend sticking with them. </p> <p>I Googled Lexia and saw two videos of levels 2 and 3. I'd get the BOB Collection 2 at Costco (or whatever sets on Amazon have "OK, Kids," "Floppy Mop," "The Red Car," and "Bed Bugs" in them), and then go through Collection 3 at Costco (or the sets with "Ten Men," "Samantha," "The Game," and "Chickens" in them). ETA: The sets will have more than just those books in them--I'm looking at my box sets and picking out some titles from the beginning, middle and end of the list, because I think the regular/Amazon sets contain fewer books per package. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691481 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:54:32 +0000 Mamaof2 2691481@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: here you go</p> <p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Pinkalicious-Phonics-Box-First-Read/dp/0062352156/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&#038;ie=UTF8&#038;qid=1486151639&#038;sr=1-4&#038;keywords=pinkalicious" rel="nofollow">https://www.amazon.com/Pinkalicious-Phonics-Box-First-Read/dp/0062352156/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&#038;ie=UTF8&#038;qid=1486151639&#038;sr=1-4&#038;keywords=pinkalicious</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691476 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:48:57 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691476@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mamaof2: Do you have a link? Again, the Level 1 reader books I have found still seem to be a bit advanced for her. I need things more on the BOB book level but interesting. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691474 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:48:23 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691474@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mamaof2: We read to her at night. Usually she's too tired to read to us without getting frustrated or we have DS with us (age 2) who isn't patient enough to listen to her sounding out words. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691472 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:47:33 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691472@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@honeybear: Your suggestion was great! But yes, our house is a circus. </p> <p>I love the worksheet idea because I can leave a stack of them on the desk or in the car for when we do have a few quiet moments. The early reader/BOB books dont always interest her or aren't at the right level. So I need ideas for WHAT to do too. </p> <p>I may need to look at more iPad games too. I think we have the hooked on phonics app that she hasn't played in a while. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691471 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:45:01 +0000 Mamaof2 2691471@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: are you reading to her each night before bed or do you not have time for that either?</p> <p>At bedtime, I have DD read a book to me (these are like Bob books but Pinkalicious) and then I read to her. 2 books, done.</p> <p>Also on bath night we practice sight words while she is in the tub and I add some new words to help with learning to sound them out </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691468 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:41:22 +0000 honeybear 2691468@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: I think I was typing while you were replying to others...and it sounds more like the issue is time, not what to do. That's why I recommended multitasking above. </p> <p>But (this is a huge BUT!) if she's having trouble concentrating because the house is like a 3-ring circus when it's most convenient to do it (which I totally get!), then you might have to rejigger the schedule to make sure she gets a little time. You can probably get through one of the easier BOB books in 5-10 minutes, so I'd do that at the least inconvenient point during family time. One of you can take care of the younger children and one of you can go off to a separate room to do the reading with her. Maybe even set the timer on your phone to buzz and whatever she gets done in 10 minutes is whatever gets done. Even 5 minutes a day adds up over the course of a week or month! I found that quick shots of reading were just right for LO when we were starting out. Stamina comes with time and experience. The more you do it, the better you get, and the better you get, the more fun it becomes. </p> <p>If sitting is the problem, there's no need to insist on any particular position for reading, so get some pillows for the floor or build a cushion fort or get into bed. As long as LO can see the page and isn't goofing off, I mostly let him read in whatever spot/position he wants. Chairs are not routinely used during reading time at our house. :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691465 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:38:32 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691465@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@looch: They use a program called Lexia on the computer. The teacher told us recently she's at a level 2 and the kindergarten goal was to be at level 3 by christmas. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691462 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:31:12 +0000 KayKay 2691462@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think I'd either try to do a little more in the mornings (where possible) or on the weekends, unless she is really demonstrating to you that she is interested and wants to do it at night. They have to do so much learning and adult-directed stuff during the day that, even though I'd love to work more with my kids when they come home, they are just burnt out and want to play pretend or have us read to them most nights. And I'm ok with that -- I wouldn't want someone telling me to do extra work after I get home from my work, either! :)</p> <p>So I'd just follow her lead and when she wants to read and practice, try and make it fun and games and totally what she wants to do. On the weekends when she is well-rested, you can try to find more dedicated time? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691453 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:23:02 +0000 honeybear 2691453@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: Start with the BOB books. If they're doing a phonetic program in class, those will be pretty complementary. Go sequentially and have her read them until the point where she stops breezing through them/needs more help, and then you'll know approximately where they are in school. There are a lot of sets of BOB books, so you might find that she flies through one entire set, but there are more and they get harder as you go. </p> <p>I wouldn't bother with the books labeled "Level 1" in most of the early readers section of the library/bookstore until after she's at least about halfway through the entire BOB collection. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691451 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:21:06 +0000 looch 2691451@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: Does the teacher think she needs extra help? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691450 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:20:53 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691450@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>ETA we have done lots of story telling, sight word flash cards in the car, post it notes of spelling words, etc. </p> <p>Its the actually sitting down and reading/sounding out words and staying focused we have trouble with. </p> <p>I'm going to check out the reading comprehension pages because I think that would be easy to print and have on hand for when we have just 2-3 minutes to spend with ehr. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691447 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:19:40 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691447@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@FaithFertility: Thanks. Some of the issue is we just dont have a lot of time alone with her and DH is doing her drop off/pick up. </p> <p>So he has from like 7:30-7:45 in the car in the drop off line that they will go over spelling words etc. </p> <p>Then, he picks her up about 5:15 and they get home at 5:30. If she has homework, they try to get it done while he starts dinner and before I get home with the babies at 6. </p> <p>From there, its a family affair from dinner at 6, clean up at 6:30 and PJs by 7. We really can't pull away from chores/kids to do 1:1 reading with her in that single hour we have as a family. If she's in a good mood, we can usually do 15 minutes with her at night, but she's often tired and just wants us to read to her. We recently got story cubes for christmas and she's loving those. She usually is ready to be asleep by 7:30 so that she can get up at 6:30 (no more naps). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691441 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:12:22 +0000 FaithFertility 2691441@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: Teacherspayteachers.com is an amazing website where teachers post resources! Some are free ) You can find leveled reading passages I am sure that would be great for her!</p> <p>Also maybe do a theme each night:<br /> Monday: Make words Monday where she practices Making Word families: Give her the word CAT and see how many _AT words she can write: Ex: bat, sat, mat, ......</p> <p>Tuesday: Tell me Tuesday: Have her Tell you a story (read to you)</p> <p>Wed: We read Wednesday: You read a sentence she echo reads and re read it to you (helps with fluency)</p> <p>Thursday: Talk Thursday: Read sight words to you</p> <p>Fri: Free day where she picks one??</p> <p>Keeping it brief 5-10 mins a night? or even in car </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691434 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:04:44 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2691434@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MamaG: Yes, its getting discouraging at home because a lot of the level 1 readers are still too hard for her. They use conjunctions like "It's" that she hasn't learned yet. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/finding-time-to-practice-reading#post-2691433 Fri, 03 Feb 2017 14:03:46 +0000 MamaG 2691433@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@T.H.O.U.: That's a bummer. My girl is currently reading "Level E", but most books that we own aren't leveled in the same manner. I would ask the teacher if they have books to send home or if they can give a list of books that would be appropriate. LO can read books that are more advanced than she receives, but for some reason her teacher isn't successful in seeing this at school. So we hammer on the books that come home. </p>