Great games to promote reading in your kid

Reading is an important skill that each child needs to master to be able to gather a wealth of information. It does not come naturally for many kids, so do not let your child miss on the joys with reading though entertaining and enjoyable reading games.

A few reading games that help improve literary skills of a kid:

a)Find an item:

The game meant for beginners keeps a child that is just learning to read to focus on the sound that each letter makes. Play this game in a playroom where your child has plenty of items to choose from; say the sound of a letter like “r” and challenge your child to find something that starts with it. The child should be able to say rag or roll; give her/him one point for each item one finds and then congratulate him/her for the points he/she earned.

Practice would make your child better in sounds and will lay the groundwork for him/her to sound words out as he/she begins to actually read words.

b) Find a word:

This game is meant for beginner readers; this game is a powerful way to allow your child to focus on content to practice reading and teach important concepts at the same time. This game can be played by a group of children or you and your child, if there are no other children.

Cut a piece of paper into squares and write a letter and category of words like animal or a food on each ensuring you skip uncommon letters, such as "q" and "x. Put the letters into a bowl and let each child draw one out a slip by turn. Tell your child what the letter and category is and let him/her write one word for each category; for example if the letter is “e” then elephant could be an animal and egg a food. Give your child 5 minutes to  write down the answers; do not insist on the correct spelling as spelling can be tricky for beginning readers.

Award a point for each correct answer; the child with the most points is the winner. You could promote the reading skills further by having your child write a sentence using as many of the words he came up with.

c) Pick a Stick

An ideal game for intermediate readers; place wooden craft sticks on which commands like "hop on your left foot 10 times" or "turn in 4 circles" is written in a plastic cup. Each child draws a stick out of the cup, reads it and performs the action; he/she gets a point if successful. This game continues till all the sticks are exhausted; the winner is the one with the most points.

      
This game not only boosts reading skills, but also  reinforces reading skills already learned, such as recognizing sight words and number words. It also engages both sides of the brain as the whole body is engaged that proves to be helpful in improving reading skills and becoming a more advanced reader.

d) Cover a passage

 This is a game for advanced readers; it involves asking the child to read a passage from his/her favorite book/magazine, covering the passage   and then reciting what he/she just read.  Reading skills are best improved by  choosing material that will engage and interest your child. Award a point for each passage she recites correctly, and award yourself a point if she leaves out words or forgets portions.

Gradually make the passages longer as you play and ask questions to jog your child's memory. Through this game you would not only provide your child with an opportunity to read content, but also to learn new things as he/she reads.

To conclude reading games are fun and build reading skills, but they cannot be a replacement for reading to your child; make time to read to your child even if your child can read independently.

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