teaching a child to read

[Xordium]

Just taught my 3 year old to read. Make sure as others have said she understands the sounds rather than the actual letters themselves. Jolly Phonics is good and kids enjoy it. You still need to work in "tricky" words like "the" etc but they soon get them.

It's only a problem when people start teaching kids "ay" "bee" "sea" etc.

 

[AHarvey]

Thanks for the links and comments, lots to read and go through. Its more important that it is fun to keep her interested.

My Mum started me with the Ladybird series of books (Combined with the various visual aids/posters etc) when I was two.

This was the early 60's however, but it worked for me and there is no reason why a similar strategy shouldn't work for you.

I had read the Hobbit by the time I was four (And a lot more besides. As far as my unfortunate primary school teachers were concerned I was a horrible child! After all what would some poor female primary school teacher in the late 60's know about answering questions asked by a 6/7 year old about Nuclear Fission anyway! )

Unfortunately, while I learned to read, I never really learned "Literacy" I cannot really write and my reading isn't actually as good as I might have implied. I tend to skim read. IE i can cover a lot of ground quickly but I miss stuff and I cannot read out loud unprepared (I have to read through it first)

It is possible that early reading, unless carefully managed, might actually be a mixed blessing.

You sound like me, Stephen King by 5 although i struggled with the hobbit at that age. Never enjoyed English at school though.

Is she at nursery already? Or soon to go? I'm really bad on when kids start nursery/school/etc. But I'd ask the nursery/school she's at or going into, if I was you. So you're both using (or will be using) the same method.

If I was me, I'd ask my speech therapist mother who's worked in primary education for ages, or my ex-primary school teacher father, but that's not very helpful to you .

She is at nursery but I'm not sure what they teach or how, she is already smarter than some of the staff there tbh ;p worth asking though.