Did you know that learning to read is like unlocking a treasure chest full of knowledge, stories, and adventures? When you work on your reading skills, it gets easier for you to do things like playing new games, solving tricky math problems, or even exploring faraway places in your imagination. Also, the more you read, the better you get at sharing your ideas with other people. Plus, it's fun! When you find a great book or story, it feels like making a new friend.
Community and Family Involvement
Reading can be even more fun when everyone joins in. Libraries and community programs are great places to start. They often have great activities, like story times, book clubs, and summer reading challenges. These programs help make reading feel like an adventure that you share with others. At home, reading as a family is a great way to spend time together. You can take turns reading aloud, talking about stories, or even acting out scenes from your favorite books.
- Reading Is Fundamental (RIF): RIF offers programs, resources, and book giveaways to help children improve their reading skills and discover the joy of books.
- BOOK IT! Program: This program encourages kids to read more by giving them rewards like free pizza for reaching their reading goals.
- The Children's Reading Foundation: This nonprofit works all over America and Canada to help all kids learn to read by third grade.
- Every Child a Reader: Learn about this organization that runs programs to help kids have fun reading, including the "Get Caught Reading" campaign that features artists and athletes.
- Reach Out and Read: This group helps families make reading a part of everyday life by offering books and advice to kids and parents.
General Reading Resources
Reading is an important skill that helps you learn about the world and expand your imagination. But it's also a skill that you need to work on and get better at. You can get better at reading by learning the alphabet, practicing sight words, and reading stories. There are also fun games and worksheets you can use to help you learn.
- Sight Word Flash Cards: These flash cards focus on 15 critical sight words that you need to know how to read.
- High-Frequency Words Flash Cards: Print out these flash cards and use them to practice reading some of the most common words.
- Story Sequencing Activity: Use this activity to work on how to put together the events of a story in the right order, which is good practice for helping you to better understand what you read.
- Letters! Alphabet Learning Game: Here's a fun online tool to help you recognize and practice the ABCs.
- Printable Reading Logs for Kids: Track how much you read by printing out a fun, colorful form.
- Kindergarten Reading Activities: Parents can use this packet of ideas to help kids learn about the alphabet and start learning how to read.
- Sight Words Bingo: This bingo game can help you practice recognizing and reading common sight words.
- Reading Comprehension for Kids: Teachers and parents can use these activities to help kids learn to read and understand what they read.
Literacy Activities and Games
Learning to read can be fun when you try using activities and games to help you learn! You can play online games to practice sounding out words, use worksheets to learn tricky letter combinations, or even act out stories with friends.
- ABC Bingo: Play a fun version of bingo where you match letters and sounds to sharpen your alphabet skills.
- Phonics Hopscotch: Jump into learning with this printable hopscotch activity sheet that can help you practice letter sounds.
- Super Silly Story Starters: Create your own silly stories by starting with the ideas on this activity sheet.
- Spelling Bee: Compete in a virtual spelling bee to practice and improve your spelling skills.
- Matching Sight Words: Test your memory and practice reading by pairing sight words in this fun game.
- Battle Buddies Reading Game: Try to defeat the mighty beasts by answering questions about reading!
- Short Phonics Stories With Audio: This page has short stories that you can read and listen to to help you practice phonics.
- Reading Comprehension Workbook: Read the passages in this workbook and answer questions to test how well you understood what you read.
- Sentence Scramble Activity: This activity challenges you to unscramble jumbled words and form sentences.
- Downloadable Letter Sound Matching Game: Print out this game and match letters to their sounds to win.
- Alphabats: Rhyming Words: This fun game helps children identify and match rhyming words.
- Words That Rhyme: Play this game to get better at recognizing words that rhyme.
- Beginning Letter Sounds: Use these free, downloadable cards to match letters to pictures, better connecting letters and their sounds.
- Crossword Puzzle: Crossword puzzles are a fun tool to teach you about words and what they mean.
- Endangered Animals Crossword Puzzle: Try this crossword puzzle to learn words about animals.
- Word Work: Sentence Scramble: This activity lets you practice forming sentences by rearranging mixed-up words.
- Letter Blocks Game: In this online game, you need to click on the blocks to make words as new blocks fall into place. Don't let the screen fill up!
- Syllable Clapping Game: Here's a fun game that helps you to break words into syllables by clapping.
Read-Alongs and Virtual Story Times
Reading along while someone reads aloud can help you become a better reader. When you hear the words and see them on the page at the same time, it helps your brain make connections. You learn how words sound and look, and this makes it easier to read on your own. It's like following a leader until you feel ready to take the lead! Plus, it can make reading fun because you're doing it with someone else.
- Storyline Online: Storyline Online features lots of famous actors reading their favorite children's books out loud.
- Virtual Story Times: On this page, you'll find videos of stories read aloud by librarians, authors, and others.
- Hey-Ho, to Mars We'll Go!Watch this read-along (and sing-along) with a real-life astronaut at the International Space Station! Then, explore the site to find more stories read in space.
- PBS Kids Read-Alongs: Enjoy this collection of stories read by authors and famous people.
- At Home Storytime for Families: Find creative ideas to plan more memorable story times at home.
