The cluster of skills that fall under the category of executive functioning are vital for all students, but not all students have an easy time developing them. These skills help students in school and beyond.

Some students who are neurodiverse have more challenges developing executive function skills. This doesn’t mean they can’t develop them, just that they need extra guidance and support. Neurodiversity means that everyone develops differently, and some forms of neurodiversity make developing executive function a different process from what many of us think of as “teaching.”

What Is Executive Function?

Executive function is learned and practiced. It is not a natural process. What is gained from executive functioning relates and intertwines early learning and social skills starting in childhood and through adolescence, building a foundation for managing adulthood.

Executive functioning is a set of skills that include:

• Self-control
• Focus
• Planning ahead and meeting goals
• Following complex of multi-step directions 
• Prioritizing tasks
• Making informed decisions
• Revising plans
• Looking at things from different angles

The Truth About Executive Dysfunction

Executive dysfunction is not the result of lawfulness or bad behavior. It is an indication of a variety of neurodiverse conditions that include but are not limited to ADD/ADHD, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, epilepsy, OCD, and Tourrette’s syndrome. Many of these conditions appear as behavioral problems, but often they have underlying causes that can create learning disabilities. That dyslexia and dyscalculia are also neurodiverse conditions emphasizes this point.

The good news is that building executive skills is like lifting weights for the brain. Executive function is a product of the prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain that regulates emotion and assists in decision making and risk management. Strengthening the prefrontal cortex is like strengthening any muscle. It just requires a different form of exercise.

Executive dysfunction can manifest in a variety of ways. Being unable to discern social cues, stay organized, or be on time are just a few ways executive dysfunction can interfere with everyday life. These are factors that can extend into adulthood if the skills aren’t built early.

As with any talent, some students seem to develop and maintain these skills with ease. Others need help and support rather than the assumption that these skills have not been built out of willfulness or a penchant for misbehavior. Punishing students for executive dysfunction will often discourage them further, creating even more frustration and acting out.

Adapting to Different Learning Styles

Even students with few challenges from neurodiversity learn in ways that best adapt their strengths. Some students are confused by hearing step-by-step instructions, but if allowed to perform the task as it’s being explained, can use this hands-on experience to grasp it. Others need to see a demonstration, or read it to themselves rather than having it explained by another.

Most students find their own best learning style, but students struggling with neurodiversity challenges may have difficulty figuring out their strengths. Fortunately, there are a variety of techniques educators use to help neurodiverse students. These techniques can be applied at home, too, giving parents plenty of opportunities to provide support and encouragement at home.

Here are a few things you can do to help the neurodiverse student in your life.

• Make Use of Apps 

Apps are prevalent all over our portable devices. Mobile phones and tablets have apps that we can use to track how much food we eat, remind us to drink water, and design workout routines for us. Almost everyone uses some app or another to help them navigate through life. Neurodiverse students can benefit from apps in numerous ways.

Organization apps can be used to help neurodiverse students to keep track of due dates and set reminders for classes and appointments. These apps can include fun, familiar characters and rewards for meeting goals.

Learning apps can help teach academic disciplines such as reading, writing and foreign languages in ways that fit neurodiverse learning styles. Using graphics, music, user experience, and gamification, apps can make learning entertaining, giving neurodiverse students a boost of confidence while promoting the sense of playing a game.

• Vary Your Approach

There are a myriad of ways our technology has enhanced learning, many of which can provide support to neurodiverse students. Apps on mobile devices are merely portable support. At home, smart devices can be added to your home hub to help students manage their time and establish good habits.

Lighting has been shown to have an influence on all of us, as screens have been shown to trigger parts of our brain that keep us awake. Smart lighting can help set a mood for activity, and a mood for winding down.

Video game consoles and computers are providing games that require players to stand up and exercise, maybe even learning skills as varied as fitness, guitar, or dance. Like their mobile counterparts, these can provide new ways of learning that can enhance skills such as practicing multi-step tasks and focusing. Video format has also long been used to demonstrate complex tasks, but smart TVs and video games allow students to participate in the demonstration.

• Use Visual Aids

Signs are for guiding people, and can be especially useful to support students who are neurodiverse. Signs, pictures and symbols are easily and quickly understood and can help improve executive function skills by associating concepts.

Students who struggle with reading might have an easier time understanding words when they can see them in action and learn to associate the sounds with the letters. Diagrams and lists can help students stay organized in tasks as varied as cleaning up one’s room and putting together a model.

Other visual aids can serve as reminders around the house. Signs and labels can provide cues to perform certain tasks, such as brushing teeth or taking off shoes. Post-It notes have been helping remind people about things for years, and now come in bright colors and designs that can improve organization. A small note with an encouraging word can also provide a boost to self-esteem and social functioning.

• Involve the Student in Creating Strategies

Every individual student knows what they are comfortable with and what they find enjoyable. That’s why it’s a good idea for each student to be involved in any plan designed to improve executive function skills. If learning is an experience that is fun, neurodiverse students will engage in it more eagerly.

This can take a bit of trial and error. It’s important to keep an eye on how the student responds to different activities. This can help inform the introduction of new activities based on things the student already enjoys. It is vital to work with the student frequently to explore new strategies and re-evaluate the effectiveness of existing strategies.

Further, this can improve the social elements of executive function skills by giving the student a sense of accomplishment. When students can see their progress, it helps them build self-esteem and provides them tools for coping skills.

• Be Hands-On

Sometimes, a neurodiverse student needs some extra help when it comes to strengthening executive function skills. This means sitting down and working with them directly, explaining things step by step and guiding them all the way through. 

When neurodiverse students struggle, it can increase their frustration and demotivate them from learning. Working closely with them in these situations can help teach them to manage their emotions and focus under pressure, while providing them comfort that can also model self-soothing skills.

Building Blocks for Life

Executive function skills are not just for school. They are important tools for navigating college, the workplace, and social situations. Learning them lasts into adulthood, ensuring that kids grow up to navigate the world effectively. Neurodiverse students may face extra challenges, but you can help them adapt and thrive with patience and compassion.

Spelling tests were once a common facet of elementary education. Every week and in nearly every grade level, students were given a list of words to memorize. Perhaps they even had to write a sentence using these words.

At the end of the week, the students were tested on how to spell their weekly list of words. The focus on spelling also required that children were taught common word structure rules like “I before e except after c or when sounding like “A” as  in neighbor and weight.” Now, many school districts are ditching the spelling tests. Instead, children are being taught to ‘sound spell’ words.

What’s the problem with ditching these tests? Children who struggle to spell also could struggle with reading and writing. All these skills tie together. After all, if a child knows that ‘ei’ sounds like ‘ay’ as in neighbor and weight, they haven’t just found a clue about how to spell the word they also have been given a clue on how to sound out the word, too.

An article published in Educational Psychology Review in March 2021 noted that 250 schools have ditched the spelling test, and that many states don’t include spelling as part of standardized tests. The article posited the important question: “Does spelling still matter?”

Why Spelling Matters

Schools that ditch spelling tests could rely on studies and white papers to explain the curriculum changes. Education strategies change often, and teaching methodologies evolve.

Does sound spelling work, though? Is it enough for children to gain proficiency in understanding how letters are correctly arranged to form a word?

Some students could be fine with learning how to spell based on context and word recognition. In addition, technology has changed the world drastically from the days when spelling tests were mandatory.

Today’s computer programs include spell check and even grammar check. Students will see a word highlighted when it’s incorrectly spelled, and the program will show them how the word should be written. These tools are convenient, but are they reliable?

In an article titled “How Spelling Supports Reading,” writer Louisa C. Moats explains that for children with learning disabilities or those with poor spelling ability, spell check won’t always be a reliable tool for predicting a correct word.

Moats referenced a study that discussed the inaccuracy of spell checkers. In her article, Motes noted that these tools “…catch just 30 to 80 percent of misspellings overall (partly because they miss errors like here vs. hear), and that spell checkers identified the target word from the misspellings of students with learning disabilities only 53 percent of the time.”

How Spelling Can Change Everything

Parents don’t necessarily have control over their school district dropping spelling tests or even spelling instruction. Ultimately, the school’s curriculum is decided by the district and must adhere to state guidelines, too.

Does spelling matter? Parents should not assume that because a district chooses to ditch weekly spelling tests that this means that spelling fluency is no longer a meaningful or important skill. In fact, spelling—correct spelling—can change the meaning of a sentence.

Think about homonyms like “their or there” or “deer or dear.” If a child spells a word how it sounds, they could compose a sentence that is seemingly incoherent.  They also could write a paragraph that creates a different meaning than what is intended. Words matter, and finding the right word to write matters too.

Does Spelling Impact Reading?

Spelling can impact writing; Moats noted in her article that fluent spelling impacts writing; she explains that if a writer has to think about spelling a word correctly, they can’t focus on content. The same could hold true for children.

How does spelling impact reading, though? That answer is a bit more interesting and a little complicated, too. Moats noted that in 2000 the National Reading Panel (NRP) decided to do away with spelling (and writing) as part of reading lessons.

Typically, spelling was part of reading instruction. Older Millennials, Generation X and Baby Boomers probably remember reading, writing and spelling lumped into ‘English.’

Why did NRP do away with the spelling component? Moats explains that the NRP “…implied that spelling would develop in response to appropriate reading instruction.” This belief was rooted in newer understanding related to spelling and how children learned to spell. She noted, though, that a recent study threw this implication or assumption upside down.

According to Moats, “A group of researchers in Houston who followed children from first through fourth grade found that spelling achievement can plummet while reading comprehension holds steady at about the 50th percentile.”

Basically, children weren’t always learning to spell from reading instruction. They weren’t learning how to spell from context. They were holding steady in their comprehension, but their spelling ability didn’t always correlate with reading comprehension.

The researchers who conducted the study, which included 1,342 students across 127 classrooms (in high-poverty schools), found that better spellers were also better readers. In addition, while children were still average in reading comprehension, their spelling proficiency was decreasing.

How to Teach Spelling at Home

The study by Houston researchers noted that better spellers were better readers. In addition, it’s also clear that spelling can improve writing ability. If this skill is no longer being taught in the classroom, how can parents help their children become proficient spellers?

The best way to help children with spelling might be to embrace the past. The article in Educational Psychology Review referenced a book that was often used to help schools teach spelling. The book is the Horn-Ashbaugh Speller, and it was published more than a century ago (in 1920). Parents can still find copies of the book.

In addition, there are many books that also offer lists of spelling words. Parents can do a quick search for spelling books to check out all the options. The site SpellQuiz.com also includes spelling lists through 12th grade.

Teaching children how to spell might simply be focused on skill and drill. Parents can review spelling words with children at any grade level, but starting early is always a great idea.

Parents can provide a weekly spelling list for children to memorize. Review these words with children and help them practice their spelling proficiency. Parents also might need to teach familiar lessons (like the I before E rule).

Spelling, for many children, might be a bit like memorizing multiplication facts (which some schools have also dropped). Learning to spell might simply be focused on helping children understand the patterns of words to remember how each word is created and designed.

Spelling Games to Play

Children can learn through play. To help children learn spelling skills, parents can incorporate games and activities. There are apps that are designed as games that can help children with spelling. Some of these might be created as crossword puzzle designs.  Games like Scrabble and Bananagrams also help children use letters to create words and can challenge their mind, too.

An app called Spellbee includes more than 65,000 words that children can learn to spell. This app also could help them prepare for a local spelling competition. The app is free to download but it does offer in-app purchases.

Can a Reading App Help Children Learn to Spell?

For children who struggle to read, a reading app can be used at home to help children gain reading fluency and comprehension mastery, too. Apps like Readability also could help children with vocabulary and spelling.

Every book in Readability includes a vocabulary list. In addition, when children are reading in the app, they can tap any word in a story to hear the definition of the word or hear it used in a sentence. In this way, Readability helps children expand their vocabulary and learn how to pronounce (and read) new words.

Every word that a child discovers is included in their master vocabulary list. Children always have access to their list, and they can practice and review the words and definitions as often as they wish.

Children read stories aloud in Readability. The program features a built-in AI tutor that learns each child’s voice, and the tutor provides assistance when or if the child struggles during a lesson. The tutor can help if a child is unable to decode a word or seems to be struggling.

Understanding the context and meaning of a story also is integral to the literacy journey. At the end of each story, the AI tutor asks the child questions about the story. If a child answers the question incorrectly, the tutor shows them a section from the story that can help them answer the question. The tutor also reads the section aloud.

The child will then have the opportunity to answer the question again. By helping children learn how to identify clues in the text, Readability reinforces another important reading skill: re-reading. Children who struggle with comprehension might find that reviewing a section or going back to an earlier page of the book can help them gain understanding.

Parents who want to help their child gain reading proficiency can explore Readability for free by signing up for a trial period. Readability offers a free seven-day trial that lets children explore all the features of the program. Start exploring the app today!

Helping a child with homework can sometimes be difficult for parents. Lessons change and classroom instruction also evolves as educators gain deeper insight to the efficacy of specific strategies. Some children struggle with the fundamentals of literacy; parents might struggle on how to help children boost their reading fluency and comprehension.

Even if children haven’t fallen too far behind grade-level expectations, providing reading instruction at home isn’t always easy. The good news is that there are so many ways to help struggling readers. Here are 20 tips on how to improve your child’s reading.

1.   Identify a child’s struggles.

When parents want to help a child, they need to know how to help. Talk to the child’s teacher to better understand a child’s unique struggles. Some children might need help with letter sounds and identification. Children also could struggle with reading fluency or reading comprehension.

2.   Ditch the clock.

Stop timing daily reading. While educators might specify that children need to read 15 to 30 minutes per night, some children read longer per day and then don’t read as much another day. Aim for balance, but setting the clock could distract a struggling reader or make them more anxious. Focus on quality reading minutes not clocked reading minutes.

3.   Create a reading environment conducive to the child’s needs.

Does the child become easily distracted by noise? When helping a child with any subject or lesson, create a learning environment that is conducive to learning for that child’s needs. Ask a child where they wish to read; create a reading habitat with pillows or just sit together on the couch. If a child is distracted by siblings, go read somewhere quiet.

4.   Create an interest/disinterest list.

Encourage children to create a list of their interests and disinterests. This can help parents find books that will hold the child’s attention. Children also can specify if they prefer longer or shorter books, chapters or no chapters, etc. The goal is to find the best books to help every reader feel comfortable and confident.

5.   Stay on their level.

To encourage reading practice and to better help children who struggle with reading, parents should understand their reading level. Most schools send reading reports home that includes information on the child’s reading level (this could be a range). Use this information to ensure children are choosing books that aren’t too easy or too difficult.

6.   Give children the choice.

While parents need to ensure that children are reading at their appropriate level, parents also shouldn’t force a child to read books selected by parents. Instead, let children choose the books they wish to read. This is why creating a reading interest list could be beneficial.

7.   Read to children.

While reading to children might seem counterintuitive to helping them gain reading fluency and confidence, reading aloud to children can engage them in the story. Parents should ask questions about the story as they read to ensure the child is following the story and understands what is happening. For younger readers, ask questions focused on the w/h prompts: who, what, where, when, why and how.

8.   Ask children to read with parents.

While parents can and should read to children, they also can alternate between reading the story and asking the child to read aloud. Consider this a group reading effort. Help children sound out words that may be difficult for them and provide guidance as needed.

9.   Practice sight words.

Children in lower elementary grades will typically need to memorize and master a list of sight words. Practice these lists frequently. While flashcards are the easiest way to skill and drill these words, playing sight word games can be much more amusing for children. Mix play and learning by creating a match game using sight words or play Go Fish with sight word cards. For Go Fish, parents should make four cards for each word (play the game as normal). For a match game, just make two cards for each sight word; shuffle the deck, place them face down and take turns choosing matches (children should say the word when they flip the card).

10.   Read poetry together.

Poets who write for children create poems that entertain children and can even be a bit silly. Poetry is fun for children to read as it often features rhyming and a joyful cadence. When children read poetry, they can practice fluency and work on phonics, too.

11.   Be a reading example.

Children might not feel encouraged to read if they never see their parents read. Parents can schedule family reading time where everyone sits together quietly and reads a book. Families might even create their own book club; just make sure that book selections are at everyone’s reading level.

12.   Teach text chunking.

Children who have difficulty with reading fluency and/or reading comprehension can benefit from chunking text. Parents can teach children to cover up a portion of the page and focus only on one paragraph or ‘chunk’ of the page. Make sure children understand this portion before encouraging them to move on.

13.   Re-reading can help children with comprehension.

Sometimes the mind is filled with other thoughts and it can be difficult to focus while reading. It’s ok to go back and re-read a section or even a whole chapter. In fact, this technique can help children as they grow older; re-reading encourages mastery. Some readers might need to consistently go back and review.

14.   Re-reading favorite stories can help with understanding, too.

Re-reading isn’t always just focused on reviewing a page or chapter that wasn’t understood. Some children—and adults—often find a favorite book and read it again and again. Reading a book several times can help children spot new ideas or even details that they might have missed. Plus, re-reading a favorite story can help children gain fluency and confidence. If a child is familiar with a story, encourage them to read it to parents.

15.   Say yes to all reading materials.

Every type of printed medium can help a child to become a better reader. Newspapers, magazines, instruction manuals, comic strips, comic books, and graphic novels all encourage reading. If a child is reading a magazine, they are still reading. Don’t place a higher importance on one material over another; encourage children to read a variety of books and materials.

16.    Let children read with their ears.

Children who struggle to sound out words and are behind in reading fluency might benefit from reading with their ears. Parents can utilize audiobooks to further their child’s reading enrichment. Children can follow along in the book while they also listen to the narration. Listening to a story can help children understand the emotions of characters and even learn new vocabulary.

17.   Use worksheets to guide instruction.

There are several online sites that provide reading worksheets that parents can use at home to help their child with fluency and other skills. In addition, teachers might be able to provide additional enrichment worksheets that parents can use at home to help their child.

18.   Make reading a habit.

Reading should be a regular habit for children. However, this doesn’t just mean that children should be formally reading a book, magazine or other materials. Parents should encourage reading in daily life; ask about a particular sign in a store, let children help with dinner by reading a recipe, or even give children the task of reading the grocery list at the store to help parents. Reading is a life skill that is needed everywhere.

19.   Use visual prompts like a graphic organizer or a reading comprehension bookmark.

Visual prompts can help children remember what they need to think about as they read, or they can encourage children to further analyze what they read. Examples of visual prompts include a graphic organizer or a reading comprehension bookmark. Graphic organizers can be found online; these are worksheets that include blank spaces for children to write details about the book.

Graphic organizers can be focused on a different literary component—like theme, characters, plot, etc. A reading comprehension bookmark can include a list of prompts for children to think about while reading or they can include space for notes.

20.   Use a reading app to help children with fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

Parents might want to provide their child with a more formalized approach to help boost their reading proficiency. A reading app like Readability can provide children with guidance to help them with fluency, comprehension and vocabulary.

Readability includes a built-in AI tutor that is designed with voice-recognition software; this allows it to understand each child’s voice. Children read books aloud in the program, and the tutor listens for any concerns. When a child struggles, the tutor recognizes that the child is having difficulty and provides help.

The tutor also asks children questions about the book to test their comprehension. If a child chooses the wrong answer, the tutor will show the section of the story that provides clues to the answer. The tutor also will read the text aloud, and the child can have a second chance to answer the question. This helps show children that sometimes it’s necessary to re-read or look back to gain understanding.

Not every program is ideal for every child, but parents can sign up for a free seven-day trial of Readability to better understand the program and let the child become familiar with the program. Sign up for a free trial today to help a struggling reader gain confidence and proficiency.

Regardless of their grade in elementary school, children need to read regularly. Many schools assign reading minutes to help ensure that children read outside of the classroom. While some children have difficulty with reading, others might avoid it because they just don’t like to read.

For most children, there is one surefire way to help improve reading skills. The answer is simple, and parents might not like it. The best way to improve reading is to encourage them to read on a regular basis.

The more a child reads, the more confident they may become in their reading ability. However, some children might have a learning disorder that makes reading more difficult. They may require extra enrichment or specialized reading instruction.

How to Help Children Read More

For children who don’t struggle but who need to become more fluent readers, here are five ways to encourage them to read and help them read more often:

• Create a rewards system

• Read the book, watch the movie

• Don’t judge the book a child chooses

• Read aloud to kids

• Use a reading program

Create a Rewards System

Reading rewards don’t work for all children, but some feel incredibly motivated when they can visualize their progress and earn a prize. If parents think back to their own childhood, they might realize that they benefited from reading rewards, too.

In the 1980s, many schools started to participate in a program sponsored by Pizza Hut called the BOOK IT! Program, which gave each child a badge. When a child finished a book, they could take the badge (or button) to their local Pizza Hut and receive a star sticker. When the student accumulated a specific number of stars, they earned a free personal pan pizza.

The Book It program still exists, and many schools participate. Schools also could participate in other reading programs that offer a unique rewards system or they could create their own.

At home, parents can design a rewards system that helps to support their child’s reading goals. Let children create a chart that shows their progress. Parents can set prize levels after a specific number of reading minutes or when the child reads a certain number of books.

Prizes don’t have to be tangible. Parents can reward children with privileges like extra screen time or something else that motivates their child.

Read the Book, Watch the Movie

Many children’s books have been adapted to the big screen. Make the book come to life by letting the child watch the movie after they finish the book.

After the movie, ask the child about the differences between the book and the movie. Did the main character look the way that the child pictured them? Imagination Soup offers an extensive list of children’s books that are now movies.

Don’t Judge the Book a Child Chooses

Letting a child choose their own books helps them discover the genres, authors and characters they prefer. When parents choose a book, reading can begin to feel like homework.

While it’s important to let children explore the library and find their favorite books, parents also need to avoid judging a child’s book choice. Parents could have specific books a child isn’t allowed to read because of mature content, and these stipulations are a family decision.

When a child chooses a book, though, that is grade and age appropriate, parents might need to step back and reserve any judgment. A child might love to read history books or even mysteries. Meanwhile, parents might prefer their child to read award-winning books.

If a child is enjoying the book, let them read. The act of reading is about learning but it’s also about enjoyment. Again, the more a child reads, the better they may become.

Read Aloud to Kids of All Ages

A child isn’t too old to hear a story. Listening to stories and enjoying story time never really stops being enjoyable. Adults may even love it, and some adults prefer books on tape.

While children should read independently, it’s also ok for parents to read aloud to them. Children can read one book independently, and a parent can read them a more difficult book aloud.

Hearing a story read aloud also could help children relax, and reading can be a comforting bedtime ritual. Pick out a fun book and read to both older kids and younger kids.

Use a Reading App or Program

Children who struggle to read could benefit from using a reading app like Readability. Reading apps are all designed differently. With Readability, children read books aloud. The program includes a built-in AI reading tutor that recognizes the child’s voice; when a child struggles with a word, the reading tutor provides assistance.

Readability’s AI tutor also can help children who struggle with comprehension. At the end of each story, the AI tutor asks questions about the book to test a child’s understanding. If the child chooses the incorrect answer, the tutor will show them the section of the book that provides information to help answer the question and the tutor will read it aloud to them. The child then will be able to answer the question again.

In this way, Readability reinforces the importance of going back and re-reading to improve comprehension. Re-reading can help children better understand the content and also pick up on details that they might have missed.

Children also are encouraged to explore stories as they read. Each Readability story includes a list of vocabulary words, but children can tap any word in the story to hear the definition of the word or hear it used in a sentence. Every word the child discovers is added to their word bank.

How Can Parents Help Children Enjoy Reading?

While parents can embrace a rewards system, read to their children, encourage them to explore and choose books or even use a reading program, some children may just not love to read. How can parents help children like reading?

Some children might have developed a dislike for reading because the act of reading was treated as something that they had to do. Parents also might have picked books for their child, and perhaps children grew to resent that they had no choice but to read a book that was forced on them.

Parents can let children read different materials to encourage them to read. Comic books, graphic novels and magazines all help children read more. Some children might love graphic novels; these books offer illustrations that help enhance the reading journey.

Comic books also can encourage children to read more. Parents may want to help children choose comics that are age-appropriate, though. Some comic books are best suited for young adults. However, there are many titles that are written specifically for children.

Ditching the clock also could help take some of the pressure off of a child when they read. While parents might think that setting a timer is helpful, the child could be distracted or even discouraged by it. Parents could help children set grade-level appropriate reading goals instead.  

Not all adults love reading, and not all children will love reading. However, parents can help them become better and more confident readers by helping them find a ‘like’ for books and stories.

Rain or snow can keep kids trapped indoors, and parents might look for ways to keep them entertained. Bad weather can be a great day for reading books and helping children become more confident readers.

Here’s how to improve reading fluency at home when kids are stuck inside during rainy, snowy weather or when days are just too cold for heading outdoors.

Use these reading activities to boost fluency:

• Reading races

• Read aloud

• Listen to stories

• Read poetry

• Write stories

• Use reading programs

Do All Kids Need Help with Reading Fluency?

All children can work on reading and improving their fluency and confidence. The more children read, the better they might be at reading. Enjoying books during snow days or indoor rainy days also can help children equate books with entertainment.

Books and quiet reading time or family reading activities can be a fun part of an indoor day. Make some hot cocoa and warm up with a good book!

What is Reading Fluency?

Reading fluency is measured in words read per minute. Reading fluency is how well a child can read without making a mistake. Fluency focuses on accurate decoding, but it also involves a child understanding how to detect emotion or action within a story.

When hearing a story read aloud, for example, a book won’t be entertaining if the reader simply reads the words without any inflection or emotion. Children need to be able to quickly decode words and read with confidence.

Some children struggle with decoding words. Children could require more enrichment or parents could utilize additional tools and resources to provide help for children who struggle with this reading skill.

How All Children Can Work on Reading Fluency

As children are learning to read, they advance through reading levels that pose additional challenges. As reading levels become harder, children may discover words become more difficult to pronounce. Not all words follow the traditional rules of pronunciation.

At home, all children can work on their reading confidence and fluency. However, most children won’t want to read if it feels like a lesson or homework. The goal for parents should be focused on encouraging children and creating an environment that presents reading as a fun activity.

Hold Reading Races

Children who need additional help with boosting their speed and fluency can practice their skills with reading races. Parents can participate, too! In fact, parents can mirror reading for their children through games like reading races.

Grab a stopwatch (smartphones have them!), and encourage children to read a paragraph aloud. The paragraph can be from a book, a magazine, etc. Parents could even have children read a page aloud.

Time children as they read. When they finish, record their time. In reading races, the goal is for a child to practice and beat their best reading time. Remember, the more a child reads, the better and more proficient they can become.

Parents can hold reading races to help children who struggle when reading aloud. During this activity, though, parents shouldn’t criticize. Make it fun. Encourage children.

Tell children not to focus too much on speed; this isn’t about reading fast, it’s about reading fluently and fluidly. Encourage children to focus on reading with confidence and on reading the passage meaningfully—using emotion and emphasizing words when necessary.

Read Aloud Together

Grab a book and read to children. Let children follow along as parents read. Parents also can encourage children to read a page, too. In fact, parents and children can alternate who reads and who listens to the story.

Reading aloud together helps children hear the book and pick up meaning from the narrator. Encouraging children to read aloud helps them practice their reading and build confidence and fluency.

Some children can stumble as they read; parents should encourage them to sound out words. However, parents also can provide help if children can’t decipher a word.

When read to or with children, ask questions about the story. Talk to children about what they think might happen next.

If children are reading aloud to parents, make sure the book is on their reading level. A book that is too difficult or beyond their reading level can result in a child feeling frustrated.

Listen to Books and Stories

Listening to books and stories also can help children with reading fluency. Use audiobooks to let children hear the story as they follow along. These books can help children better understand emotion and pick up on the action of stories by listening to the auditory cues of the narrator.

Smartphones provide access to audiobooks via apps like Apple Books; other ereader apps also might have the option for audiobooks, too. Parents can subscribe to services like Audible for a library of audiobooks or even check out audiobooks from their local library.

Read Poetry

Parents might focus on encouraging their child to read books to help improve reading fluency. However, parents might overlook one very important tool: poetry. What makes poetry so wonderful for helping children with fluency is their brevity and their cadence. 

The Literacy Junkie explains that poetry can also help with comprehension, too, as building fluency helps the reader with understanding the meaning.

Poetry is like a song; many poems are written with a specific flow and often include rhyming elements or words that simply mirror each other in syllables and sounds. Poetry is fun to read, and there are many poets who are focused on poetry for children.

One of the most beloved children’s poets is Shel Silverstein. His books include humorous poems that children love. Silverstein’s books are a joy to read at any age.

Write Books or Stories

Let children become an author on a rainy or dreary day. Encourage children to write their own story. Use printer paper or construction paper for the cover.

Parents might have children brainstorm ideas for their book and create a loose outline. Maybe children just make up the story as they go. Writing a book helps children identify and create characters and perhaps develop them, too. After writing the story, children can read it aloud to parents.

In addition, writing also makes children focus on how words are correctly spelled and how sentences are constructed. These also are important skills that aid reading fluency.

Use a Reading Program

Children who struggle with reading fluency might need additional enrichment or a more immersive lesson-based approach to help them meet grade-level benchmarks. Reading programs can provide a virtual tutoring opportunity to better guide struggling readers.

Readability focuses on helping children with both fluency and comprehension. Readability includes a built-in AI tutor that guides lessons on the program. When using Readability, children read stories aloud. If they stumble or need help, the tutor provides assistance. At the end of each story, the tutor also asks questions to test a child’s comprehension of what they read.

Children are encouraged to explore words in each book. Every book available on Readability includes a list of vocabulary words, but children can click any word in a story to hear the definition or hear the word used in a sentence. This feature helps children better learn how to pronounce each word correctly and boosts their vocabulary skills, too.

Children also can listen to their favorite Readability stories via the Storytime feature. Children can listen to a story in the car to a game, sports practice, on their way to school or even during a road trip. Readability provides the audiobook experience for children to use anywhere.

Parents might not know if a reading program will benefit their child. Parents can explore Readability with their child using a free seven-day trial. With a free trial, children can explore all the features of the program and use the AI tutor, too. Sign up today and start an online reading adventure!

On a rainy day, a snowy day or even during a long break like during the winter holidays or summer, parents might be looking for new activities to do with their children. Maybe they’ve visited all the local museums or explored all the parks. Perhaps it’s just so miserable that indoor activities are a must.

Parents also might look for ways to engage their child with more educational activities. Ready to get creative? Here’s how to improve your child reading by making wordless books at home.

What do parents and children need to make wordless books? Gather these supplies:

• Paper (construction paper or just plain white printer paper)

• A stapler (for easy book binding)

• Crayons or markers

• Glitter

• Stickers

• Stencils

What are Wordless Books?

Parents might be unfamiliar with the term ‘wordless book.’ What is a wordless book and how does it help reading?

A wordless book is a picture book without words. Yes, the book is only different pictures. These books encourage children to tell their own stories; they must think of plots, name characters and even figure out how the book will end.

Wordless books don’t help children read by decoding, but they do encourage creativity. They also help children understand that books have beginnings, middles and endings, too. Reading Rockets explains that wordless books also help with vocabulary, listening skills and even comprehension.

These books are more than just pictures or illustrations, they are doorways to creativity. Wordless books also are incredibly easy to make. There are no right or wrong creations. When a child creates their own wordless book, they may be writing or creating a story in their head as they are drawing pictures.

How to Make a Wordless Book

Writing or creating a wordless book is fun and it’s also really easy. The hardest part of the project might be deciding on the length of the book.

Provide children with a stack of blank pieces of paper. Tell them that they are going to create a book with only pictures. They can draw whatever they want. However, after they create their book, they will use the book to tell the story using only the pictures that they draw on the pages.

Make sure children understand that they don’t have to write any words on the page. Remember, wordless books are wordless!

Children can create their illustrations using whatever they want or whatever items parents have on hand. Parents can gather markers, crayons, stickers, glitter pens or glitter glue, or stencils.

When the story is ‘written,’ parents can staple all the pages together to create the book. Parents should encourage children to make a cover for their book, though. Let them illustrate the cover and write a title for their book. They also shouldn’t forget their author by-line.

50 Fun Ideas for Wordless Books

The ideas for creating wordless books are really endless. Children can create all kinds of colorful illustrations to tell stories of all genres. Parents can create their own wordless books to read with children, too.

When families are stuck inside and aren’t sure what type of books to create, here are fifty different themes to inspire literary or illustrative creativity. The themes will all be basic, because the rest is up to the creator.

1.   A dreary rainy day stuck indoors
2.   It’s a happy snow day!  
3.   Secrets inside an old house
4.   Finding buried treasure on a beach
5.   A visit to the local zoo
6.   The first day at a new school
7.   The first day of summer vacation
8.   An unspooky Halloween  
9.   Adopting a new pet
10.   Visiting a new country (children can even make up their own country)
11.   Getting new eyeglasses
12.   Visiting the pumpkin patch
13.   A fairytale adventure
14.   An outer space exploration
15.   Walking on the moon
16.   Creatures under the sea
17.   The most embarrassing day
18.   The best day ever
19.   Home sick from school
20.   Meeting a new friend
21.   The grossest thing I ever ate
22.   If I could fly
23.   If I was the President
24.   Going on a camping trip
25.   Going to the dentist
26.   Suddenly I have superpowers
27.   The greatest adventure
28.   If kids were in charge
29.   Ice cream and cake for dinner
30.   The day everything was backwards
31.   The coolest hero
32.   Stuck on a desert island
33.   A mystery delivery
34.   A day at Grandma and Grandpa’s house
35.   An undiscovered planet
36.   A story for sleeping
37.   Exploring a new park
38.   A fun road trip
39.   A day on the farm
40.   Finding a message in a bottle
41.   The carnival comes to town
42.   A snowy holiday
43.   The day it rained chocolate
44.   I’m in the Olympics
45.   If cars could fly
46.   If the toys really could talk
47.   My hamster saved the day
48.   I’m invisible for a day!
49.   A trip on a train
50.   A hot air balloon adventure

There are so many different ideas and themes for children to create their own wordless stories. Parents don’t have to insist that children pick from this list of ideas, although the themes could help spark a child’s imagination.

Even when a child sticks to a theme—like ‘If cars could fly’—the story will change every time the child and the parent reads the books. The illustrations might show certain scenes or depictions, but children can create new adventures from the same illustrations.

Characters could go on different adventures in the flying car. Something new could happen that didn’t in early tales. Pictures are worth more than 1,000 words, because with wordless books there are endless story opportunities.

Have fun creating and reading all the wordless stories and adventures!

Use a Reading App to Listen to Stories and Provide Extra Enrichment

Wordless books help children create their own stories, and they also can help with comprehension, listening skills and vocabulary, too. For children that need extra reading enrichment for reading fluency or comprehension, parents also can use apps like Readability to help them with their reading journey.

Readability is an app-based program, and it’s designed to be used on a tablet or a smartphone. Children read stories aloud, and Readability includes a built-in AI tutor that’s programmed to recognize their voice. When a child has trouble decoding a word, the tutor will offer help.

The tutor also asks questions at the end of each story to gauge comprehension. If a child answers a question incorrectly, the tutor will show the child a passage from the book that helps them answer the question. The tutor also reads this passage aloud.

Readability includes a Storytime feature that lets children listen to all their favorite Readability stories and follow along. Hearing the story can help children pick up on emotions of characters and perhaps help them identify pieces of information that they missed while reading.

Children can use Readability from preschool through fifth grade. Parents can follow their child’s reading progress through a portal called the Program Dashboard. This shows all the child’s reading data, including fluency (words read per minute), comprehension, time spent using Readability, the number of books read and the child’s reading level.

Interested in using Readability to further guide a child’s reading journey? Sign up for a free seven-day trial today!