It’s easy for kids to become lax on their reading habits. First graders are developing reading skills, and, for some children, consistent practice may be necessary to make sure they don’t lose proficiency.

Worried that your child will focus too much on games and fun and stop reading during those winter holidays?

Read While Cooking

Thanksgiving and winter holidays (like Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa) may mean baking up or mixing up special family recipes. Short recipes may be the perfect way to encourage younger children to read for fun, without them even knowing that the recipes are reading practice!

First graders might only be able to read simpler text, so parents can ask kids to read the list of ingredients or encourage them to try to read simple instructions. Need to head to the store to pick up extra ingredients and supplies? Ask children to help read the grocery list and find all those tasty items!

Create a Holiday Wish List

If your family celebrates Christmas, have children write up their holiday wish list. Collect catalogs or ads for children to find all the items they want to include on their list. If children believe in Santa Claus, parents can ask them to write their list as a letter to Santa. Have children read over their letter before they send it!

Plan a Nightly Time to Read Together

Parents may have an extended time to spend with children, thanks to the holidays. Plan a time each night to read to children or encourage children to read a story aloud (if they can read independently). Let kids choose their own books or theme the reading for Thanksgiving or upcoming winter holidays. This is a great opportunity to encourage children to read about the pilgrims! Or choose books that focus on holiday traditions. 

Take a Trip to a Bookstore or Library

While libraries or stores might not be open on Thanksgiving Day, the other days during Thanksgiving break might be ideal for browsing and helping kids pick out books. Let kids search for their own books; what they select might surprise you.

Depending on where you live, bookstores or libraries may have special guidelines related to Covid. To make sure you know current hours and policies, call ahead before visiting.

Create Realistic Reading Goals

Kids should still read regularly during break, but parents may give the clock a rest. Instead, set page goals. Or if the books are short, then set goals related to reading multiple short books each night.

Parents also can take the lead and read to kids. To make reading fun, choose a theme for each night. Not sure what theme to choose? How about gratitude! Have children make a list of five things for which they are grateful and read books related to one item on the list each night.

Play Reading Games

While books are always the best bet for reading practice, parents also can let children play reading games during the break for practice. Need to work on sight words? Take children on a sight word scavenger hunt. Have children write down their sight words, and then challenge them to find those words during errands or other activities. They can find the words anywhere: posters, signs, products, etc.

Parents also can download reading games. Just be sure to read the app’s details to make sure the game is a good fit for a child’s needs. Parents also can read the app’s reviews for more insight. If a game offers in-app purchases, make sure these are disabled so parents don’t get any surprise charges!

For children who need to work on comprehension, make a reading comprehension beach ball (or buy one). Write prompts or questions on each section of the ball, toss it to your child and have them answer the question or prompt that faces up.

Use a Reading App at Home

Parents can download a reading app at home to help kids practice reading during the holiday breaks. Before downloading a reading app, parents should research the features and benefits to ensure the app is beneficial and appropriate to the child’s needs or reading struggles. For example, Readability is appropriate for children who need help with phonics and comprehension.

An app also should advance appropriately for each child. Readability includes a built-in AI tutor that helps children correct pronunciation errors and also asks questions related to comprehension. Children will not advance to the next level until (and unless) they display proficiency. This ensures that lessons are never too easy or too difficult.

Since most apps require that parents pay a monthly fee (or, at least, pay for the app), look for apps that offer a free trial period. A free trial allows parents and their child to better understand features and benefits.

Interested in trying out Readability? Sign up for a free seven-day trial today!

The month of October is often filled with trips to pumpkin patches, apple picking and maybe even hayrides. For many families and their kids, October also means Halloween and preparing for a night of trick-or-treating, costumes…and candy! October, though, features a full harvest of holidays. In fact, every day of October is marked with a unique holiday.

To commemorate all the holidays during this cool month of autumn, celebrate with a book! The site National Today lists every holiday associated with October; we have included a holiday for every day of this month, as well as some book recommendations to keep your kids reading and learning about each holiday! National Today includes multiple holidays for each day, and, for brevity sake, we chose the most kid-appropriate festivities.

October 1: National Fire Pup Day

Find a book all about Dalmatians, the white dog with lots of black spots that is synonymous with firefighters. Find out why this dog came to be associated with fire protection and learn more about other breeds that assist firefighters every day.

October 2: National Smile Day

Ask your child what makes them happy…and find a book that makes them smile!

October 3: National Poetry Day

To celebrate National Poetry Day (a holiday in the U.K.), seek out children’s poets and books of poetry. One of the best poets for kids? Shel Silverstein! Parents also can introduce their kids to poets like Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, or Langston Hughes.

October 4: World Animal Day

Have your child read about their favorite animal and learn about animal welfare. Find books about what this animal eats, where they live and their daily habits.

October 5: National Child Health Day

Today, find books all about health and how to stay healthy. Help your child learn about the importance of the foods they eat and how exercise helps our body. This may be a good day to even look at books on bones and the body’s internal systems.

October 6: National Mad Hatter Day

Who was the Mad Hatter? Why was he mad? Find books on Alice, her adventures and, of course, the Mad Hatter.

October 7: National Frappe Day

Yes, National Frappe Day is the only holiday on October 7. Parents don’t have to educate kids on this sweet drink, but they can use today to find books all about different cultural food and drinks. Frappes are actually a Greek beverage.

October 8: National Depression Screening Day

It’s never too early to talk to a child about mental health—especially during a pandemic. To open up the discussion, read books about emotions and how it’s ok—and healthy—to express them.

October 9: World Post Day

This day marks a celebration of “…the anniversary of the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in the Swiss Capital, Bern.” The holiday is marked around the world, though. Read books about the postal service in the U.S.

October 10: National Cake Decorating Day

Recipes are a great way to practice reading…and reading comprehension. Bake a cake and decorate it any way you like today!

October 11: National Sausage Pizza Day

Love sausage pizza? Bake one up today and read books about pizza!

October 12: Columbus Day

Read books about Christopher Columbus and talk to kids about this holiday.

October 13: Navy Birthday

What is the Navy? Read all about this sector of the U.S. military and its role in the protection of our country.

October 14: National Fossil Day

This is the day to grab up books about dinosaurs and prehistoric eras. Learn about how fossils form, the different types of fossils and how these pieces of history are dated.

October 15: Global Handwashing Day

Celebrate—and read about—good hygiene! While not many books may have plots about hand washing, kids can read about different types of bacteria and organisms. Yucky!

October 16: Global Cat Day

This day is about protecting cats—especially outdoor or feral cats. Children can read a book about cats today.

October 17: Sweetest Day

Read all about the sweetest desserts, candies and confections in different countries. Your child may want to find books on their favorite candy or dessert. Maybe eat some sweets to celebrate!

October 18: National Chocolate Cupcake Day

Get baking, and read recipes today! Celebrate National Chocolate Cupcake Day by baking up chocolate cupcakes.

October 19: National New Friends Day

Read books about friendships and how to be a good friend.

October 20: National Day on Writing

Today, instead of reading, encourage your child to write their own book or story.

October 21: National Reptile Awareness Day

Read a book about a favorite reptile. This is the day to read all about snakes, lizards and turtles/tortoises and the issues facing these creatures.

October 22: National Nut Day

The nuttiest of holidays! Read books all about nuts; there are plenty of children’s books with nuts. Some even have furry, fuzzy, cute squirrels as the main character!

October 23: National Mole Day

This isn’t a day celebrating the animal, but, rather, the number! Learn all about Avogadro’s number and the meaning of the mole.  

October 24: National Bologna Day

What is in that famous lunch meat? Learn all about the humble meat!

October 25: National Art Day

Encourage your child to read about a favorite artist or to learn about art techniques, paintings or sculptures. You can also celebrate by encouraging your child to create their own work of art!

October 26: National Pumpkin Day

Read books about pumpkins today! You may even carve the family pumpkin to celebrate this festival fall holiday.

October 27: National Black Cat Day

Read about the myths and superstitions associated with this cat.

October 28: National Immigrants Day

Did your family immigrate to the United States? Many did. Learn about immigration, and the first immigrants.

October 29: National Internet Day

Read all about the internet and how this online world came to exist.

October 30: National Candy Corn Day

Who invented candy corn? Find out today. And maybe make some candy corn crafts!

October 31: Halloween

Read books all about this spooky and fun holiday! You can even use a Halloween theme for reading rewards this month.

This month, your child may be anticipating the candy, costumes and fun of Halloween, but there is so much more to celebrate. Read a book to commemorate all the wild and fun holidays throughout October. Visit National Today to learn about other holidays throughout the month that we couldn’t include. Happy October!

Some children avoid reading because of reading struggles, but others may not like to read. This could be related to feeling that reading is just another homework assignment given to them by teachers. Or maybe they just haven’t found a book genre that speaks to them. If a child doesn’t read consistently, they may fall behind in proficiency because they simply aren’t reading enough.

Here’s how to improve kids’ reading ability (and their motivation!) if they are disinterested in books and disengaged while reading.

Let Them Choose Their Books

Teachers in higher grade levels may assign books that the entire class must read. In this case, a child will not have a choice regarding what is read at school. However, reading time at home is a different story…literally!

Parents should let children explore topics that interest them. Let kids pick out their own books. While libraries may be closed during the pandemic, many will let members request books for pick-up. Or parents can download books for use on e-reader platforms.

How can parents figure out what books a child likes? Brainstorm with them! Grab a piece of paper and set a stopwatch for two minutes. During that time, encourage kids to list all the subjects, places, people and ideas that interest them. After the two minutes, review the list together. Then look for books on their level that fall in these interest areas.

Create a Rewards System

Kids may need a little motivation to read, and a rewards system can help. Create a reading program at home that includes both reading goals and reading rewards. Get creative and crafty; design a reading chart that allows kids to place stickers or stamps every time they hit a reading goal. These goals can be set in reading minutes, number of pages read or the number of books read each month. 

Don’t make goals too easy or too hard. Create rewards that are simple and fun—they don’t have to be expensive! Rewards can include extra time for online play, a later weekend bedtime, additional privileges or even small tokens like pencils and erasers. Create a goal and rewards system that works for your child.

Read the Book and Watch the Movie as a Family

If a child is reading a book that has been adapted to the big screen, host a family book-movie night! Here’s the catch, though. The entire family needs to read the book together. Depending on the ages of family members this may mean that everyone reads independently, or parents can read to younger children.

Ask questions about the book after every chapter; talk about the events and characters. Then host a movie night and watch the adaptation. You may even consider munching on story-themed snacks.

Make Sure Kids Read On Their Level

Reading frustration can stem from kids trying to read a book that’s too hard. Maybe they want to read the same book as their friend—who might be on a higher reading level. Encourage children to always read on their own level, and at their own speed. 

Reading isn’t a race, and books should be chosen to fit the abilities of the reader. If a child doesn’t read on their level, they may miss parts of the plot and simply disengage. The more kids read, the better readers they can become…and that means choosing harder books when they are ready! Understood provides guidance on how to find appropriate books on your child’s level.

Turn off the Stopwatch

Yes, your child’s teacher may have instructed 20 minutes of reading a night. Setting the clock, though, may cause kids to see reading as an activity that has to be finished just to run out the clock. A timer also may encourage kids to give up the book when they are engrossed in the plot. If a child reads for an hour on both Saturday and Sunday, they’ve still clocked more minutes than their peers who read for 20 minutes during the week. Kids should read regularly, and they should set weekly reading goals that meet classroom expectations. Forget about the traditional reading log!

Ask for Help

While goals, rewards, interesting books and some creativity may inspire kids to read more, they still may struggle with comprehension or fluency. If a child is struggling, reach out to the teacher and ask for help or guidance.

Your child’s teacher may be able to give advice on how to best help them at home, or the teacher may initiate further reading evaluations. Parents should trust their gut instinct; they know their child best. Sometimes a teacher can provide reassurance that everything is ok, but they also can be the best resource if more help is needed.

Use a Reading App at Home

As many parents are at home with children supervising virtual learning, they may utilize reading apps or reading programs online to help children with reading fundamentals. There are many programs available that are designed to make children better readers or to help struggling readers; investigate the options and utilize trial periods to better understand the program’s features and capabilities.

Readability offers lessons that can help children who struggle with fluency and comprehension. A built-in AI tutor provides assistance if a child has difficulty with pronunciation or if they stumble during lessons. The tutor also asks comprehension questions after each story to gauge understanding. Parents can sign up for a free-seven day trial period to better understand if Readability is a fit for their child; the trial provides access to all features.

Ready to try Readability? Begin a free trial today!

Depending on where you live, Covid restrictions may be ramping up again. Or maybe restrictions have relaxed a bit. Regardless, life as we know it has changed. Many kids faced canceled sports and a canceled in person fall semester, and home is now the epicenter of our limited environment. Television shows, online games and chats may be the way to stay connected. And perhaps these virtual means of entertainment are getting dull and tiresome. Mix up the routine—literally—and help kids practice reading, too. Cook up some reading with your family recipes while kids are stuck at home!  

Yes, reading and following recipes is an easy way to get kids to read and allow them to take an active role in the kitchen. Of course, the end result is great food…and some happy memories.

Ready to get cooking? Here’s some helpful hints on how to turn dinner or lunch prep into a fun literacy lesson.

Pick Your Recipes

Choose recipes that are meaningful to your family. These can be favorite dishes or family secret recipes. Family recipes are unique and can make kids feel connected to their relatives and their culture. When choosing recipes, keep in mind:

Time. Kids don’t have unlimited patience. Choose recipes that don’t try a child’s patience. Fancy dishes that take hours probably aren’t a wise choice. Homemade mac and cheese that can be prepped in half-an-hour is a great choice, though!

Kid-friendly foods. Also choose recipes you know your kids will eat. Or at least try to eat. Choosing unique or new recipes is fine, and it may encourage kids to try new foods. Cooking a recipe gets them involved and helps them feel vested in the meal. If you know your kid is a picky eater, though, it may be best to stick with something they love.

Difficulty. Too many steps in a recipe could cause a child to become frustrated. Cooking together is a bonding experience and it should be fun. Avoid recipes that can overwhelm kids.

Kid-appropriate prep. Some recipes call for a LOT of chopping, cutting, pureeing, etc. If the recipe involves too many steps that aren’t kid-friendly or appropriate for a child, maybe select something else. Otherwise, your child may be sitting on the sidelines bored. PBS offers several great recipes to cook with kids.

Gather the Ingredients

Before you start cooking or prepping, have your child read all the ingredients needed for the recipe. Then go on an ingredient scavenger hunt (sight words may be among those ingredients) to make sure you have everything you need to make the meal. Missing something? Head to the store and have your child help you find all the missing items.

Get Cooking…and Reading

If you’re cooking with more than one child, have them alternate reading the recipe. Or, if you’re cooking an entire dinner together with multiple recipes, designate a recipe for each child.

Let your child read each step of the recipe as needed. Then ask them what the directions mean. Reading recipes requires cooks to comprehend the meaning of those steps; this is why parents should ask questions during the recipe prep.

Have your child help you as you prepare each step of the recipe (unless the step isn’t safe for a child!). If your child stumbles over a word, encourage them to sound it out…and help them as needed.

Measuring and Math

Recipes aren’t just a great way to encourage children to read, but cooking also encourages them to hone their math skills. Let children measure out ingredients; put all the measuring cups and spoons on the counter and let them choose the appropriate option. If they struggle, help them figure out what to select.

Measuring wet ingredients can get messy, and kids will need to pay attention to measuring lines on the cups. Before prep begins, parents should let children look at the measuring cups to see lines and measurements and understand how these tools work.

When recipes need to be doubled, grab a piece of paper and pencil and help children figure out the right amounts. Exercises in doubling recipes may be best suited to older elementary-age children, however.

Celebrating—and Eating!—the End Result

The best part about using recipes for reading exercises is that there is a tasty reward at the end. Kids also may feel a sense of accomplishment after completing the different tasks and directions needed to create a dish. Compliment kids on a job—and a dish—well done!

When the Dish…Flops

Cooking mishaps happen to everyone. A missed ingredient or skipped step can turn a tasty dish into an inedible mess. Maybe the dish was overcooked or undercooked. If your dinner turns into a flop, use it as a teaching lesson.

Talk to kids about what went wrong. Explain that sometimes mistakes happen, and that’s ok. Learning is all about making mistakes. At some point or another, even the best cooks have made a mistake.

When the dish flops, make something simple. Or order out. Then get back into the kitchen and try again. After all, practice makes perfect…in reading and cooking!

Schools across the country have elected to begin the fall semester virtually; while methodologies and online curriculum may vary, parents will need to take an active role to keep kids on target and hitting necessary benchmarks. Parents of struggling readers who are served by an individualized education plan (IEP), a 504 plan or those whose children receive extra intervention for reading may wonder how services will be provided. Administration of these specialized services should be addressed by the districts, but parents also can help struggling readers at home by using a reading improvement app.

Here are eight great reasons why Readability is the best reading improvement app for your child.

Leveled Reading for Every Ability

Readability provides lessons and stories that are appropriate for every child’s reading ability. When a child begins lessons, parents can select the level that is right for their child. The programmed AI tutor also can assess the child’s reading level and set content accordingly.

As the child progresses with reading fluency and comprehension, the tutor will accelerate them to the next reading level. The program will not advance until a child has exhibited fluency and mastery.

Appropriate Content for Struggling Readers

Many children who struggle to read may have difficulty finding stories that interest them or that are age-appropriate. This can cause them embarrassment or maybe even perpetuate reading avoidance.

Not only are Readability’s stories designed to meet every child’s literacy needs, but content is never boring or ‘babyish.’ Struggling readers won’t be forced to read stories that are geared to a younger age-group. All content is age-appropriate and engaging.

Stories are Interactive to Promote Engagement

Engaging stories need to include interactive features to encourage children to immerse in the story and reading experience. All books and stories include interactive features and colorful illustrations.

In addition, auditory learners will love the AI tutor, which helps correct any pronunciation errors and engages children in dialogue about the book (with comprehension questions).

Readability is Expert and Teacher Approved

Reading programs should deliver results, and parents should trust their methodologies, too. Readability is approved by both literacy experts and teachers. Parents can trust that lessons will deliver results and help their child become a more fluent and confident reader.

Donna Nomann-Loomis, a reading expert with a Master’s Degree in Education from Chapman University talked about the importance of reading and the benefits of using Readability:

“Reading is the most powerful key towards success in education. Reading also opens children to a whole world of discovery where they can imagine themselves as doctors, astronauts, artists and so much more. Readability is using cutting edge technology to give children the tools they need to improve their reading and expand their horizons.”

Readability Features Comprehension with IVQA™

Interactive Voice based Questions & Answers (IVQA™) is the comprehension platform that is built into Readability. IVQA is led by the AI tutor; the tutor will ask your child questions about the story. These aren’t simple ‘yes’ and ‘no’ questions that enable a child to easily guess an answer. The comprehension questions encourage children to think deeper about the story and about what they’ve read and understood from the text. If a child answers these questions incorrectly, the system will not move them forward.

The Parent Dashboard Keeps Parents In the Loop

Parents need to know if a reading program is helping their child and meeting their needs. To ensure parents understand their child’s reading progress, Readability provides a Parent Dashboard to serve as the information hub. The Dashboard shows parents how long their child used the program, their reading progress and their IVQA scores. Parents stay informed about their child’s progress and can better gauge the efficacy of the program.

Children Can Use Readability Anywhere

Parents can download Readability on a PC, a laptop, a phone or a tablet. This means that kids can use the program during road trips, at home, while a sibling is at a sports practice, or even on vacation. Use Readability wherever you need it and encourage children to keep reading!

Parents Can Try Readability for Free!

Reading programs are an investment, and parents should feel confident that the program is right for their child…and a good investment for the money. Parents can try out Readability for free for seven days and let their child explore the stories and features of the program.

Children can utilize the AI tutor and read stories during the trial. All features and capabilities of the program are accessible during the trial period. 

Ready to try Readability for free? Sign up today!

Children are great and fast learners. They are often learning and absorbing information without even realizing it.

Many kids learn how to read fairly quickly, but some new readers often struggle with understanding what they are reading. Sometimes it can be an indicator of learning disability, but often it is a matter of not being able to remember what they had read.

If your child is struggling with reading comprehension, you might want to incorporate ways for how to improve reading retention. Reading retention is an important skill to improve in your child’s reading process because it really determines if your child can understand the text. 

What is reading retention?

Reading retention is essentially how much of the text you can remember and recall.

It is important to note the differences between reading comprehension and reading retention. Reading comprehension is understanding and enjoying what you are reading at the moment. Your child is able to read a sentence and immediately understand the meaning of it.

However, reading retention is how much information from the text your child is able to recall later on. 

What are the ways to help my child remember what they read? 

Improving reading retention is simply all about practice, practice, and practice. You can help your child improve this important reading skill by giving them many opportunities and ways to practice recalling information from what they have read.

In some cases, it might also help to give them different ways to review what they have read and even new ways of reading materials.

• Discuss what they are reading – A great way to improve your child’s reading retention is to talk to them several times about what they are reading. This can help you find out what information they actually were able to retain and what information they could not. 

Having discussions about the books and materials they are reading also helps to create a stronger bond between parents and children.

• Repetition – Your child should read texts at least three or four times to be able to learn and remember the information. They should start by previewing the text which includes looking at titles and headings as well as skimming paragraphs or pages.

Then, they should read the text once over just naturally. Finally, they should go back and read the text and make notes or annotations to help them retain information or make note of things they do not understand.

It can take up to 14 exposures for a child to learn a new word, so it is important that they reread texts in order to get as many exposures as possible to improve their memory and learning.

• Taking notes – Note taking and annotations are learning tools that are often taught and suggested to older students and especially in college. However, younger students and new readers can and should utilize these reading tools, too!

Studies have shown that actually handwriting notes can help remember important information better because writing stimulates an area of the brain called the RAS (reticular activating system), which filters and brings clarity to the information we’re focusing on,” according to Maud Purcell, a psychotherapist and journaling expert.

Encouraging your child to write notes and annotations can help them retain the information from texts better and helps them to become a better read overall.

• Writing reflections – Along with writing notes, it is important to have your child take some time to reflect and think about what they have read.

Writing a reflection can also give them a chance to organize the information in a way that is meaningful for them and can help them make connections to things they are familiar with, which can help them retain information from readings better.

• Go slowly – If your child is struggling to retain information from what they are reading, it could help to slow down their reading pace. Instead of having them read a book or text all at one time in one go, break up the reading into parts then have them read that portion, make notes, and reflect.

Then when they are done with that section, they can move on to the next section of the material.

Slowing down the reading process for them can help them find the main ideas and important information easier rather than becoming overwhelmed with all the information being thrown at them.

• Try reading apps – Reading apps can be a great tool to use to get your child to enjoy reading as well as improve their reading retention. There are a wide variety of apps to choose from, but the right app will provide enough practice materials and enough opportunities for exposure. 

For example, Readability is a great app specifically to improve reading retention because it provides several ways for a child to read a story.

Your child has the option of reading the story aloud themselves and the apps listens to them reading then gives your child feedback and error correction. They can also have the app read to them as they follow along.

The app also helps to make sure they retain the information through the built-in Interactive Voice based Questions & Answers that asks them questions about the story.

Improving reading retention early on in your child’s reading journey is extremely important because it is a skill they will need to rely on throughout their education and life. Retaining information from the class readings they are assigned is the primary way they learn new concepts.

Reading retention is a life-long skill that your child will use all the time. So, making sure they are practicing and improving reading retention by using tools such as Readability can make a world of difference in their learning and life skills.