Tip #83 from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents (McKinley & Trombly) - Reading Mistakes
Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly.
#83
Making
Sense of Reading Mistakes (How to Figure out Unknown Words)
Remember:
The main purpose for reading is to gain meaning from text, not just to say the
words.
When you are listening to
your child read aloud, you may be a bit unsure of what to do if she reads a
word incorrectly. You may think you need to correct her right away so you don't
forget. Or maybe you hate to mention it for fear of hurting her feelings. If
this issue has ever perplexed you before, here are some tips based on research
to make reading together a rewarding experience for both of you.
Studies show that is best
to correct any miscues (reading a word incorrectly) gently sooner rather than
later (such as the end of the paragraph or page) and then listing them all. However,
it is extremely important to give ample wait time. This means to allow your
child time to correct her own miscue by waiting, at least, until the end of the
sentence. This way, if she is truly reading for meaning, she will probably
notice her mistake herself and go back and attempt to correct it on her own.
(Ultimately, the amount of time you give will depend on your child's age,
reading ability, what she is reading, the purpose for reading it, and generally
just what feels right.) If she doesn’t stop on her own, though, you might
simply ask, “Did that make sense?” and let her figure out where she missed a
word.
If she does attempt to
figure out a difficult word but is clearly having trouble, here are some
strategies that you can teach her to determine an unknown word:
● Context.
Use the context of the sentence to determine what word(s) would make sense
there. You might show her how to say "blank" for the tough word and
reread the entire sentence. This might be all it would take for her to figure
it out.
● First
letter. Of all words that might make sense, which start with that letter?
● Chunks.
Are there any chunks—or word parts—inside the word with which she is familiar? For
example, caterpillar can be broken
into known chunks such as cat and pill.)
● Illustrations.
If there are illustrations in the story, they are often very helpful.
If these attempts all fail, tell her the word. Do not feel the need to correct any miscues that do not make a difference in the meaning of the sentence. Many children reading for meaning may read "mom" for "mother" or say "he said" instead of "he suggested.” After all, the purpose of reading isn't to say all the words correctly but to understand the message so miscues that do not affect meaning should be ignored.
You might suggest that your child reread a sentence again after all words have been decoded. This will help not only with fluency but also with comprehension because she will be able to hear the entire sentence completely, now with no interruptions that may make her lose her train of thought. If an entire section has been particularly difficult, with many places she has had to pause to decode words, you might suggest she reread that whole part so that she can understand it better.
Cindy McKinley Alder Patti Trombly
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