Hi there!

I’m Becky, a former elementary school teacher turned certified child development therapist and blogger. I work at home with my husband and together we are raising (and partially homeschooling) our four children in the Carolinas. I love diet coke, ice cream, and spending time with my family.

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15 Comments

  1. This is great! My son is an early reader and I’ve been wondering how much he’s been comprehending. These questions are great and I was able to see that he really does understand! Thanks!

  2. This is so helpful! I kind of knew/forgot a few of these tips, but I was struggling with my kindergartner having gone from being an E-G reader to a D by the time school is coming to a close according to her progress report. She can fly through a book but I know I have lapsed on helping her with comprehension. Obviously the teacher hasn’t 🙂 This is my fault and an effect of being too busy. Looks like summer “fun” reading work to add to our list! Thanks!!!

    1. lol- I feel like I slack more towards the end of the year, too, but just use the summer to catch up. Most kids lose 2-3 months of learning in the summer, so if you are working with your child and they gain a few months or even stay the same, thing about what an advantage that will be next year! 🙂 Keep on keeping on! 😉

  3. These are great tips. I really liked that the importance of comprehension is highlighted. If children just learn to sound out words they don’t really understand the purpose of reading and they don’t get the joy out of it.

    Questions like, ‘Where do we start reading?” “Can you show me a sentence?’ ‘Where does the word begin?’ Are all great ways to get children engaged on reading, writing and understanding text.

  4. I think if NO is not an acceptable answer to the question “Does this remind you of anything?”, than the question is not fair. The question should then be “What does this remind you of”. Just my two cents. Otherwise this is a great article. I am homeschooling my son and I’m noticing some comprehension issues, so this is very helpful. Thanks. (btw found you through Pinterest.

    1. I couldn’t agree more, but that is the question that is in many school-provided curriculum questions. I just tell our kids constantly “even when they say ‘does this remind you of anything’, you think of something.” It always drove me crazy as a teacher & I would tell them ‘No isn’t enough… tell me SOMETHING.” but some teachers just won’t ‘fish for answers’ like that. 🙂

  5. This is definitely something Grandparents can help out with. Oftentimes, it’s difficult for Mom’s to find the time to read with children, especially if they work. But Grandparents can fill in on the days they are able to spend time with the children. Great tips! Thank you.