Each year on March 2, we celebrate National Read Across America Day (Dr. Seuss’ birthday) with the goal of encouraging children to read for enjoyment and providing parents and families with the tools to help them do so.
Reading is at the core of learning and children who do more of it tend to be more successful in school. According to the International Reading Association, seven out of eight students with reading problems in first grade continue to struggle with reading in 9th grade. They get better but never catch up. Students reading on grade level read twice as much outside of school (thirty minutes a day), and students reading two grade levels above, read for a full hour a day outside of school on average.1
Parents play an extremely important role in encouraging and supporting their child in learning to read and continuously helping him/her strengthen his/her skills. Here are some tips supporting your child in becoming an awesome reader:
1. Stay engaged with your child's teachers to keep up with what’s going on in their classrooms. Ask teachers how you can make your child’s learning skills stronger.
2. Use the Library - your local public library is a wonderful place to start and continue your families reading journey. There are so many amazing resources onsite and online for parents/family members to sign up for, free, as well computers available at each location to use for job search, typing resumes and much more. Don’t have a library card? Now is an excellent time to get one for everyone in the household.
3. Subscribe to a Reading Rockets Growing Readers Newsletter for ongoing information and monthly tip sheets (available in English and Spanish) on raising strong readers and writers, http://www.readingrockets.org/newsletters/extras.
1. The Future of Children (2012). Literacy Challenges for the Twenty-First Century, VOLUME 22, NUMBER 2, FALL 2012.
