When Do Kids Learn How to Read, and What Can You Do to Help Them?

Even as babies, kids build reading skills that set the foundation for learning to read. Hearing and responding to the sound of a human voice and learning from the best preschool curriculum in Boynton Beach, FL, can help them acquire the ability to comprehend and communicate through reading and writing, unlocking opportunities for their future.

Every kid develops their reading skills at their own pace. However, there are certain milestones you can expect depending on their age. We developed this informative article to help you understand this crucial time and learn how to foster it.

When Do Kids Start Learning How to Read?

Even as babies, kids start building the reading skills that will set the foundation for learning in the future. While each kid develops at their own pace, there are some milestones you can look out for, like:

Babies

Kids only respond to the pictures and feel of books during their first year of age. Even so, introducing books at this time of growth can help them get used to these mysterious objects that carry unique stories.

There are soft-covered books specially designed for babies with no pointy edges, unique textures to touch and experience, cooing or making sounds—and plastic-based paper that holds against baby drool.

They will still need help turning pages and pressing buttons that trigger unique sounds.

Toddlers

At ages 1 to 2, kids can now look at pictures and name familiar items, like dogs, cups, foods, and clothing. They will even answer questions about what they see in books and recognize the covers of their favorites. If they’re passionate about a particular book, you might notice them turning pages and making up stories. This indicates that your baby is eager to decipher that mysterious code.

Preschoolers

Once they’ve reached 2 to 4 years old, kids can hold and handle a book correctly. They’re already going to preschool, so they’re regularly getting an influx of information and being encouraged to learn how to understand and recite letters.

They are aware that pages are read from top to bottom and words are read from left to right. They can begin correlating letter sounds to letters, repeating stories, and knowing around half of the alphabet. In print, they could even recognize their name.

Kindergartners

Kindergarteners can now associate each letter with the sound it stands for. They can begin to link words they hear to words they see on the page and recognize the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in spoken words like “dog” and “sit.”

They can respond to questions about a tale and recount it chronologically if you ask them who, what, where, when, why, and how. They will now begin reading or requesting books for pleasure.

Younger Grade-Schoolers

Between ages 6 and 7, kids will start learning spelling rules. The number of words they can recognize keeps increasing, along with their reading speed and fluency. Moreover, they’ll begin to use context clues to learn to understand unfamiliar words.

If a sentence doesn’t make sense, they’ll go back and re-read it, which is known as self-monitoring. They’ll slowly learn how to connect what they read to their personal experiences and feelings and other books they’ve read.

Older Grade-Schoolers

Now, at ages 8–10, children transition from learning to read to reading to learn. They can correctly read words with several syllables and begin understanding things like root words, prefixes, and suffixes.

They will gradually begin reading for new, different reasons, including pleasure, education, and even determining directions. They will try out new genres and learn to explain a story’s location, characters, problem/solution, and storyline.

Additionally, kids will learn how to draw conclusions—also referred to as “reading between the lines”—and compare and contrast data from other sources. Your child will eventually be able to comprehend metaphors, similes, and other descriptive techniques.

Middle-Schoolers and High-Schoolers

As children begin reading increasingly difficult literature during these crucial years, their vocabulary will continue to grow.

They can now evaluate how characters grow, engage with one another, and progress the plot. They can identify the concepts being addressed and comprehend how the main narrative and its subplots evolve throughout the text.

As their studies become more challenging, they will learn how to employ textual evidence to assist text analysis. They will comprehend irony, humor, sarcasm, and understatement and analyze, synthesize, and assess ideas from the text.

How to Teach Your Kid to Read the Bible

If you’re Christian, one reason literature is especially important for you is that it opens the door to reading and understanding the Bible for your kids. While there may be various years to come before they can read the sacred text on their own, various resources can help introduce them to it, even at an early age.

• Read with Them: The Bible is a big and rich book. You can schedule regular 15-minute Bible readings during which you explore the passages together. Afterward, ask them which one was their favorite and what they liked about it, and give them a space to share their feelings.
• Start with The Book of Proverbs: A common worry about parents is about the less “child-friendly” parts of the Bible. From wars to crimes, the sacred scriptures cover topics that may feel a little bit harsh for a young child. If that’s your case, you can start with proverbs. These more accessible parts can get them close to the word of God while providing timeless wisdom for your child.
• Apply the Knowledge: Encourage your kids to think about ways to apply what they’ve learned after reading. Whether it’s helping others by donating toys or taking extra chores at home, give them space to figure out how they can apply the teachings of the Bible in their own daily actions.

Foster Your Kid’s Education with the Best Preschool Curriculum in Boynton Beach, FL

Literacy, the ability to comprehend and communicate through reading and writing, is one of the most important things your kid will learn throughout their life. This journey begins as babies and will continue throughout their lives as they learn new words and explore more ways to use the written word.

By then, they’ll be beyond your influence—but you can do all you can to introduce them to books while they’re kids. Here at Neighborhood Kids, we understand how crucial this is. That’s why we’re always encouraging our students to read and learn. If you’d like to learn more about our curriculum, reach out!