1st grade free reading for a grade level reader?

[FairProspects]

In trying to schedule free read time for my 1st grader, I'm a bit confused.

 

I know that it is supposed to be below or on-grade level to improve fluency, but how does this work realistically with a kid that can only read at a 1st grade level and only reads aloud?

 

I mean, I could have him sit on the couch and read, but he is going to need me to sit with him and help him sound out words for the whole 30 minutes. Is that really what most people do every day in addition to other reading lessons? (We already read a short reader together and do a phonics lesson.)

 

I can see how this works really well for an independent reader, but how do you get your kid there when they are only in 1st grade?

 

P.S. Believe me, we have been working on this FOREVER - ds is making huge progress, but reading in general has been a struggle. Ds cannot move faster or do it by himself, so please don't suggest a change in phonics programs or tell me how easy learning to read was for your dc because while I think that is great, that is not our situation. I would love to hear from others who are in a similar situation and how they handled free reading time. Thanks!

[EmilyGF]

I don't think it makes any sense to have him read independently if he's still getting a lot of words wrong. Are there easier books you can find? Otherwise, you probably want to be with him.

 

My DS picks out his baby sister's board books to read during free reading time - things like Goodnight Moon and "The House that Jack Built."

 

I have compassion - I am a fluent German speaker but not reader. It is hard to build fluency when you still have to sound things out and reading is work, not fun. It helps me understand more of what it feels to be my child and to be able to speak (English) but need to work to read it.

 

Emily

[boscopup]

I think I'd personally just hold off on the independent reading time until he's capable of reading independently? It sounds like you're making great progress, so just keep doing what you're doing, and when he's ready to read independently, start giving him some fun, easy readers to read... start with maybe 5 minutes, then bump it up to 10 minutes, etc.

 

Does he like to just look at books with cool pictures? That could also be an option. Let him pick out whatever books he wants from the kids' section of the library. He may start to pick up on the reading a bit more just by studying them.

 

I definitely wouldn't switch phonics programs. He's not behind. He's making progress. It's all good. :D

[*Jen*]

A few things that I do for my not quite independent reader

 

- He reads to me for 15 min during our "quiet time" - I use the time to sort through paperwork/mail and am right there to help him with words

 

- He also spends time reading through board books, looking at I Spy books or 1001 things to spot books. He enjoys reading BOB or Nora Gaydos readers to his siblings. They are below his level, but he likes getting to read stories to them.

 

- He also has a large selection of books on topics he likes to just flip through and look at pictures and read the bits and pieces he can read.

[Ellie]

If it's "free reading," then it's free reading. He gets to choose whatever looks good to him, even if it's picture books. Even if you think the reading level is to hard for him, or too easy. The only rule you would have is that he can't bug you to help him figure words out, 'cuz it's...free reading.

[5Wizards]

Until my kids can read chapter books on their own, I don't expect them to spend time every day reading by themselves. That's not to say that they don't look at pictures in books on their own, or that they don't pick up easy readers and read on their own, but I don't have expectations that it needs to be done. I like to see it of course when it's spontaneous, but mostly I just make time to read with them. My middle child loves to sit and try to read all sorts of books now by herself, but my oldest child didn't want to learn how to read and would only look at the pictures unless I was working with her on it. She now loves to read and devours books, so I wouldn't worry too much about it honestly. Good luck.

[mytwomonkeys]

we don't have free reading time yet. my little guy just turned 7 & he's in grade 1 too. he reads a story a day that accompanies his R&S phonics/reading program. he also reads dick & jane, biscuit books, etc. but he isn't fluent enough to read all alone yet. rather, we sit together and he reads to me. i help him sound out any words that may be difficult. at this stage, i find the reading aloud to be most helpful.

[alpidarkomama]

When oldest DD was in 1st grade, we pretty much just did one lesson per day in Ordinary Parent's Guide (5-15 min?). Anything else was totally up to her. Now, nearing the end of 2nd grade she's a reading fiend. :)

[RahRah]

I haven't started a free reading time with DS6 yet - he isn't fluent enough at this point to not be frustrated trying to read on his own. Instead his reading time is aloud, to me, during his phonics lesson....he has recently started, on his own, grabbing various books off the shelf and paging through on his own, books like DK Eyewitness science or history - lots of pictures. I'll make a decision on free reading being part of the schedule or not come June!

[Haiku]

I can see how this works really well for an independent reader, but how do you get your kid there when they are only in 1st grade?

 

 

 

My dd read to herself in first grade, but my ds did not. I still required that he sit with books for 30 minutes each day. Whether he read them, read some of them, or just leafed through and looked at pictures was up to him. I let him sit with Highlights magazine, Your Big Backyard magazine, the youth hockey association magazine we get, science books from the library, etc. He could sit with pretty much anything that I thought would get his attention.

 

Once he did learn to read relatively fluently to himself, he was already in the habit of 30 minutes of daily school-time reading.

 

Tara

Edited April 10, 2011 by TaraTheLiberator

[EJCMom]

What I've been doing with my DD is checking out readers from the library that focus on rules that she's pretty familiar with. After we do our OPGTR lesson, I have her go and read one of the readers to her sister. When she's done, I have her come back and read it to me so that I can see if she was able to read all of the words correctly. At that time, I'll correct any word that she got wrong and remind her of the rule. The next day, I'll have her read the same reader again and go through the same routine. She reads the same reader until she can read it back to me fluently with no mistakes. Then, she'll move on to another reader. I figure that way we're starting the routine of free reading time, but I can still be sure that she is able to read what she's reading. We've been doing this for about a month and I've seen a real improvement in her confidence and fluency.

[2_girls_mommy]

We are doing a reading program this year for 1st grade w/my grade level reader.

 

Later, during her older sister's quiet reading time, she goes to her room and listens to a book on C.D. from the library. We go to the library once a week and pick out 4 or 5. She has the book to read along with when she can, or to look at the pictures. Sometimes she plays toys instead while she listens :)

 

I love it when she tells me things that she listened to on her own. It is kind of like free reading, and it gives me a little break.

 

Also, I have her read to me at bedtime reading for a few minutes from a real book, so she is reading more than just her reader during school.

Edited April 10, 2011 by 2_girls_mommy

[LolaT]

We are just starting to come out of this stage with my DD6 (1st grade). For the "independent reading" while she was still learning to read I had her read I Can Read, Step Into Reading, or picture books to me and her little brother before quiet time. If she needed help, I would help her out or sometimes she would ask that we alternate sentences or pages. That was fine because to me the more important aspect of the exercise was to encourage her read and show her that she could, more so than the exercise of reading itself to become better at reading.

 

Also, I would bring a couple of these types of books in the car whenever we had a drive longer than ten minutes. They don't have anything else to do so it's a great oppotunity to get them to want to do something they might not otherwise choose at home. They might also be more motivated to sound out words on their own. Sometimes, she would spell out a word for me she needed help with as I was driving and I would help her. As long as she kept going, that was the goal.

 

Now (yesterday, in fact) I've started trying to move her into beginner chapter books. I got the Magic Tree House books. The first one happens to coincide with dinosaurs of the Cretaceous period which we are studying so it's something that will peak her interest. But, I've been working on it for a while. When I first showed her these books at the store, she wasn't interested, telling me they were too hard and that they were for older kids. So I started surfing the MTW website, she came over to look. I got her interested in the activities and she ended up reading the first sample chapter on the site. Last night at Target, I went to peruse the books. I let her spot the MTW books. She picked out the one she started reading online. I told her it was kind of expensive. She begged me to get it and I gave in ; ) She read the first three chapters last night.

 

She's not a great reader. She misreads some words sometimes. Sometimes I still help her out. Sometimes I let her figure it out when she sees the story doesn't sound right. Sometimes, she gets tired of the effort, so she'll ask me to read. Last time she did this, I started reading everything wrong. She thought it was hilarious and then had to read it correctly to me.

 

We've been doing OPTGR for almost a year. I don't think you need to expect that they read on their own, if they still have difficulty sounding out words. I don't think it has to be for 30 min. either. I thinks it's perfectly OK, to help them out until they get more confidence and motivation. They're just starting out. It's more about forming a habit of reading and it has to be more positive than hard for them to want to keep trying.

 

I don't know if that helps at all but good luck.

[Critterfixer]

I think I may have to go back and read TWTM on this, but I thought that free reading time with younger children was reading time not spent on literature selections from the history outline. So I thought that AA Milne or Beatrix Potter out on the front lawn counted as "free reading".:001_smile:

I also keep a sharp lookout at the library for readers that could be tried, but so many are just full of words that they have never seen the rules for yet. For my boys, free reading just one of these readers would take about an hour and be very frustrating for both of them.

For now, anyway, free reading is going to be fun reading.

They also like to pull Eyewitness books from the shelf for "reading" which is mostly about finding a page with an intriguing picture and asking me to explain it by reading the words.

[blondeviolin]

I offer readers and she has picked a few from the library that she loves and can read nearly from memory now. Audio books work well.

 

If you have some money to spend (not your favorite beginning, I know), the Tag Reader system really is awesome. Abby will attempt a word she doesn't know, but if it doesn't make sense the reader can tell her the word. She loves hers for quiet time. If you have a B&N near you, they sell them and this week educators get a 25% discount.