How to increase child's reading skills / wordy study skills / overall ability?

[MitchellMom]

I haven't posted on here in a long time but am homeschooling my children this summer and really could use the advice! My children attend a Christian school and my daughter, who just finished first grade, took the Stanford Achievement Tests. I had expected her to score VERY high because she loves to read and reads so much better than the public school children I know who are the same age. However, she did not score as high as I had hoped. Today one of my friends, whose daughter is in the same class, told her her daughter's reading score put her in the ninth grade, fifth month level!!! I was shocked! This is a 6 year old! I know my daughter might not mentally have the ability to be at this level, but I at least want to provide every opportunity for her to reach the highest reading and word skills level possible. What can I do to help her? Is there a certain program? Are there any particular books she should be reading? Please know that I am trying very hard not to make this a competition between my daughter and other children. I really am not! My youngest son has had some developmental issues and I have had to devote a great deal of time to him these past few months, and part of me is feeling extremely guilty now because I am wondering what I could have been doing with my daughter so that her Stanford reading and word scores would have been higher. Anyway, any advice would be much appreciated!! :)

[kozamom]

:lurk5:

[EthiopianFood]

Many people like to have a child alternate to some extent between higher level reading, to expand their range, and a lower level, to increase speed and encourage the child to enjoy reading. If your dd loves to read, that is already really great! What level is she reading at? I bet people could give better suggestions if they knew from where she was starting.

 

ETA: Also know that there really, truly is a huge range of what is normal (or even bright!) for children. As you already said, you just can't compare one child to another. If your dd is reading a lot, is getting solid phonics instruction, and is practicing her news skills in addition to reading for fun, she will likely thrive.

[MitchellMom]

Many people like to have a child alternate to some extent between higher level reading, to expand their range, and a lower level, to increase speed and encourage the child to enjoy reading. If your dd loves to read, that is already really great! What level is she reading at? I bet people could give better suggestions if they knew from where she was starting.

 

ETA: Also know that there really, truly is a huge range of what is normal (or even bright!) for children. As you already said, you just can't compare one child to another. If your dd is reading a lot, is getting solid phonics instruction, and is practicing her news skills in addition to reading for fun, she will likely thrive.

 

Thank you. She definitely is bright, which is why I was shocked that she scored lower than I had expected. :(

 

Her scores:

 

Subtotal and Grade Equivalent:

Word Study Skills 1.6 (!!! What?!?!?!)

Word Reading 3.6

Sentence Reading 2.8

Reading Comprehension 3.6

 

Total Reading Grade Equivalent: 2.5

 

 

Her Language Grade Equivalent was 4.9

Her Spelling Grade Equivalent was 5.4

(nowhere near ninth grade level! I was so proud when I got these scores but then when my friend told me about her daughter today, I thought WHOA!)

 

I have to say my daughter LOVES writing stories and drawing. Maybe those are simply her strengths? Or she could have been like me and stared out the window daydreaming during most of the test?? :001_huh: ha ha

[momma aimee]

pratice,pratice, praticve,pratice.

 

read aloud as a family

 

have her read to you

 

have her read on her own.

 

once the nuts and bolts of reading are in place -- the rest is pratice, pratice, pratice.

 

Let her read "below" her level for confidence.

 

Read above her level to her to expand her voc.

 

read read read read read

 

my 12 yo Nephwe is jst "catching on" and getting noticable better at the end fo 6th -- pratice is all there is. Hvae fun

[boscopup]

I would suggest not comparing your daughter to that kid. She may be highly gifted, and she's probably bored out of her mind in school. :tongue_smilie:

 

Your daughter scored very well - above grade level. I don't think you need to change a thing. She is reading well and enjoying it. And let me tell you, it's a whole lot easier to find appropriate reading material for a first grader at a third grade level than it is to find such material at a 9th grade level. Be happy you have it easier than that kid's mom. ;)

[EKS]

Some perspective: If your friend's child took the same test as your daughter--that is the first grade Stanford Achievement Test--you need to understand how tests like this are scored. Ninth grade fifth month on a test like this only means that the child did as well as a person in the ninth grade fifth month would do on the *same* test, that is the *first grade* test. I'm surprised that the SAT would report a score that high--usually the ceilings on the first grade tests are much lower--like around grade 3-4. For example, on the first grade ITBS, a test very similar to the SAT, my son only missed one question on the reading comprehension test. The percentile rank for this was 92 and the grade equivalent was 3.1.

 

What sort of books is your daughter reading? That will tell you more definitively than a test how well she is reading.

[EthiopianFood]

Some perspective: If your friend's child took the same test as your daughter--that is the first grade Stanford Achievement Test--you need to understand how tests like this are scored. Ninth grade fifth month on a test like this only means that the child did as well as a person in the ninth grade fifth month would do on the *same* test, that is the *first grade* test. I'm surprised that the SAT would report a score that high--usually the ceilings on the first grade tests are much lower--like around grade 3-4. For example, on the first grade ITBS, a test very similar to the SAT, my son only missed one question on the reading comprehension test. The percentile rank for this was 92 and the grade equivalent was 3.1.

 

What sort of books is your daughter reading? That will tell you more definitively than a test how well she is reading.

 

:iagree: to both. If you want a real wakeup call, go over to the Accelerated Learners forum. Read about the kids who taught themselves to read at 2, or the 8 year olds doing algebra. There is just no point in comparing, because there is just always going to be someone who is further along. That's LIFE, you know? I think a lot of us have to reminds ourselves of this sometimes, myself included. ;)

 

If you are going to try to work with her this summer no matter what everyone else says :tongue_smilie: you could always do some OPGTR. It's cheap and quick, but very solid. Just make SURE you don't inadvertently communicate to your dd that you are worried about her, or that she isn't doing well enough. Also, don't make reading a chore. There are so many people who would do anything to have a child who loves to read. If you want to compare kids, there are a LOT of parents who envy YOUR child in that respect!

[blessedmom3]

Thank you. She definitely is bright, which is why I was shocked that she scored lower than I had expected. :(

 

Her scores:

 

Subtotal and Grade Equivalent:

Word Study Skills 1.6 (!!! What?!?!?!)

Word Reading 3.6

Sentence Reading 2.8

Reading Comprehension 3.6

 

Total Reading Grade Equivalent: 2.5

 

 

Her Language Grade Equivalent was 4.9

Her Spelling Grade Equivalent was 5.4

(nowhere near ninth grade level! I was so proud when I got these scores but then when my friend told me about her daughter today, I thought WHOA!)

 

I have to say my daughter LOVES writing stories and drawing. Maybe those are simply her strengths? Or she could have been like me and stared out the window daydreaming during most of the test?? :001_huh: ha ha

 

 

What ?? I don't understand . Your daughter is reading & comprehending above level and you think it's low ?

"Language Grade Equivalent was 4.9

Her Spelling Grade Equivalent was 5.4"

 

I think this is excellent score for a 6yo!

 

There must be a misunderstanding with Stanford 1st grader scoring at 9 gr level. My son (2nd gr ) scored 95 % , grade level 5.7 ( I think) and he scored the highest in his class. A 2nd grader with 100% would not score higher than 6 grade .

 

Your daughter must have had the total at least 95-98 % since she is only a 1st grader and scored that high . At least that's how I do the math :) Or maybe the Stanford she took it's different. My son took Stanford 10 at our PS.

[blessedmom3]

Thank you. She definitely is bright, which is why I was shocked that she scored lower than I had expected. :(

 

Her scores:

 

Subtotal and Grade Equivalent:

Word Study Skills 1.6 (!!! What?!?!?!)

Word Reading 3.6

Sentence Reading 2.8

Reading Comprehension 3.6

 

Total Reading Grade Equivalent: 2.5

 

 

Her Language Grade Equivalent was 4.9

Her Spelling Grade Equivalent was 5.4

(nowhere near ninth grade level! I was so proud when I got these scores but then when my friend told me about her daughter today, I thought WHOA!)

 

I have to say my daughter LOVES writing stories and drawing. Maybe those are simply her strengths? Or she could have been like me and stared out the window daydreaming during most of the test?? :001_huh: ha ha

 

 

What ?? I don't understand . Your daughter is reading & comprehending above level and you think it's low ?

"Language Grade Equivalent was 4.9

Her Spelling Grade Equivalent was 5.4"

 

I think this is excellent score for a 6yo!

 

There must be a misunderstanding with Stanford 1st grader scoring at 9 gr level. My son (2nd gr ) scored 95 % , grade level 5.7 ( I think) and he scored the highest in his class. A 2nd grader with 100% would not score higher than 6 grade .

 

Your daughter must have had the total at least 95-98 % since she is only a 1st grader and scored that high . At least that's how I do the math :) Or maybe the Stanford she took it's different. My son took Stanford 10 at our PS.

 

P.S. I see she scored the lowest in word study . A good phonics program such as Phonics Pathways , which you can use for spelling as well , should take care of that .

[MitchellMom]

I would suggest not comparing your daughter to that kid. She may be highly gifted, and she's probably bored out of her mind in school. :tongue_smilie:

 

Your daughter scored very well - above grade level. I don't think you need to change a thing. She is reading well and enjoying it. And let me tell you, it's a whole lot easier to find appropriate reading material for a first grader at a third grade level than it is to find such material at a 9th grade level. Be happy you have it easier than that kid's mom. ;)

 

Yes, but what reading materials is appropriate? Where can I find a good "book list" for her? I don't want her reading Junie B. Jones (she read all of them last summer and this summer she needs something much more challenging!).

 

Some perspective: If your friend's child took the same test as your daughter--that is the first grade Stanford Achievement Test--you need to understand how tests like this are scored. Ninth grade fifth month on a test like this only means that the child did as well as a person in the ninth grade fifth month would do on the *same* test, that is the *first grade* test. I'm surprised that the SAT would report a score that high--usually the ceilings on the first grade tests are much lower--like around grade 3-4. For example, on the first grade ITBS, a test very similar to the SAT, my son only missed one question on the reading comprehension test. The percentile rank for this was 92 and the grade equivalent was 3.1.

 

What sort of books is your daughter reading? That will tell you more definitively than a test how well she is reading.

 

 

You know, our local library has a very poor selection of chapter books. It's like they have a wonderful children's picture book selection, but then the juvenile and young adult sections are poorly stocked. So, my daughter really does not have many books to choose from. I guess we need to travel farther away to find a better library. Can anyone provide a really long list of books that could appeal to her? I wouldn't mind finding a big box of such books for sale on ebay and buying them for her.

:iagree: to both. If you want a real wakeup call, go over to the Accelerated Learners forum. Read about the kids who taught themselves to read at 2, or the 8 year olds doing algebra. There is just no point in comparing, because there is just always going to be someone who is further along. That's LIFE, you know? I think a lot of us have to reminds ourselves of this sometimes, myself included. ;)

 

If you are going to try to work with her this summer no matter what everyone else says :tongue_smilie: you could always do some OPGTR. It's cheap and quick, but very solid. Just make SURE you don't inadvertently communicate to your dd that you are worried about her, or that she isn't doing well enough. Also, don't make reading a chore. There are so many people who would do anything to have a child who loves to read. If you want to compare kids, there are a LOT of parents who envy YOUR child in that respect!

 

Isn't OPGTR for children just learning how to read?

 

What ?? I don't understand . Your daughter is reading & comprehending above level and you think it's low ?

"Language Grade Equivalent was 4.9

Her Spelling Grade Equivalent was 5.4"

 

I think this is excellent score for a 6yo!

 

There must be a misunderstanding with Stanford 1st grader scoring at 9 gr level. My son (2nd gr ) scored 95 % , grade level 5.7 ( I think) and he scored the highest in his class. A 2nd grader with 100% would not score higher than 6 grade .

 

Your daughter must have had the total at least 95-98 % since she is only a 1st grader and scored that high . At least that's how I do the math :) Or maybe the Stanford she took it's different. My son took Stanford 10 at our PS.

 

P.S. I see she scored the lowest in word study . A good phonics program such as Phonics Pathways , which you can use for spelling as well , should take care of that .

I've never investigated Phonics Pathways so I will do that! I'm assuming it's just one book, and I'll have to pick up somwhere in the middle? Is that how it works?...

 

Thanks everyone! :grouphug:

Edited June 5, 2011 by MitchellMom

[boscopup]

For books, I like to go to the Sonlight site and look at their Readers section for some ideas. You'll need to figure out what grade level she's reading at, roughly, and decide from there. I also like the Scholastic book Wizard for determining the reading level of a book. It's not exact, but it's useful.

 

Here's a site that lists 1000 good books compiled by some Christian homeschool moms. I'd check the grade 1-3 easy reader and advanced reader section and see where your daughter places.

 

You can also search the WTM forums (I use google to search - "xyz site:welltrainedmind.com" will get just WTM results) for those threads where people ask what their x grader should read. I just had one recently for my son and got some great ideas.

 

My friend has often found good books sold by the lot on Ebay pretty cheap, so that might be a good place to look as well. Yard sales and thrift stores are also great.

[MitchellMom]

For books, I like to go to the Sonlight site and look at their Readers section for some ideas. You'll need to figure out what grade level she's reading at, roughly, and decide from there. I also like the Scholastic book Wizard for determining the reading level of a book. It's not exact, but it's useful.

 

Here's a site that lists 1000 good books compiled by some Christian homeschool moms. I'd check the grade 1-3 easy reader and advanced reader section and see where your daughter places.

 

You can also search the WTM forums (I use google to search - "xyz site:welltrainedmind.com" will get just WTM results) for those threads where people ask what their x grader should read. I just had one recently for my son and got some great ideas.

 

My friend has often found good books sold by the lot on Ebay pretty cheap, so that might be a good place to look as well. Yard sales and thrift stores are also great.

This is SO helpful - thank you!

[MitchellMom]

For books, I like to go to the Sonlight site and look at their Readers section for some ideas. You'll need to figure out what grade level she's reading at, roughly, and decide from there.

I tested her and she missed one on the Level 4 Readers (the one with four dots) and missed most on the Level 5, so that means I should find Level 4 reader books for her, right? (Henry and Ribsy, Encyclopedia Brown, More Stories from Grandma's Attic, etc.)

[boscopup]

I tested her and she missed one on the Level 4 Readers (the one with four dots) and missed most on the Level 5, so that means I should find Level 4 reader books for her, right? (Henry and Ribsy, Encyclopedia Brown, More Stories from Grandma's Attic, etc.)

 

That's probably about right. Try one book around that same level and see how it goes. :) If she needs more practice with early chapter books (for stamina), just drop back a bit and work up to it. My son's reading skills were (and still are) above his stamina level.

[Haiku]

My question would be why a six year old needs to be reading at a ninth grade level. Is this really going to improve her school performance that much? If your dd loves to read and is performing at grade level or higher, save yourself the stress and don't worry about it. Don't let a test score run your life.

 

Tara

[blessedmom3]

Sonlight reading placement test is accurate only for what a child is able to decode , not for what he/she can comprehend. My son can decode readers for HS level but he can only comprehend at 5th grade level. Higher books have no interest for him because he cannot understand the plot .

 

A more accurate test is DIBELS . You have to register but the test is free. Or a simpler way , is to let her read one page from any book. If she is unable to read or understand the meaning of more than 3-5 words, that book is not for her.

[blessedmom3]

My question would be why a six year old needs to be reading at a ninth grade level. Is this really going to improve her school performance that much? If your dd loves to read and is performing at grade level or higher, save yourself the stress and don't worry about it. Don't let a test score run your life.

 

Tara

 

:iagree:

[Classically Minded]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't her score reflective of her comprehension? For her to start comprehending what she is reading, you need to start doing narration with her - having her tell you back in 1-3 sentences (in a complete sentence) what she just read about and doing Q&A. This is how the WTM method works - we do narration for reading, history and science. We have been doing this since K and my daughter comprehends very well. It trained her mind not to just read but read and understand what she is reading about.

 

I highly recommend the 1000 good books list, that is what we are using for dd7 "fun" book list. For advanced 4th grade reading - she reads the history rec's out of the WTM for 1st grade.

 

Hope that helps some! ;)

[stripe]

I recently found this book and think it has some neat ideas:

http://www.amazon.com/Increase-Your-Childs-Verbal-Intelligence/dp/0300083203/ref=pd_sim_b_2

 

How to increase your child's verbal intelligence by Diane McGuinness, the author of Reading Reflex.

 

The name is sort of ... bleh, but the book is actually interesting!

 

And I agree with the idea to keep reading good books.

 

Some used book stores have great stuff mixed with junk. I just found all sorts of great castoffs for 25c each.

[nmoira]

I at least want to provide every opportunity for her to reach the highest reading and word skills level possible.

There is nothing better you can do for your child in this respect than to read aloud wonderful children's books (not retellings of wonderful children's books) and surround her with wonderful books to read on her own. Nothing. Prepare her for an appreciation of literature later by reading fairy and folk tales, myths, legends, age appropriate retellings of epics, poems and rhymes. Read books with "old fashioned" language (the Lang colored Fairy Books are a good place to start, but pre-read to choose age and sensitivity appropriate stories). Resist the temptation to grill her on everything she reads; yes, do some narrations during "school," but otherwise read for the joy of it.

 

Ambleside Online has some good lists, and others have been listed in this thread.

[stripe]

One more thing. My kids love Librivox. (This is a great list for suggestions.) They've listened to several of the fairy books online. They don't understand everything, but they do get the general idea, and they have definitely picked up vocabulary and style from some of those oldies. I was really hesitant to read them gory stories, but they don't seem to mind. Anyway you can also download story by story, as each story is a separate file, so you have a choice.

 

The books do contain somewhat...outdated words like "negress," and I had to look up what "slut" originally meant, as it was popping up in some stories I was reading aloud! So you lose control when someone else is reading it.

[Critterfixer]

I would add listening to good audio-books whenever you are busy doing other things. Keep a low table and chair and plenty of writing and drawing materials where she listens to the books so that she has things to do with her hands while she listens. I am surprised by just how much my sons pick up when they are just playing with their toys and listening to the CD player.

Our library is not particularly well stocked with books or audio-books. However, our state has a central library program which I use to get better selections. I have has some success in requesting books as well.

[amsunshine]

There is nothing better you can do for your child in this respect than to read aloud wonderful children's books (not retellings of wonderful children's books) and surround her with wonderful books to read on her own. Nothing. Prepare her for an appreciation of literature later by reading fairy and folk tales, myths, legends, age appropriate retellings of epics, poems and rhymes. Read books with "old fashioned" language (the Lang colored Fairy Books are a good place to start, but pre-read to choose age and sensitivity appropriate stories). Resist the temptation to grill her on everything she reads; yes, do some narrations during "school," but otherwise read for the joy of it.

 

Ambleside Online has some good lists, and others have been listed in this thread.

:iagree:

 

Also, I wanted to suggest that your local branch library may not have a great selection of books, but you may want to inquire as to whether you can regularly reserve books from the other branches in your library system. This is what we do all the time. I search for the books I want in their online catalog, put the books I want on hold, and they are all delivered to my local branch for me. It would be worth it to find out if this option is available for you.

[EthiopianFood]

Isn't OPGTR for children just learning how to read?

 

It actually works to a solid fourth grade reading level. I don't know how far Phonics Pathways goes. They both focus on specific phonics rules, so a child can decode at a higher level. I actually teach some phonics rules as we come across them in a book. This can be tricky though, if there are too many new rules in any given book. But for a one or two at a time, it works.

 

The PP who suggested narration has an EXCELLENT idea, IMO. Reading at a higher level won't ensure she actually understands what she is reading. This would be a great way to build comprehension skills.

[MitchellMom]

I have another question, not sure if this is really related to her other scores, but she scored grade equivalent 3.1 in Basic Battery and 3.0 in Complete Battery. What are these battery tests/scores? :confused:

[ElizabethB]

Phonics Pathways and OPG both teach to about the 4th grade level and are both good phonics programs.

 

Webster's Speller teaches to the 12th grade level.

 

I also have some syllable division exercises and rules that are also helpful for increasing a child's reading grade level, they are linked at the end of my how to tutor page.

 

For a child doing well and taught with phonics, I like the 1908 Webster's Speller, available for free from Don Potter. By the end of the Speller, the reading selections are at the 12th grade level. The divided syllables make it very easy for a young child to learn how to sound out long words.