Reading Speed

[spaceman]

Do you do anything specific to increase your student's reading speed?

 

I, personally, read very slowly and don't want my children to have this obstacle. (for me, I read slowly because I tend to re-read sentences wanting some type of "perfect" comprehension).

[swimmermom3]

I don't have an answer for you, but I don't think reading slowly is necessarily a bad thing as long as there is no learning disability. My older kids and myself read quickly. I read books on a 3:1 ratio with my husband. DH tends to read "every" word. When he is done with a book, he knows it thoroughly whereas I may not have the details.

 

While this trait doesn't bother me about my dh :D, I have been concerned about my youngest who reads slowly, but thoroughly. It took my husband reminding me of his reading speed to ease some of the panic about my son. Dh graduated from college with honors, so obviously slow reading did not hurt him. My one remaining concern is that this child will probably take AP courses in high school and will need to cover a larger quantity of material. I assign him specific reading times, which is something I have never done before.

[Amy Jo]

Have you read "How to Read a Book"? It covers the types of reading. It's not a speed reading course, but it tells you how to preview a book, etc. It might be a good start.

 

If that's not what you need, I'd try the library. Speed reading has been around for a while, and everyone on the internet sells the perfect solution ... :( I read part of a decent old book in my library. (Stopped because there was nothing new for me, I read fast.)

 

Comprehension is more important than speed. I can't always read fast, I have to know when to slow down (like when I'm reading Ivanhoe...)

 

For tips: One I read was to use your finger and ONLY go forward. I think to move across, line-by-line, at a consistent speed. Do NOT re-read.

 

I wouldn't worry about a Ker though.

[MerryAtHope]

Do you do anything specific to increase your student's reading speed?

 

I, personally, read very slowly and don't want my children to have this obstacle. (for me, I read slowly because I tend to re-read sentences wanting some type of "perfect" comprehension).

 

This could relate to an auditory processing struggle, or to a struggle with attention (such as ADD or a working memory issue), or possibly a mild dyslexia. Vision tracking issues also come to mind. You might read up on those and also strategies that help kids with those for ideas, even if you or your kids don't have a specific issue.

 

The Mislabeled Child by Brock and Fernette Eide might be a good resource to check out as a place to start.

 

Merry :-)

[boscopup]

I'm a slow reader, and honestly, it has never harmed me in school. I took AP classes and all that. I basically read the words out loud in my head, if that makes sense, so it's faster than reading out loud, but not as fast as a "fast reader".

 

My oldest is a fast reader. He started reading fast when he was reading at about a 4th grade level (6 years old). I didn't do anything to make him read fast. It's just natural for him incidentally, he reads mostly by sight (tackles new words with phonics, of course). My DH is a fast reader, and he was taught to read via sight words and still reads that way. He can't spell, btw. I tend to read phonetically... Faster than sounding it out, but not as fast as whole word reading. I think that slows me down, but again, AP classes and university classes never hindered me. No LD or anything.