5 Reading Strategies to Do with Your Elementary Class
Here at Lalilo we are truly passionate about engaging students in literacy activities. Kindergartners are a great joy to have in the classroom; they’re full of energy and always smiling! During Kindergarten, these ecstatic 5-year-olds are also taking their first crack at learning how to read, write, and count which are extremely important skills to develop at their age. However, when you have 20 (or more) energetic children in one room for half of the day, getting them to stay engaged in any activity and learn these concepts can be a difficult task. This is especially true when it comes to learning how to read. With that in mind, here are 5 great reading exercises that you can try in your Kindergarten classroom to help your students stay engaged while learning and having fun!
Mini-Scrabble
For students who aren’t completely comfortable with a pencil yet, this is an especially effective exercise. Learning how to write for the first time is already hard enough on its own and learning how to read at the same time is even but using this method is even more difficult! Using a method like this one helps isolate the necessary skills children must develop to read. Not only does this take off the burden of writing and erasing any mistakes, but it’s also affordable and reusable for years!
How It Works:
Actually using this learning method is also pretty straightforward. When it comes to getting the Scrabble letters, there are two main options; purchase premade letters or laminate a sheet of paper with boxed letters and cut them out. After that, you would come up with a list of short, 3–4 letter words and print them on a piece of paper that you’ll give out. Next, have the kids try their best to spell out the word with the given letters, and that’s all there is to it. Too much work to make the worksheets? Don’t worry, there are plenty of other free resources online that make this activity even easier to try this out!
Laminated Papers and Expo Markers
Again, pencils aren’t the most convenient tool for teaching reading and writing skills. When it’s your first time doing anything, you’ll make a lot of mistakes along the way and writing is no exception (erasing takes up a lot of time). Having a system for students to easily erase their mistakes and try again quickly will make learning how to read write just that much easier.
How It Works:
Find a sheet of paper you want to use for this activity and get it laminated. You could either use a blank sheet of paper or find a cartoon design similar to the one in the picture above. Most schools also have laminating machines available in the library or supplies room. Next, make printouts of the words you want your students to spell out. Give everyone a dry-erase marker and a laminated paper, and go to town!
Word Search Puzzles
Word search puzzles are a great way to get children engaged in reading while having fun! It’s also really easy to implement in your classroom.
How It Works:
Find a word search puzzle that simple enough for your students to complete. There are plenty of premade word search puzzles out there to use. After that, all you would do is print them out, get them laminated, and give everyone Expo marker! A great way to get students motivated to finish their puzzles quickly is to put together a little friendly competition and give a prize to the first students to finish! Who said word search puzzles couldn’t be fun?
Spelling Hopscotch
Outdoor class activities are almost always fun. Hopscotch, although usually done with numbers, can be switched up a bit with letters. All you need is some chalk, creativity, and a sunny day to get this activity going!
How It Works:
The first step to this activity is coming drawing out the hopscotch boxes you want to use. They could be as long or as short as you want them to be! Depending on how many students that will be part of this activity, you may want to make a couple. After you’ve made the boxes, fill them with letters. As the player steps on each letter, they would pronounce the letter they’re stepping on, and so would the people who are up next. Playing the game this way ensure every student gets to be part of the game and learn together! Whenever the class is ready, you could start adding letter combinations like “sh”, “th”, and many more.
Photo Flashcards
Flashcards are one of the most underrated learning tools, especially for children! Using flashcards is a great way for children to practice reading without needing a pencil, book, or much of any other tools. It’s also a great art activity while they’re being made.
How It Works:
Simply have them draw pictures of simple things like animals, objects, etc. After they’ve drawn pictures on flashcards, write the corresponding words for the picture on the other side of the card and get to practicing! Have the children try their best to read the word aloud, and double check their answers by flipping the card (they’ll definitely know what the word is by looking at the picture, they did draw it after all). This tool is especially useful because the students can take these cards home and practice whenever they want, no parents or teachers needed!
Hopefully with all of these options at your fingertips, you can bring a new dimension of engagement and creativity to learning how to read in your classroom. These activities aren’t just new ways to approach learning education, but they’re also affordable and accessible to almost anyone. Try each one of these out and see which one works best for your classroom. After all, every student learns differently and the method you use is completely depending on your students. Good luck!
Please message me at tiffany@lalilo.com if you’re a teacher who’d like to be a part of what we’re doing here at Lalilo.
