Parent Resource Page

Reading Resources

These resource videos were developed to help parents help their children with letter identification, letter sounds, and reading.
The Florida Center for Reading Research is also an excellent resource for parents. The Center offers activities and student materials for grades K-5. On the Student Activities Page, simply click on the appropriate grade level for your child.

The Alphabet Caterpillar Activity

The Alphabet Caterpillar is a simple hands-on activity that encourages students to practice letter identification. In this video, watch how the teacher provides feedback throughout the activity. She will prompt the student when needed and will occasionally have him review all of the letters both in order and out of order to encourage identification and not memorization.

The Letter Sounds Activity

The Letter Sounds Activity is used to practice letter naming and sounds. In this video, note how the teacher provides feedback throughout the activity and how she randomly selects letters and asks her student to identify the corresponding sound. Try this activity at home using magnetic letters and a cookie tray!

The Words and Sounds Activity

The Words and Sounds Activity encourages young readers to practice all of the sounds that they hear in a word.  It is important to provide feedback throughout this activity. If your child makes a mistake during the activity, ask him to sound out each letter individually and then as a whole word.

The Nonsense Word Activity

The Nonsense Word Activity uses made-up words to help students identify letter sounds.  The activity allows a student to practice putting the sounds of corresponding letters together to make a word. We use made-up words because students often become familiar with real words by site. This challenges them to focus on putting sounds together to make a word. It is important to provide feedback throughout this activity. If your child makes a mistake during the activity, ask her to sound out each letter individually and then as a whole word.

The Picture Walk Activity

The Picture Walk is the simple act of reviewing the pictures in a book prior to reading it. A picture walk can spark interest in the book and help connect the visual cues to the story. Note how the teacher asks the student specific questions about the pictures.

The Echo Reading Activity

Echo Reading is a method of reading a book with your child. Read a sentence out loud while your child follows along, and then ask your child to read that same sentence out loud. Modeling the sentence and asking young readers to repeat it reinforces what they see and what they have heard.

The Choral Reading Activity

Choral Reading is a method of reading a book with your child. Read the story out loud together, adjusting the pace of the reading so that your child is comfortable.  If your child makes mistakes, simply repeat the sentence or start the page over again.

The Partner Reading Activity

Partner Reading is a method of reading a book with your child. Read a full page out loud while your child follows along. Immediately after you finish, ask your child to read the same page out loud. This reinforces what your child has seen and heard. If your child makes mistakes, simply repeat the sentence or start the page over again.