How to teaching reading skills 3

Making Reading Fun

 

 

Introduce the book in a fun way. You could play a game related to the book, watch a clip from a movie, or do an artistic project. Choose any fun way to get your student(s) excited about the book. Some books may be easy to match with an activity, such as one that's already been made into a movie, while others may take some thought.

• For example, you could show them a clip from the movie Bridge to Terabithia before assigning the book.
• Similarly, you could introduce a Sherlock Holmes book by playing a mystery game.

Assign some of your favorites. Pick out books that really grabbed your attention as a child or teenager. Enthusiasm is contagious. If your students see you getting excited about the reading material, they’re more likely to take an interest. Some timeless examples include:

• Beverly Cleary’s books about Ramona Quimby
• Carolyn Keene’s Nancy Drew series
• Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books about Sherlock Holmes

Play audio books. Check out the school library or your local public library for books on tape or CD. Look for free downloadable versions of classics at Librivox.org. Audio books can fire up interest in reading. The right narrator can add an element of drama that a student might miss from text alone. Some good examples are:

• The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, narrated by Rob de Lorenzo
• The Odyssey by Homer, narrated by Ian McKellen
• “Sonnet XIX” by William Shakespeare, narrated by Patrick Stewart

 

Make connections to the outside world. Students will more likely engage with the material if they can see how it relates to the real world. Think of a variety of interesting activities that could make this connection. You could:^[8]

• Have students connect the reading to something in their lives. For example, you could ask them if they know a stubborn person like the narrator in Green Eggs and Ham.
• Assign students to act out scenes or from their reading.
• Plan a field trip on a related topic or theme to their assigned reading.

 

Hold contests. Sometimes the best motivation is competition. Keep a weekly book quota to help students stay on track. Give them small prizes for the books they read.

• For example, you could give each student a ticket for each book they read. Set up a list of rewards they could redeem their tickets for, such as extra credit points or 15 minutes on the computer.

Play solo or group games. Search websites like PBS Kids or RIF.org to find fun games appropriate for your students’ reading levels. Look for games that you can either print out. If you can only find computer games, try making a paper-based adaptation. Some examples are:

• Matching pictures to words or phrases that describe them.
• Writing a chain story. Break the class up into groups. Give each group an opening sentence. Each student builds on the previous sentence until they have a complete story.
• Playing a modified “Go Fish” game. The rules are the same as the traditional game. However, in this game, students match words, rather than pictures.