10 Practical Tips to Help Kids Improve Reading Comprehension

There is just something magical about reading. Books are something I have always been fond of since childhood. Isn’t it amazing how words can transport you to an entirely different place? There are times when I am reading where I completely forget where I am. This is the power of good books.

And as famous writer Stephan King put it:

“Books are uniquely portable magic.”

Stephan King

As a parent, you should ensure that your child develops a habit of reading from an early age. Reading has immense benefits like reducing stress, improving vocabulary, reducing depression, which is sure to benefit your child when they grow up.

Simply reading is never sufficient, it is also important that your kid understands what they are reading. This is what reading comprehension is. It is about reading the text, words, dialogues, and sentences and understanding the meaning behind them.

Not sure how to improve your little one’s reading comprehension? Here, we’ve researched some practical tips that might help you.

Ask What They Want?

Starting with a book that is either too simple or too tough for your little one might not be a clever idea as your child might not enjoy reading it. 

So, discuss with your kid what kind of genre they want to read, what kind of characters should it have like princesses, heroes, animals. 

This will make your child stay focused on the books as they chose according to their favourite.

Also, give them a background about the story beforehand so that they can relate to the story even more.

2. Read It Aloud

Your child needs to hear what they read. This will enhance their vocabulary and pronunciation.

Ask them the meaning of the words they are reading aloud. Explain to them the meaning of the words that they find difficult and tell them to write down meanings. 

As a parent, read different storybooks with your child like night-time storybooks, educational books, moral stories, picture books. 

Try to read with different emotions, read with different pitches, dialogue delivery. Try to make it as immersive as possible to make it even more interesting, bring out your hidden actor and act your child’s favourite scene.

3. Have A Question & Answers Session

After your child is done reading, it’s time to hold a Q&A session. 

Kids might not ask questions since they are still new to this experience but encourage them to ask questions. 

You can ask questions as well like, “What do you think will happen next?” “What is the main character going to do?”.

If there are parts of the story they do not understand, read it with your child again. 

Holding Q&A sessions will make your child more curious about the story and they will look forward to reading it.

4. Give Them Time

Parents need to know that their child cannot achieve great comprehension skills overnight. It is a slow process. It takes time.

One might even say that it is never-ending, as you continue to discover new skills even when you are an adult.

Hence, there is no need to hurry your child through this process since it will only lead to more delay, frustration, anxiety, and burden on your child. They will not be able to focus on developing.

Instead, you should ensure that your child does not rush through the story, take out 15 minutes every day to read with your child.

In simple words, let them go at their own pace.

5. Take Them To Book Cafes Or Libraries

Of course, reading at home and classroom is good and healthy, but children always need a change of environment. It becomes boring for kids if there is nothing new to discover.

Libraries and book cafes are sure to make your kid’s boredom go away. It also acts as a fun bonding time for kids and parents and is a wonderful way to induce love for books in your child. 

There is a section for kids in most libraries where they can enjoy reading several types of books. They will be even more encouraged when they watch other kids of their age reading books.

6. Take Advice From Their Teacher

If there is anybody who knows kids other than their parents, it’s their teachers. 

Consult the teachers and ask what kind of books you should start with, what steps should you take to improve the comprehension skills of your child, what can you do at home to improve your child’s skills, etc.

7. Organize A Reading Club

Let’s be honest, all of us love to spend time with people who are the same age as ours. And it’s the same with children as well. 

As parents, you can talk to your neighbours or relatives and organize a reading club where all the kids sit down and read books.

Moreover, you can also organize games where kids who answer the questions right are given rewards.

8. Help Them Visualize The Story

Kids are creative thinkers. Their power of imagination is super strong, and they can imagine different scenarios in no time. Teachers and parents should use this skill of kids to help them relate to books even more and improve their reading comprehension. 

After the story has been read, ask the kids to visualize the setting of the story, what do they think the characters are wearing, what do they think the background looks like etc. 

They can draw out what they are visualizing, create different scenarios, or even make up a story themselves.

As a result, this will help kids improve their reading comprehension.

9. Use New Technique For A New Generation

There are situations when parents are not at home, or they are employed and can’t spend much time with their kids. Which makes it difficult to spend time with kids and read them books.

So, what to do in such a case?

Here is the perfect solution – Audiobooks.

Yes, audiobooks can prove to be of great help in times like this. There are millions of genres of audiobooks your child can choose from.

For the advanced generation of today, audiobooks are the perfect partner. They help not only in reading comprehension but also in communication. 

Moreover, they help kids to learn pronunciation, fluent reading, the enunciation of words, speaking skills etc.

10. Help Them With Difficult Words

Vocabulary is the foundation of successful reading. The more words your child learns from an early age, the better it will be for their future. 

To decode, words are the most complex part when you are reading a book. If your child knows the meaning of difficult words beforehand, it will be easier for them to understand what the story is about.

Also, they will be able to make connections, predict the next scene, and understand the hidden meaning.

To increase your child’s vocabulary, you can play building word blocks, sticking flashcards, playing crosswords or word search puzzles, bingo, etc.

Wrapping Up

Reading is a fruitful activity of life and is sure to help your child in school and career ahead. And undoubtedly, parents play a huge role in helping their children navigate through the different stages of reading.

Instilling a love for books in their child is the best thing parents can do to ensure that their child will grow up to be successful. It does not have to be boring and parents should not view this as a simple daily life chore. It never hurts to become a child with your children. 

So, have fun when reading with children, let your kids know that reading books is both magical and crucial that will open doors for them to explore themselves and the world around them.

What do you think of the tips mentioned above? Do you have any suggestions to make it more useful to other readers? Please drop your views in the comment box below.