What Should My Struggling Reader Be Reading?

Have you ever heard your child's teacher say, "They just need to read more. They need to read every night." 

For a struggling reader, it is not as easy as that.  Struggling readers have a difficult time decoding words, so when they start reading books that have many words they cannot decode, they just become frustrated. They start guessing words, leading to poor reading skills.  

Struggling readers need to start reading decodable readers and not levelled readers that are filled with so many words that children cannot sound out.  With decodable readers, phonics rules are reinforced; children learn decoding skills; fluency improves; the learning gaps begin to fill in; and, most importantly, a child's confidence increases. Confidence is the magic ingredient when it comes to improving reading fluency and comprehension skills.

I am not suggesting that levelled readers do not have their place. They offer more vocabulary and are, most of the time, more interesting to read. However, to expect a struggling reader to benefit from a levelled reader by just reading more of them every night, is actually setting your child up to struggle more and to start to hate reading.

You can find many decodable readers online, and you can find many decodable chapter books too.  Beware though. Often times decodable readers are marketed as being solely for dyslexic children, so parents will stay away from these readers. This could not be further from the truth. While these type of readers are great for children diagnosed with dyslexia, they are also the best readers for early and struggling readers. The phonics way of learning to read is simply the best way.

This is the system we use at Tutor Tots, and if I could share the smile on every child's face after they successfully decode and read a short story for the first time, you would understand why decodable readers are the right choice for your struggling reader. 

It's not as simple as reading more.  It's about choosing the correct type of reader for your child.