Word Games: Making Learning to Read Fun Again

Reading should be a stress free, fun activity for your child. It should be an activity that encourages reading and one that gives the child joy and confidence to succeed. However, we often make learning to read a chore by hovering, getting frustrated with mistakes, teaching with the wrong tools, and completing words or sentences for the child when they take too long to sound them out. By playing word games, we can take some of the stress of teaching reading out of the picture and put the fun (and related success) back into the mix.

Word Game: Completing sentences

1.) Make strips of paper that have a sentence with one word missing.

2.) Place a dot of Velcro where the missing word belongs.

3.) Make picture cards of the words that would complete the sentence. These cards will have Velcro on the back of them so that the child can attach them to the sentence.

4.) As the child reads the sentence aloud, they will place the picture of the word that belongs in the blank space.

5.) This activity will encourage both the process of reading and comprehending the sentence. Higher level thinking skills such as prediction are being introduced.

Word Game: Which word doesn't belong?

1.) Find a picture that contains many objects. This picture can be one that you took, from a magazine, from a calendar or from a poster.

2.) Make small strips of paper that has the name of the objects in the picture on them. Include some words that don't belong in the picture.

3.) Have the child place the words that belong in the picture in one pile and words that don't belong in the picture in another pile.

4.) If you have several sets of these, it is easier to keep them organized if you have a symbol that matches your word set to your picture on both the picture and the words.

Word Game: Find the next word

1.) Pick a story that your child knows well.

2.) Pick out key words of the story and write them on index cards. Nouns are easiest to start with. As your child improves in reading skills, key verbs can also be used.

3.) Read the index cards out loud together.

4.) Begin to read the story. When you get to a word that is on one of the index cards, pause and have the child find the index card that contains the next word in the story.

5.) You can play this game with more than one child. Shuffle the cards and deal them out to the children.

6.) Read the story slowly. When you read the word that they have on their card, the child can bang on the table and show everyone the word that was just read.

7.) The card then gets turned over and you may continue reading. Since key words usually happen more than once throughout the story, a child will have multiple chances to find the words in their pile.

8.) The first child with all their words turned over wins. This game teaches site reading, recognition, concentration, and anticipation of the next word in the story.

Use these ideas to help spawn your own ideas for word games. You will find the task much easier. The games you play will also be a wonderful bonding experience for you and your child.

These ideas were found in Usborne Parents' Guides: Help your Child Learn to Read by Betty Root.