reading

Yes, after she reads to her play a one minute game call tell me about it. When you finish the story, just say, “Tell me about it.” Count facts and score them.

Then to desensitize things you can say, “It’s my turn. You run the timer and I’ll do the talking. You’ve got to count my facts. Don’t let me say anything wrong, now.” (Now’s not the time to get competitive.) With the right spirit this can be a lot of fun and you can substantively build up recall.

Thsi comes straight out of a Lindamood-Bell manual but kids think of it as a great game. My students beg to get to do this over and over again:

Have her look at a picture - simple line drawing, a little bit of color (coloring book pictures are best). Don’t look at it yourself. In fact, pretend you’ve never seen it. Tell her she has to describe it to you so perfectly that you’ll get a picture of it inside your head. Kids LOVE to do this. You ask her questions like, “What’s it a picture of?” “How big is the _____?” “What color is it?” “What shape is it?” “What’s in the background?” etc. Keep the following words in your mind as you ask the questions: what, size, color, number, shape, where, movement, when, background, mood, perspective, sound. All your questions will pertain to these words. (In this case, perspective means simply - how are you looking at this picture? from above? from below? straight across?)

Every now and then, you tell back to your daughter the picture as you’re seeing it in your mind. Deliberately get something very wrong - she’ll enjoy the silliness. Also, if she hasn’t yet told you anything about something like color, you can say, “So, is this dog purple with pink polkadots?” or something absurd like that to make it fun, but esp. to make her clarify exactly what’s in the picture. When you’ve asked all your questions, you can tell her your image of the picture, she can agree if you’ve got it right and then you can look at the picture together. Comment on what you see, for example, “Oh, you gave me such a good picture of his tail - I really saw it this furry”. Or, “Hmm, we probably should’ve talked more about the shape of this dog - I’d pictured it much fatter”.

Whenever you talk to her about anything, try to get her to describe it to you. Ask her questions like “How do you picture that?” If she’s reading about an animal, ask her what size she pictures it, etc., using the words I listed above as your guide for phrasing your questions. All of this will stimulate her visualizing which is really key in comprehension skills. It’s fairly easy to do on a daily basis around the house. I practiced some of this with my kids while I was driving the car. If they commented on something they saw while we were driving, I’d say, “Describe it to me”, and then I’d proceed to ask them enough questions that I’d get a good picture of it in my mind. Again, you can make it funny so that she thinks of it as a game.

I’ve used the “magic glove” successfully for reading comprehension. Before you introduce the glove to the child explain that there’s a magic element in every story. Not all stories are the same and that’s what makes reading such an incredible experience. Our job as readers is to discover the ingredients that make the potion work. This is a brief description of the glove story I tell my students. I make it a “real story” and get carried away with it. I even turn off the light and lit a candle while I’m storytelling. Come up with a story that fits your personality and the age of your students. At the end of this session I bring out the “magic glove” that “has been passed to me by other generations.” They are so surprised to know that I used the “magic glove” as a child! You only need a white/ivory gardening glove (they sell those at any hardware store for about $1.00) and a red permanent marker. Write WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN AND WHY in each finger. In the palm, I write MAIN IDEA. You shouldn’t demonstrate the use of the glove until the following day (after the story). Let children expect it with great anticipation. Then you may give a lesson about the use and application of the “magic glove”. As students wear it they feel empowered to answer/comprehend the story. Again, you may personalize its use according to the student needs. For example: some students with fine motor issues may record their story analysis while an auditory learner may benefit when I ask complete questions. I always model for them (orally / in paper) at least 2-3 times using different types of stories. Once mastered, I display the work of ALL my students. Of course some have a harder time than others, but I haven’t tought a child that has not been able to benefit from this. Most importantly, they love it and feel successful!