How to improve your child's reading, writing and speaking skills?
- Read with your child for 5 minutes every day.
- Encourage your child to decode unfamiliar words by using Fred Talk.
- Use flashcards to practise high frequency words. Stick them on your fridge, child's wall or play a game.
- Encourage your child to develop their gross and fine motor skills by carrying out the following activities:
- Playing dancing games e.g. hokey kokey, I'm a little teapot, Simon says.
- Throw, catch, kick and bounce various sized balls.
- Mark make outside using chunky chalk, paintbrushes and water, sticks in the sand.
- Thread pasta tubes onto string or wool to make a necklace.
- Cut plastic straws into different lengths.
- Use plastic tweezers to pick up pasta shapes or chickpeas.
- Stack paper cups.
- Pop bubble wrap.
- Complete age appropriate puzzles.
- Making various shapes using play dough e.g. flat, ball, snake.
- Encourage your child to write a list for when you go shopping or when you do something special e.g. Halloween party!
- Encourage your child to listen carefully to the sounds they can hear in the words.
- Encourage your child to write a simple sentence e.g. I went to the beach.
-Encourage your child to use capital letters, finger spaces and full stops.
- Encourage your child to think about what they want to say.
- Encourage your child to speak clearly.
- Encourage your child to look at the audience/person when they are speaking (eye contact).
- Encourage your child to use gestures to support what they are saying.
Question ideas to ask to stimulate speaking:
- If you could eat anything, what would it be and why?
- If you could go on holidays, where would you go and who would you go with?
- If you were stuck on a beach, what 3 things would you need?