Building up a reader to me is just as important as teaching the foundations of reading. Here are 3 tips to help you build their confidence in reading.
The kids I service are convinced even at a young age that they aren’t readers. One of my jobs is to break down that wall even before I start teaching them the fundamentals of reading.
How do I Build Them Up?
Even before I service the kids when I pull to benchmark them I tell them they are readers. Most of the time they look at me funny and justify why they don’t think they are… ( insert sad face here )
Once I create my schedule and start my groups, we first start with growth mindset activities. I also have them take a picture holding a thinking bubble that says I am a Reader. Then, we work on this activity that focuses on why they are ALREADY readers.
Often times they are surprised that they already hold some of the basic skills that readers need and that gives them just the encouragement they need to move forward.
Where Can I find the I am a Reader FREEBIE?
I’m so glad you asked….it is indeed free. You can find it here or here. It serves as a great encourager to your students! It is also a very cute picture to hang for Back to School Night, Open House or to include in a memory book.
How Do I use the Bright Reader Activity?
I have given you a few options within this pack to best serve your needs. You can create a bulletin board with it. I have included the letters to spell out the words for your board as well as the cute optional hanging decorative banner.
When I start this activity I tell my students that we are all readers, we are just going to work on getting even better at it. I often get asked – but I can’t read yet, how am I a reader? FIRST we brainstorm what good readers do and need. We then talk about listening comprehension, telling a story from a book with just the pictures, being able to rhyme, knowing some sight words. I talk to some of the kiddos I’ve had before about open and closed syllables or mapping words and remind them that they have some skills already for sounding words out and working to decode them.
You can find this activity and optional bulletin board in my store here. This can be displayed by creating a bulletin board with the letters I’ve included. Another option is to hang it up above your library or in a corner of your classroom.
