Reading & Other Learning Disabilities

From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

Paired Reading: A Guide For Parents—Part II

Keith Topping, Ph.D.

THE DESCRIPTION

As described in Part I, in Paired Reading “the parent and child begin reading aloud together and continue until the child makes an error. The parent supplies the correct word, the child repeats the word and rereads the sentence, and simultaneous (“duet”) reading continues. When the child feels ready to read alone, he or she gives a prearranged signal [e.g., a thumb up], and the parent stops reading while the child continues” (Rathvon, 2008, p. 193).

Following is Part II of Dr. Topping’s guide for parents.

THE GUIDE-PART II

Notes

In a Paired Reading Diary, you might summarize your child’s reading. You might note the date, what was read, for how long, and who helped. You might comment about your child’s performance. Each week, you might share this with your child’s teacher. Your child might find praise from his teacher to be highly motivating.

How To Do It: Reading Together

To start, especially when reading something that’s hard for your child, you and he should read the words out loud together. Don’t go too fast. Make your speed the same as your child’s. This will help him through the hard bits and will give him a good example of how to read well.

Your child must read every word. If he struggles and then gets it right, show you’re pleased. But if he hasn’t said the word right in 4-to-5 seconds, say it right and have him say it right; then carry on. If he tends to rush past mistakes, make your corrections a bit quicker.

Make sure he looks at the words. Especially on hard reading, it helps if one of you points to the words with a finger as you’re reading together. Usually, it’s best if your child points.

How To Do It: Reading Alone

When you are Reading Together and your child feels good enough, he might want to read a bit alone. You should agree on a way for him to signal for you to stop Reading Together.

This could be a knock, a sign, or a squeeze. Some children like to nudge you. The signal must be clear, easy to do, and agreed upon before you start. (If your child has to say “be quiet,” he might lose track of what he’s reading).

When your child signals, you should quickly stop reading out loud and praise him for being confident.

When Reading Alone, sooner or later your child will struggle with a word for more than 5 seconds, or struggle with a word and get it wrong. At this point, correctly read the word out loud for your child and make sure he then says it right.

Then both of you start reading out loud— Reading Together again—to get back into a flow. Soon your child will again feel good enough to read alone and again signal you to be quiet. You will go on like this, switching from Reading Together to Reading Alone. Always, give  your child the help he needs, but no more.  On hard books, you will Read Together more; on easy books, less.

The Rules

Stick to these “Rules” for at least for the first few weeks. If you don’t, you may find yourself in a muddle. Make sure you don’t do each other’s “job.” For example, stop reading aloud only when your child signals you to be quiet—don’t decide for yourself. When your child is Reading Alone and makes a mistake, correct it and start Reading Together, even if he wants to continue Reading Alone. It’s what the Rules say!

References

Rathvon, N. (2008). Effective School Interventions (2^nd ed.). Evidence-Based Strategies for Improving Student Outcomes. NY: The Guilford Press.

(c) Keith Topping, Ph.D.

Edited by Howard Margolis, Ed.D.,  Reading2008 & Beyond, www.reading2008.com