Kids with MERLD have difficulty comprehending the written word. They are too busy trying to figure out (decode) what a word is than they are reading to comprehend a sentence or passage.
Specific reading components:
- Phonemic awareness: recognizing that sounds create words
- Phonics: the relationship between letters and sounds
- Reading fluency: read text accurately and quickly
- Vocabulary development: learning word meaning and pronunciation
- Reading comprehension strategies: strategies to understand. remember and communicate what is read.
What can you do as a parent to help your child’s reading comprehension?
- Read everyday with your child
- Point to words as you read
You want to help your child associate that the word being said is the word that your child is seeing.
Ask questions and make visually oriented comments as you read, taking care to make reading fun and interesting. If you have read about Christopher Columbus, you might say: “That Christopher Columbus (point to his picture if available) was quite the explorer. What kinds of things do you like to explore, Cody?” Be age appropriate.
Remember that if your child can’t read, your child can’t learn to live a quality life in the real world on his own.
