Preschool Children
It is a complicated process for a child to learn to read. They must first establish sound-symbol associations and then learn to link these sounds into words by following the complex and inconsistent rules of the language. It is impressive that children can read at six or seven.
The process of teaching children with ADHD to read can be complex. Although not all children who have ADHD struggle to learn to read, up to 50% of them may. Attention and executive coordination are required to learn how to read. Your child will have to learn to string together the letter sounds and interpret the meaning of the individual sounds to read a word. Then, they will need to do it again for multiple words to read a whole sentence. Working memory can become exhausting if your child needs help maintaining their attention.
Learning to read can be learned. Many strategies can help with reading, such as phonics and word and sound play.
How to help your child succeed in reading at Preschool
Create a passion for reading. You can read to your child for them to experience the joy of reading a good story or learning more about something they enjoy. Reading to your children will improve their listening skills and stimulate their imagination. Please encourage them to imagine the story’s events and predict what will happen next. It will keep your child focused and engaged. Plus, it is an enjoyable way to spend some time with them.
Develop pre-reading skills. Pre-reading skills are essential for your child to learn. They must be able to match words based on the sound of the last word. Rhyming books by Dr. Suess and other authors (like Anna Dewdney’s Llama Llama Red Pyjama, my favorite) can be fun to practice rhyming.
Use movement.
Jump on It is played by spreading out a few cue cards with letters on the floor. Ask your child to “jump on” the cue cards by calling out the letter’s name or the sound it makes. The same game can be played with sight words.
Use decodable readers
Bob Books, for example, are a great way to learn how to read. These books are phonics-focused and will help develop your child’s skills. Your child should read frequently and in short bursts when they are not tired. It would be best to praise your child for their dedication to reading. Consider a chart on the wall or fridge that allows them to place a sizeable colorful checkmark next to each book.
Engage the teachers of your child. Your child’s teachers are an essential part of the team. Talk to the teacher about how you can support and reinforce the school’s reading program.
Working with your child on establishing a solid reading foundation will allow them to focus their energy on understanding and interpreting the material they read. As your child advances in grades, this becomes more important.
Reading Comprehension In School Aged Children
Students must be able to read and comprehend increasingly complex texts to succeed. Reading comprehension deficits can affect confidence, self-esteem, and achievement. Early on, children are taught to read text with fluency. As children age, they are more likely to need to be able to understand text due to the increased emphasis placed on math, science, and social studies. Reading and understanding non-fiction texts can be challenging for many children with ADHD. This is because they need to pay attention to the text.
Cognitive processes include
Some of the words may be longer and unfamiliar words. This requires a good understanding of language rules.
Comprehension involves focusing on text understanding and inhibiting dominant responses. Children with reading problems often struggle to concentrate on reading activities and choose other more appealing activities.
Children with ADHD can have trouble ignoring irrelevant or unfamiliar information when reading. They may also need to keep track of essential details. Children with ADHD also tend to skip important words, sentences, and phrases, making it difficult to understand their reading text.
Working Memory is an essential cognitive skill for reading and understanding text. Children with ADHD are often affected by a comorbid deficit in Working Memory. Children need to analyze information, make connections, think critically, and integrate information into their memory when reading.
There are many strategies to help children with ADHD improve their reading abilities and increase their engagement and achievement in school and home reading activities.
Giving your child a choice of what to read will make them more likely to want to read. When the material is unattractive, children with ADHD may stop reading. Children who struggle to read well will benefit from books with a high-interest level and are easy to understand. Children with ADHD are more likely than other children to stay focused on reading if they find it exciting and engaging.
Keep reading short for children learning to read and comprehend to keep their attention. As children gain proficiency in reading, they should begin with more straightforward texts and increase their difficulty level.
By completing book walks and allowing children to make predictions, you can preview text for them. This will activate previous knowledge. To improve comprehension, teach children to use text features and specific vocabulary for subject-specific content.
Every day, set aside some time to read together with your child. Discuss the main characters, the setting, and important events of the story. Please encourage them to connect by bringing up characters from other stories.
You should provide a place where your child can read without distractions. Give them enough time to read the text and understand it.
Ask your child’s teachers if you can get reading materials to read with your child at home. This will encourage children to read more confidently and increase their focus in class.
Children with ADHD can learn to read well over time. Reading will become a part of the daily routine, increasing the chances that your child will read voluntarily. This will positively impact their success at school and beyond.