Using Chrysanthemum Worksheet, students read Chrysanthemum and describe what she says and does when her school friends make fun of her adored name.
This finger spaces sorting activity helps preschool to 1st grade children see that words in a sentence are separated by spaces. Answer key included for quick checking.
This Details about Digging Up Dinosaurs Worksheet helps students identify the main idea and key details while reading a passage about dinosaurs.
Using I Like Colors Flip Book Activity, students read the emergent reader with purpose and understanding to improve fluency and accuracy.
This Let's Read emergent readers activity is a cut-and-tape mini book for PreK to 1st grade that builds sight word fluency. Answer key included for the practice page.
Using Arthur's TV Trouble Worksheet,students retell the story by describing the story elements of any given story to build their reading comprehension.
Tiny readers, big book adventures
In preschool, reading time is about falling in love with books and learning how they work. Kids learn to hold a book right side up, turn pages one at a time, and know that we read the words from left to right. In small guided groups, they point to words as an adult reads, notice the spaces between words, and talk about the pictures. During independent time, they "read" by retelling a story from the pictures. The click comes when a child points to each word in a patterned book and reads it all by themselves!
Little readers need short, cozy reading times and lots of talking. These moves work beautifully.
In a small group, read a simple patterned book and slide your finger under each word. Then let each child take a turn pointing while everyone reads together. Matching spoken words to printed words is a huge first step.
Why it works: showing first, practicing together, then letting kids try alone is the "gradual release" model teachers have relied on for decades (Pearson and Gallagher, 1983).
Try it withLet's Read Emergent Readers ActivityActivitiesOpen it →Show kids that words have spaces between them by placing a finger after each word in a sentence. Then they sort cards into "word" or "space." It helps them see that print is made of separate words.
Why it works: the U.S. Department of Education's guide for teaching elementary math recommends moving from hands-on objects to drawings to numbers.
Try it withFinger Spaces Sorting ActivityActivitiesOpen it →Give each child a small basket of familiar books to revisit every day. Rereading the same few books builds confidence. Swap one book each week so there's always something new to explore.
Why it works: the brain holds on to what it meets again and again over time; spaced practice was rated among the very best methods (Dunlosky and colleagues, 2013).
Try it withI Like Colors Flip Book ActivityActivitiesOpen it →Talking about stories is where the fun really happens.
WorksheetsAfter a dinosaur story, kids draw and tell one detail they remember.
Open Details about Digging Up Dinosaurs Worksheet →
ActivitiesKids retell a story with puppets, naming the characters and setting.
Open Key Details Story Elements Text Activity →
WorksheetsAfter a read-aloud about a mouse who loves her name, kids share how the characters felt.
Open Chrysanthemum Worksheet →Teacher favorites right now: Chrysanthemum Worksheet, Finger Spaces Sorting Activity and Details about Digging Up Dinosaurs Worksheet.
Most preschoolers aren't reading words independently yet, and that's normal. Independent reading at this age means looking at books, retelling from pictures and recognizing a few words.
It's small group time where an adult reads a simple book with a few children, points to the words, and asks questions. It builds print awareness, vocabulary and listening skills.
Read together every day, point to words as you read, and ask questions about the pictures. Let your child turn the pages and retell the story in their own words.
Concepts of print are the basics of how books work: holding a book, turning pages, reading left to right, and knowing that words are separated by spaces. Preschoolers learn these before reading words.
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