Teaching a child to read is very rewarding. Elementary school teachers will tell you about their enormous satisfaction when witnessing a child’s reading ability blossom.  The role that they play in developing these reading skills in children is invaluable.

It is important to remember that aunts can also play a big part in teaching their nieces and nephews to read.  By providing support system for reading outside of school, children will be even better prepared in the classroom.

This summer, help give your nieces and nephews a head start on the new school year with these tips to help your nieces and nephews learn to read independently:

Read to your nieces and nephews:  From the time a baby is born, aunts can get into the habit of reading out loud on a regular basis. Some experts say the goal should be 10-20 minutes per day of reading aloud per day. While that may be difficult to achieve for an aunt, especial a Long Distance Auntie, do try to stick to it when you are with them.

Let the children read to you (even before they can):  Pictures play an incredibly important role in reading for young children.  So before your niece or nephew can read the actual words, let him or her tell you about the story just by looking at the pictures.

Label objects in your home:  Buy a pack of post-it notes and label some highly visible items around your home. You can start with 3 and 4-letter words such as  Wall, Fan, Bed, Sink, Door etc.  Whenever your niece or nephew visits, the child will start to recognize these words and be able to identify them in books and other written contexts.

Practice sight/high-frequency words: Reading experts have developed a list of sight or high-frequency words that children should commit to memory to prepare for reading. By doing so, children will easily identify these words in books, thus reducing the number of words that need to be sounded out. You may consider purchasing a pack of index cards and populating them with one word on each side. Quiz your nieces and nephews using these flashcards in small increments, and before you know it, he/she will have mastered a large number of sight words.

Start with beginning reader books: The first books that you encourage a child to read should be those written for beginning readers. Typically there is only one very short sentence on each page. The pictures also provide excellent clues as the child works through new reading vocabulary.

Be flexible!:  Reading should be an enjoyable, non-stressful activity for children. Remember that your nieces and nephews will have good days and bad days, so be flexible in your reading habits. Take advantage of the times when the child is motivated, and take a break when your niece or nephew needs a day off.

Learning to read does not happen overnight; rather, it is a skill that develops over the first several years of a child’s life.  By following these tips, aunts will provide their nieces and nephews with a head start on their path to becoming proficient readers. And who knows, by the fall, they could be leading their new class in reading skills!

Image Anna Omelchenko
Updated and republished: May 18, 2016