How to Teach Boys to Read

I only have boys in my homeschool but I’m sure the reading tips can be applied for any child, this is how I teach boys to read. The first step is to teach your child the alphabet. Whatever way you choose, either magnets, foam or wooden block, sing songs and make it fun. We used magnets and I would say each letter and have him repeat. Once he knew them, I’d mix them up and have him reorder then, I’d let him be the teacher and call it a letter and I’d find it.

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How to Teach Boys to Read Resources

For letter sounds, my son watched Letter Factory from Leap Frog.  You teach them how to form the lines for each letter properly so that when they start writing, hopefully, they’ll remember what they’ve been tracing in the air.For phonics, we are using Teach Your Child to Read in an 100 Easy Lessons with my second child. We started this last year in JK, but we took a break and started again this year. My first child learned to read with Jolly Phonics, this program was perfect for my visual spatial learner. There was a song for each letter that included the sound of the letter, they held their finger in the air and traced the letter well. To reinforce our oral work in reading, we use a phonics workbook, I like Plaid Phonics while others prefer Explode the code. I like Plaid Phonics because there is just one book for each level whereas the other has multiple books based on each sound. I’m on a budget so I went with what was more cost effective, I also like the color pictures. Once we finished 100 Easy Lessons, my second son went onto practice reading with the Bob Books Sets. They were great little readers for your child to read. He also felt really good about reading his own book on his own without any help. We were able to get these from our library. Don’t forget to read, read, and read. I read aloud to my boys as they were babies, and we continued to read every night before bed to this day. They need to hear words, and they love the sound of your voice. Not find time to read? Find some audiobooks and have your children listen to them. This also gives your voice a break a well. Make it fun and don’t stress if your child doesn’t pick it up as quickly as others.  Focus on what works for you and your family, not what others do. How did you teach your children to read?  Read the other posts in this series of How to Homeschool Boys