Joke Books
Joke books develop fluency.
Fluency is a key skill in learning to read well.
Joke books encourage children to read familiar short passages many times. This is important in developing fluency.
Get them to read these books to parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, friends …
Many common words are used repeatedly. This gives children a lot of practice with them, further developing fluency.
Children need to learn to read these high frequency words accurately and automatically. This allows them to concentrate on sounding out new words and getting the meaning of what they are reading.
Long words are split into syllables the first time they are used. Accurately splitting long words into syllables, keeping the syllables and the sounds within the syllables in order, is an imortant skill. It is something that many older students struggle still with.
Develop vocabulary by talking about the meaning of words, particularly double meanings. A wide vocabulary is also important in learning to read well.
Enjoying reading is another key to success.
The more a student reads, the more he or she will improve. So do whatever you can to encourage them. Anything that is wholesome and that they enjoy reading is good. It could be a sports or hobby magazine. Instructions to make a paper plane are good. Don’t forget comic books …
