Particular attention is always paid to the ability to read, because a newly-trained student will have to absorb a huge amount of various information from books and textbooks, starting from elementary school. If a child does not have this ability at all when he enrolls in the first grade, or if he reads too slowly, he will not be able to study well, which will certainly affect his self-esteem.
In this article, we will tell you how many words per minute the first-grader should read, and how to help the son or daughter, if he does not quickly put the letters into words.
How many words per minute should a first-grader read?
Although the vast majority of children enrolling in the first grade already can read simple words, in fact, this skill is not considered mandatory. But by the end of the first half-year of training of the kid at school the teachers will begin to show to him certain requirements and to make estimates for how well and quickly the first-grader reads. In the future, during the entire period of the child's stay in primary school, the number of words he must read will increase proportionately with each quarter he has passed.
Today the overwhelming majority of schools have the following requirements for pupils:
- For a first-grader in the second quarter, reading is 20 words per minute;
- in the third quarter - 30-35 words;
- Finally, by the end of the school year, the first grader should read more than 40 words per minute.
In addition, it should be borne in mind that the requirements are not only for the speed of "swallowing" texts, but also for its quality. So, the first-grade student at the time of reading should be able to:
- to reproduce by a word the words, and not individual syllables or letters;
- clearly pronounce all the sounds in words;
- correctly use the semantic stress;
- to make notable pauses in the right places between words and sentences;
- depending on the content of the text, change the intonation and highlight important points with the emphasis of the voice;
- logically connect the read words and sentences among themselves;
- analyze the read;
- evaluate and explain the actions and actions of the characters, which are discussed in the read text.
How to help your child read faster?
To help crumb read faster, play regularly with him in the following games:
- "Who is bigger?". Compete with your child, who will be able to read more text in a certain time. Naturally, at first you will have to succumb.
- "Who is faster?". Let the kid read at different tempos - first "like a turtle", then "like a dog", and in the end - "like a cheetah". Also for the game you can use any other animals.
"Tops and roots". Take a long opaque ruler and close it with the top half of the text line. Let the child try to read the words and sentences without lifting the ruler. When the crumb will cope with this task, close the "roots" and invite the child to read the text on the "tops".
On how many words per minute the first-grader reads, it depends not only on his evaluation of the "reading technique", but also on the child's ability to understand, understand and analyze what has been read. Parents are important to know that it is good to learn the information obtained from books, the kid will be able only if the speed of his reading exceeds 60 words per minute. That is why it is necessary to train this skill with your child even when the rate of reading it corresponds to all generally accepted norms.