How to Help Your Child Become a Reader: The Power of Perceptual Development

by | Jul 31, 2024 | 0 comments

“Children are made readers on the laps of their parents.” – Emilie Buchwald

This quote really made me angry. I spent so many hours reading to my son, hoping to spark his love for books in the hope he’d be a good reader. Yet, by age nine, he still wasn’t reading fluently. It wasn’t until later that I realized reading to him was just one piece of the puzzle.

Maryanne Wolf’s amazing book, Proust and the Squid, opened my eyes to something crucial: humans weren’t naturally made to read. Reading is a complex skill that requires our brains to form new connections and adapt in significant ways.

That’s when I learned about perceptual development and how important it is for getting kids ready to read. Perception is all about making sense of what we see and hear. Strong visual and auditory perception, along with good motor skills, directionality, and articulation, are key pre-reading skills our kids need.

Rx for Reading - Fundamentals
Sensory Activities: More Than Just Fun
Engaging your child in sensory activities is a fantastic way to boost their development. These activities stimulate their senses—touch, sight, sound, smell, and taste. For example, you could create a sensory bin with various textures and objects related to a book you’re going to read together. Let your child explore and talk about the objects, connecting them with what they’ll see and hear in the story. This not only makes reading more fun but also deepens their understanding.
Making Visual Discrimination Skills Fun
Visual discrimination is all about being able to tell the difference between letters, words, and shapes. You can help your child develop these skills with some fun activities. Try a Hide and Seek game with letters or words from a book. Hide them around the house and have your child find them. This turns learning into a playful adventure and strengthens their visual skills.
Storytelling to Boost Auditory Processing
Auditory processing is super important for reading since it involves understanding spoken language. To help your child with this, make storytelling a part of your daily routine. Read aloud with different character voices and emphasize keywords. Ask questions about the story’s events to encourage active listening and comprehension. This not only improves their auditory processing but also sparks their imagination and love for stories.
Using Sensory Play to Build Comprehension

Sensory play is also great for building comprehension skills. After reading a book together, create a related sensory activity. If the book is about the beach, for example, set up a small water table with sand and shells. Encourage your child to retell the story using these materials. This reinforces their understanding of the book and connects it to real-life experiences.

By understanding and supporting perceptual development, we can better prepare our kids for reading success and help them avoid the frustration that can come with reading difficulties. Let’s make reading a joyful and rewarding experience for them!

Looking for more activities? Grab your free 30 Days of Pre-Reading Perceptual Activities guide here.

Introducing SEARCH & TEACH©

SEARCH & TEACH© is an early intervention program that’s a big help for kids, parents, and teachers. It’s designed to identify a child’s strengths and weaknesses in pre-reading skills and provide extra instruction where needed. The National Institute for Learning Disabilities (NILD) Canada offers SEARCH & TEACH© online training throughout the school year. Check out our Events page to see upcoming training. 

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