Pediatricians can ask targeted questions to gauge whether a child receives literacy instruction aligned with decades of research on how children learn to read, or they can equip parents to ask them at school. These questions help determine whether the instructional approaches align with the science of reading, focusing on skills such as phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.
For Parents of Kindergarten-Aged Children
- Letter and Sound Awareness: “Is your child learning letter names and the sounds they make? Are they practiced until your child knows them automatically?”
- Reading Approach: “Have the teachers talked about how they teach reading? Do they focus on sounding out words, or is it more about guessing based on pictures or context?”
- Instructional Consistency: “Is your child’s reading program explicit and systematic, focusing on building foundational skills day by day?”
- Language: “Is your child taught a variety of vocabulary words? Do they have enough time to talk about what they are learning with one another and with the teacher?”
For Parents of Elementary School-Aged Children (Grades 1-5)
- Phonics and Decoding Skills: “Does your child learn to break down words into individual speech sounds and also blend speech sounds to read words?”
- Practice Reading: “Is your child given practice opportunities to also read aloud to a teacher with guidance to improve accuracy and fluency?”
- Spelling and Writing Instruction: “How does the school teach spelling and writing? Do they emphasize understanding letter-sound relationships and word parts, like prefixes and suffixes, or is it more about memorizing words?”
- Reading Comprehension: “During and after reading, do students discuss what they read to make sure they understand the meaning? Are they encouraged to ask questions about the story or explain it in their own words?”
- Reading Fluency and Comprehension: “Does your school measure your child’s reading fluency? Do they determine if they read words accurately? Do they teach your child to read with expression so it sounds like how they speak?”
For Parents of Older Children or Adolescents (Grades 6-12)
- Vocabulary and Language Development: “Does the school help expand your child’s vocabulary and understanding of more complex grammar? Are they encouraged to read a variety of texts to build their knowledge?”
- Reading Fluency and Comprehension: “If your child is not reading on grade level, does your school measure their reading fluency? Do they determine if they read words accurately? Do they teach your child to read with expression so it sounds like how they speak?”
- Support for Difficulties: “If your child has had trouble with reading, what steps has the school taken to help? Do they use specific, targeted interventions for reading challenges, like one-on-one support or additional small group instruction?”
Direct Questions for the Child (All ages)
- Reading Comfort and Enjoyment: “Do you like reading in class? What’s the hardest part of reading for you?”
- Sounding Out Words: “When you come to a word you don’t know, do your teachers show you how to sound it out (recommended), or do they tell you to look at the pictures or guess (not recommended)?”
- Understanding Stories: “When you read a story, do you talk about it in class, like what it’s about or why things happen?”