Reading Corner

Welcome to the MCEC Reading Read-up. When our kids are in their early grades, learning to read really is a number one accomplishment. This all came home again the other night when my 5 year-old grandson couldn't eat, couldn't do anything, including arguing with his sister, until he could read his first book to his mom.

As parents, how do we know our children are reading on grade level or are developing their reading skills as they should? This is critical because our kids are transferred about the country, they attend different schools in different states with different reading standards, they are taught using different methods, and are assessed with different instruments all the time.

The bottom line is very few parents know how to teach reading. Even those of us who are teachers don't know how to assess reading or diagnose reading difficulties. What we do know is reading is the key to learning and we want our children to be able to unlock the doors of opportunity with that key.

There are things we all can do, however, and that's the purpose of these pages. We will share things you will find helpful about learning to read and how to help our children read well. We won't leave out the preschool years because reading readiness is critical and we need to set the foundation here - developmental checkpoints here can be extremely helpful. On the site you will also find links to quick readings and heavy duty resources (databanks and organizations) and finally, we'll provide some fun links with reading activities, reading lists of great books, games, opportunities for students to become book reviewers, and even opportunities to show reading comprehension with on-line assessments.

Many of the links have products and/or services offered. Please read all policies of organizations, associations, and commercial groups prior to utilizing any services.