Reading and Language Arts Development for 1st Grade

• Learn to sound out words with short vowels (cat, pig) and consonant blends (flat, ship)

• Learn frequently used sight words (the, have, said, of, come)

• Identify new words by trying to sound them out, breaking them into parts, or looking at them in
context

• Identify the title and author of a book

• Begin to read aloud with reasonable fluency

• Write four- to six-word sentences with readable letters

• Attempt to use some capitalization and punctuation

• Enjoy reading simple stories and poems

• Feel positive about progress made in school

• First-grade readers come in all ability levels. Some are already reading chapter books, while others
barely know the alphabet. Your child may be embarrassed if he/she feels that
others in class are ahead in reading. Try to be positive and encourage your
child! Everyone learns at his/her own pace!

• Your child may feel disappointed if he/she is placed in a low reading group. Continue to practice
at home, but don’t pressure your child. A slower pace that is thorough and
appropriate for your child can provide excellent results. Ask your child’s
teacher if there are other supplemental activities for you to do at home.

• Continue to read to your child. Select a broad array of books. Expand out from simple stories to
include poetry and nonfiction that interest your child.

• Encourage your child to read to you. Help him/her select books that he/she can read accurately and
fluently. These books should be fairly easy in order for your child to begin
gaining confidence and feel like a reader.

• Help your child write to friends and relatives. Don’t correct his/her errors; most grandmas love the
letters just as they are!

• Limit the amount of TV that your child may watch. Be selective about the programming he/she does
watch.

• Make a set of flash cards for the 150 most commonly used sight words. Play the Pile-up game. Start with
the first 10 words. Ask your child to read the first word. If your child gets
it correct, he/she gets to keep the card; otherwise, it goes back into your
pile. Show him/her the next word. If your child reads it correctly, he/she
gets to keep it. The goal is to transfer the "pile" of cards from
your hand to your child’s. As he/she improves, gradually increase the number
of cards you use. You can remove cards once they are mastered. At any time,
play with 25 cards or fewer. 



• Make a game about spelling out three-letter words. First, make flash cards of the lowercase letters on
3x5 index cards. Then, cut out pictures of common items that are spelled with
only three letters (for example, cat, bat, pen, cup, hen, dog, pot, bag,
tot, lip, leg, etc.). Paste each picture onto a sheet of paper, and draw
three boxes the size of the index cards below it. Ask your child to
"spell" the names of the items by placing the letters in the
appropriate boxes (for example, under the picture of a leg, your child will
place the letters "l," "e," "g,"). If this is
too hard, just ask your child to place the first letter in the first box. To
make it easier at the beginning, place the appropriate three cards in front of
your child before he/she attempts to spell out the word. Once your child has
spelled the word, ask him/her to read it to you.



• Make a game about long and short vowels. On 3x5 index cards, write individual words that have short or
long vowels (cat, bat, rag, make, rake, take). Start with the vowel
"a." Make a picture card for the short-vowel column (cat) and
one for the long-vowel column (cake). Let your child sort the cards
into the appropriate column. Have your child read each word as he/she places
it in the right column. After "a," practice "i" (pig, kite), then "o" (pot,
rope), then "u" (cup, mule), then "e" (leg, tree).

• Little House on the Prairie series

• The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

• The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

• Hop on Pop by Dr. Seuss

• Go Dog Go by P.D. Eastman

• Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel

• Little Bear, by Else Homelund Minarik

• Hooked on Phonics Companion Books Series

• Bob Books series by Bobby Lynn Maslen

• Easy-to-Read books by Puffin

• Hello Reading series by Puffin