Practice reading first grade


Reading Games for 1st Graders Online

1st Grade Reading Games

Children love stories and books. And what better way for them to practice than to read on their own!

We love doing what we are good at, and children are no different. The more a child can read, the more they will want to. Learning the right methods and techniques can help children read faster. Fun reading games for 1st graders help engage and push children to read more words, build fluency, and gain familiarity with reading concepts. It also develops a greater interest in reading, writing, and spelling as a result.

When kids have fun, the process of learning becomes thrilling. Online reading games for 1st grade include phonics games and sight words games.

Other ELA games you can explore are: reading games, writing games, writing sight word games, letter tracing games, etc.

How Do We Introduce Reading to 1st Graders?

Introduce reading after your child is well versed with letter and vowel sounds. While most learners in this grade will be fairly familiar with them, always practice them regardless because it is possible for children to lose touch with these concepts or forget them.

Learn to read games for 1st graders can also be used to introduce the concept of reading and reading skills. Your child can practice phonics, sight words, vowel sounds, vowel teams, rhyming words and much more with such games. This allows children to be introduced to reading in a way that’s fun and engaging.

How Can We Make Reading Fun for 1st Graders?

Some of the best reading games for 1st graders can be used to make the process of developing reading skills fun! These games are innovative and fill your child with creativity and a want for learning. They set your child up for success perfectly by using varied techniques and encouraging consistent practice. Exciting and bright visuals make the process of learning reading skills fun and engaging.

How Can Games Help Better the Reading Skills of 1st Graders?

Online reading games for 1st grade help kids pick a concept and allow them to practice similar groups of words or patterns. Children learn to work with word groups with ease. Fun reading games for 1st graders help kids make strong associations between words, their sounds, their formation and other language elements. This helps in building a better understanding and thus enhances their reading skills greatly.

Frequently Asked Questions
  • How do I teach my 1st grader reading skills?

    1st grade reading games are wonderful tools to teach your first grader reading skills. Help your child recognize, build, rhyme and match words with these fun games. Your child can also explore words with long and short vowel sounds, initial blends, nasal blends, word families, end blends and practice to find the odd one out with fun reading games for 1st graders online.

  • What to teach 1st graders in reading?

    Kids should learn about long vowel sounds, initial and ending consonant blends, magic E words, vowel teams, bossy R and soft sounds in the first grade. Online tools and resources can be employed to help teach children these essential ELA topics.

  • What are some of the best fun reading activities for 1st grade?

    Some fun reading activities and some of the best reading games for 1st graders include: making story predictions, practicing rhyming words with fun poems, making a visual story flipchart, etc.

  • What are the best books for reading for 1st grade?

    Short fiction story books and poetry books for kids are amazing tools to practice reading skills with your first grader. A lot of poems include fun visuals, rhymes, and interesting backdrops that make practicing reading really interactive. Storybooks have bright illustrations that make them quite eye-catching. They help in creating a strong association with words, stories and characters.

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29 Fun and Easy 1st Grade Reading Comprehension Activities

First grade is such an important time for a child. They are becoming more independent in a variety of ways! One of the most important aspects of this independence is their reading. Reading will be the foundation for everything they do in the future. This is why reading comprehension comes in full force during these pivotal developmental years.

Building comprehension skills can be a daunting experience for parents, caregivers, and educators. This is most likely why you ended up here. Keep reading for a total breakdown of some of the best comprehension strategies that can be both used at home and in the classroom!

Keeping It Fun

1. Puzzle Retelling

In first grade, we LOVE puzzles. This is why puzzle retelling builds such excellent comprehension skills. Using background knowledge helps kids to be confident and excited about a comprehension activity. Puzzle retelling is also super easy to set up!

Learn more: teacherspayteachers.com

2. Five Finger Retell

Any elementary teacher will tell you how much they love the 5-finger retelling comprehension activity. This activity gives students the visual of retelling a story. It’s also, so much fun! Teachers have been known to incorporate finger puppets, a comprehension worksheet, and many different creative comprehension strategies.

Learn more: teacherspayteachers.com

3. Sight Word Practice 

Sight word practice is one of the all-important reading and comprehension skills for Grade 1. Creating active readers by building vocabulary through an active vocabulary game is one of the best ways to keep your children engaged. Here are a few great sight word comprehension activities.

Cute story sticks are always a great way to teach sight words! This is something you can easily make for your classroom and at home!

4. Sight Word Bingo

Bingo is always a favorite! It is great and always a highly rated vocabulary game. Here you'll find a FREE resource that allows you to generate a bingo card based on the sight words students are learning and the basis of their background knowledge.

5. Color By Sight Word

There are so many colorful reading comprehension reading worksheets that go along with sight word vocabulary. There are tons of these worksheets throughout the web, here is a FREE resource to see how your students and children will respond.

6. Mental Images

First grade is a time of discovery for children. Visualizing and making mental images is an exciting time for young learners. Providing them with the comprehension skills they need for a love of reading. Mental images can be a great way to incorporate writing prompts into your child’s reading comprehension activities.

Mrs. Jump’s class has some great comprehension activities. Here are some mental image comprehension activities!

7. Comprehension Checks

Comprehension checks may not sound that exciting BUT they can always be fun! Your children will love all of the colorful reading comprehension worksheets that come with comprehension checks. You can make them yourself quite easily, which makes them perfect for at home or in the classroom. Here are some resources for your classroom!

8. Brain Movies

Brain Movies are a great way to build student comprehension skills. Making a Brain Movie is easy for you and for your students. Here is a great way to incorporate it into your classroom.

During a read-aloud, pause when you come across a descriptive passage. Have students close their eyes and picture what is happening, while you are reading! This blog gives a great breakdown of how to incorporate this in your classroom and the importance of Brain Movies incorporation.

9. Printable Story Mats

Printable story mats are easy to make and great for comprehension! You can make them any size that fits your needs. You can find a free download online here.

10. Puppets Steal the Show

Puppets are a great way to get your students engaged, active, and laughing. Puppets can be used for a variety of comprehension activities. Here is a blog that gives an amazing breakdown for using puppets to build comprehension skills.

11. Active Reading

Modeling active reading with your students is extremely important when reading anything. It is important to discuss what is happening in the story as you read. This will help your child to understand and empathize with the characters.

Make sure to ask questions that the child can relate to - Have you ever felt this way? What do you think happened? How do you think he/she/it feels? - Provoking and furthering a child’s thinking process will most definitely help their comprehension skills.

Here is a great blog post to help you practice active reading in the classroom and at home.

12. Think-Aloud

Think-alouds are one of the most amazing comprehension tactics! Think-alouds give students the space to make connections in their lives. When practicing the think-aloud comprehension strategy you should always connect a book back to a time that the child can relate to.

By connecting the book to other book’s the child has read, the child’s life experiences, and the ideas and lessons in the book you are helping to build a relationship with books. Here is a great blog that will help you use this comprehension strategy.

13. Read and Answer!

Incorporating media into the classroom has long been a part of the newest curriculum. It can sometimes be difficult to use media effectively in your ELA curriculum. This video can be used as an entire class, or in small groups. Either way, it will help you to assess students on their knowledge of reading aloud or in their heads and answering questions.

Learn more: North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

14. Listen and Comprehend

This is another video that will be perfect for your kiddos to complete on their own or in small groups. Listening to others read is very important for first grade, language development. In this video, students will listen to the story and answer the questions that follow.

Learn more: Hand 2 Mind

15. Reading Comprehension Check-in

Wordwall provides some of the most entertaining lessons on the web! These lessons are created and shared by other teachers. The activity below can be used in both small groups or as a whole group lesson to assess where your students are in their level of comprehension!

Learn more: Worldwall

16. The Random Story Wheel!

The random wheel is such a fun classroom integration. Project this wheel on a smartboard and have students spin on their turn. Whether students answer these questions in small groups or individually, they will love to play. The best part about this random wheel is that it can be used with any story.

Learn more: Worldwall

17. Open the Box Activity

Another amazing activity offered by Word Wall is "Open the Box". This activity resembles a bit like the random wheel, but students are asked to click on a box instead of spinning the wheel. Put a twist on this game and use the questions to make your very own classroom board!

Learn more: Worldwall

18. Teach to Understand

Giving even our youngest learners a clear understanding of exactly what is expected from a lesson is vital to their success. This video provides students and teachers with a better understanding of what it means to visualize. Understanding vocabulary can make explanations and student understanding that much stronger at the end of the day.

Learn more: Shannon McGilloway

19. Visualize Through the Senses

It's important to note that most stories that are aimed at younger students have some sort of connection to their feelings. Therefore, using a visualization strategy that connects the story to different feelings a child might have, could be vital to helping them better understand and comprehend the story.

Learn more: Toni Allen

21. Visualize Song

Any teacher knows that songs help students to remember and understand different strategies and lessons. Just like with anything else, making a song for visualizing a story will help students refer back to their understanding. This song is great for exactly that and it's definitely one to get stuck in your head!

Learn more: Teacher Friend

22. Story Retell

Being able to retell the story is part of the common core curriculum in first grade. It's important to provide students with a variety of different stories throughout your lessons. With some being ones they know by heart and others being totally new. Use this short Tortoise and the Hare read aloud and have students reenact it!

Learn more: Get Set Parents

23. Parts of the Story Song

Well, just like with visualizing, it's pretty evident that teachers know how important songs are to students' understanding and comprehension. This song is perfect for being able to retell the story. Students will have a better understanding of the different parts of the story, making it easier for them to understand and retell the story.

Learn more: Jack Hartmann Kids Music Channel

24. Retell the Story

In a world that is centralized around distance learning and working from home, it's important to have materials ready to go in an event that students won't be in school. This video does just that and provides details for both students, teachers, and even parents to have a full grasp of the learning objective.

Learn more: Mandy Yates

25. Character Traits

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A post shared by Life Between Summers (@lifebetweensummers)

Another very fun activity for reading comprehension is understanding different character traits! A simple and fun way to do this in first grade is to make a poster together about one of the student's favorite stories. First, read the story together and then create a poster that can be displayed in the classroom.

Learn more: Life Between Summers

26. Dot to Dot 

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A post shared by Invitation to play and learn (@invitationtoplayandlearn)

This is a pre-reading comprehension strategy that can really be tailored for any grade, age, or story! This dot to dot activity with help to activate prior knowledge and build vocabulary that may arise in the story.

Learn more: Invitation to Play and Learn

27. Christmas Word Families

There's no doubt that reading comprehension and fluidity go hand in hand. Constant practice with students' reading skills, will ultimately help them to improve their comprehension skills.

Learn more: Invitation to Play and Learn

28. Retell Activity

This video will walk students through a read-aloud and retelling activity. The best part about this video is that you can take it and complete it with students or send it home for an at-home distance learning activity. Tailor is to your curriculum and enjoy!

Learn more: The Elementary ELL Teacher, Mrs. Brenda Pearson

29. Brown Bear Brown Bear, Game Show Quiz

In all honestly, bringing a game show on the computer into the classroom can be a total hit or miss. Although, this particular game show is right at the level of most first graders! Making it that much more engaging. At the end have your students join the leaderboard and see if you can get to #1.

Learn more: Worldwall

How many words per minute a child in 1st grade should read

Reading is an important skill , that children begin to master literally from the first days of schooling. Reading speed is directly related to academic performance. Therefore, in each grade of elementary school, teachers periodically check the reading technique of children. Let's find out how many words per minute a child should read in grade 1 and how to increase reading speed.

First grade reading technique

In Russian schools, the reading technique of primary school students is tested twice during the school year - in the first half of the year and in the second. Some teachers do this every quarter. Such a check is needed to evaluate the following indicators:

  • Way of reading. The teacher watches how the child reads: he reads the words in full or syllable by syllable or even by letter, pronounces them smoothly or abruptly, slows down on complex and long words.
  • Reading speed. nine0004 This is the speed with which a first grader is able to read an unfamiliar text (how many words per minute he reads).
  • Correct. The teacher pays attention not only to the number of words read per minute, but also to the correctness of their pronunciation. The nature of these errors is also taken into account (incorrect pronunciation, omission of some words, incorrect emphasis).
  • Awareness. The student must not only read the text, but also grasp its essence, understand what it is about. nine0016

The main indicator that the teacher focuses on is the number of words that the student reads in one minute. According to the norms, by the end of the first semester, a first-grader should read 25-30 words, and by the end of the second - 30-40 words.

Games with which the child will love to read and write

How to improve the reading technique of a first grader?

If your child does not reach the specified norm, do not be discouraged. Reading technique can be improved and it's not that hard. To do this, you need to start reading regularly at home. But don't force your child to do it by force. Reading should give him pleasure. And this is possible only if it causes interest. nine0007

Try to instill in your son or daughter a love of reading. To do this, select the literature that is interesting to him. It can be fairy tales, stories and stories about animals, fantastic stories or something else. Many children like children's detective stories. The twisted plot involuntarily attracts the attention of the child, prompting him to read on.

Study different literature with your child and find out what he likes. Remember what you yourself loved to read as a child, find these books and offer them to your son or daughter. nine0003 Good for first graders:

  • Russian folk tales and tales of the peoples of the world;
  • fairy tales by G. H. Andersen, A. Pushkin, the Brothers Grimm, C. Perrault;
  • stories by N. Nosov, V. Dragunsky, E. Uspensky, M. Zoshchenko.

Having selected the most interesting works, proceed to the reading technique training. Choose a convenient time when you are not in a hurry. If the book is electronic, download it to your phone or tablet and set the font that is comfortable for the student. nine0007

Convenient holders for tablets, whiteboards and books

Sit with your child and have them read aloud to you. Don't rush him. The main thing is not the speed of reading, but the correct pronunciation of words. The speed will develop by itself with regular practice. Correct the student if he reads incorrectly, explain the meaning of unfamiliar words. The child should not just read, but understand what the text is about. Be sure to discuss what you read and ask questions. nine0007

Read 20 minutes a day. This is quite enough, it is only necessary that classes be regular. If the child is carried away by the work and wants to read further - please. The main thing is that he does not do it through force, otherwise the classes will begin to disgust him.

Some strict parents force the child to read for hours, thereby literally instilling in him a dislike for this occupation. Growing up, such children do not touch books for a very long time. So don't overdo reading. Don't forget to take breaks for games :)

Tips for improving the reading technique of a first-grader

To read not only quickly, but also expressively, it is useful to pronounce tongue twisters. Find tongue twisters to practice different letters and sounds and have your son or daughter memorize them. Let him repeat them at any convenient time - on the way to school, during the game, etc. Patter is excellent for training the speed and clarity of speech.

Notice how the child breathes while reading aloud. nine0004 If he stops in mid-sentence to take a breath, then he is not breathing properly. You need to pronounce the phrase on the exhale, and take in air in the pause between sentences. Let the child practice taking in more air into the lungs and reading the entire sentence. Proper breathing will make speech smoother and speed up the pace of reading.

Reading by syllables significantly slows down the pace. If the student reads syllable by syllable, teach him to read the whole word. To do this, place the stresses in the words and invite your son or daughter to read them. If the child pays attention to stresses, it will be very difficult for him to read in syllables and he will be forced to pronounce the words in full. nine0007

Using these simple practices, your first-grader will quickly master the reading technique and during the next test in the class will be able to meet the standards, and maybe even show an even better result.

standards for grades and quarters

Reading is a key skill that opens the gate to the land of knowledge for a child. Thanks to this skill, children learn about the phenomena and events of the world around them, get acquainted with the characters and actions of people, meet new problems and ideas. This skill helps them to broaden their horizons and ideas about the world, develops critical thinking and trains cognitive abilities - attention, imagination, memory. Reading is the foundation for further successful learning. nine0007

To understand how well a child develops this skill, it helps to check the reading technique. Reading technique is a multifactorial test that characterizes the development of a skill from different angles. In the technique of reading are evaluated:

  • reading speed,
  • reading method,
  • reading awareness,
  • correct reading,
  • expressiveness of reading.

A difficult reading skill consists of both a technical and a semantic component and is aimed at achieving the main goal - understanding and assimilation of the information read. nine0007

Reading technique parameters

Let's consider all the components of reading technique in more detail.

  1. Reading speed - the number of words read in a certain period of time. Often, parents focus on the formation of fluent reading, while the child makes many mistakes, does not understand and does not remember what he read. It is not necessary to force only speed, slower conscious reading and a gradual increase in tempo are better than fast mechanical reading with errors and inaccuracies. nine0016
  2. Way of reading — syllabic reading or reading the whole word, smoothly. With the development of the skill, the child has a gradual transition from syllabic reading to smooth reading in whole words.
  3. Correct reading is characterized by the absence of errors and hesitation. Inattention, problems of diction lead to inaccurate reading, indistinct articulation and, as a result, to a distortion of meaning. Pay attention to the correct reading - this will be the key to competent writing. nine0016
  4. Reading awareness involves reading comprehension, awareness of the idea and meaning of the text, and in the future - this is the ability to catch the subtext, humor, irony, the author's attitude. Interfering with reading comprehension can be low reading speed, distorted reproduction - guessing words, changing the shape of words, not reading endings.
  5. Reading expressiveness - the use of pauses, finding the right intonation, the correct placement of stresses. The expressiveness of reading is inextricably linked with awareness. When understanding what is read, it is easier for the child to observe the necessary pauses, select the correct intonation and place logical stresses. nine0016

Reading speed standards for elementary school

GEF standards determine the desired reading speed for a child by a certain point in learning, help to understand whether the development of a skill is successful or whether additional attention is required to it. Standards - indicative values; it is important to take into account the individual psychophysiological characteristics of each child and evaluate the growth of his personal indicators.

Grade 1 reading speed standards

Reading speed standards in grade 2

Reading speed standards in grade 3

Reading rate in grade

9000

Reading speed, for which the lead schools, is reading at the speed of conversational speech, 110-120 words per minute. The human articulatory apparatus has adapted to this speed over time. And most importantly, the reading should be conscious, correct, expressive. nine0007

Other parameters of reading technique

Grade 1

At the end of the first half of the year. Reading is smooth syllabic, conscious and correct, with a clear pronunciation of syllables and words.

At the end of the second half of the year. Conscious, correct reading, simple words are read as a word. Words with a complex syllabic structure can be read syllable by syllable.

Grade 2

At the end of the first half of the year. Reading consciously, correctly, in whole words. Compliance with logical stresses. Compound words can be read syllable by syllable. nine0007

At the end of the second half of the year. Reading meaningful, correct, in whole words. With observance of logical stresses, pauses and intonations. Syllabic reading is undesirable.

Grade 3

At the end of the first half of the year. Reading consciously, correctly, in whole words. With observance of pauses and intonations, with the help of which the child expresses an understanding of the meaning of what is being read.

At the end of the second half of the year. Reading consciously, correctly, in whole words. With observance of pauses and intonations, through which the child expresses understanding of the meaning of what is being read. nine0007

4th grade

At the end of the first half of the year. Reading consciously, correctly, in whole words. With the help of observed pauses and intonations, the child not only expresses an understanding of the meaning of what is being read, but is able to express his attitude to what he has read.

At the end of the second half of the year. Reading consciously, correctly, in whole words. With observance of pauses and intonations, through which the child expresses an understanding of the meaning of what is read, and his attitude to the content of what is read. nine0007

How can I test my child's reading skills on my own?

Have your child see how well they read already. Children usually love to know how many centimeters they have grown, and they may also be interested in knowing their progress in reading. Warn about the upcoming test and ask the child to read quickly.

The control of reading technique in sensitive children who, due to their temperament, can hardly tolerate various tests, can be carried out imperceptibly or in the form of a game. Do not create unnecessary excitement around the upcoming test, do not arrange a test in the form of an exam. If the child is worried, stutters, transfer control to another time. nine0007

Verification process:

  1. Prepare a clock with a second hand or use the stopwatch on your phone, and choose the appropriate text.
  2. Ask the child to take a seat.
  3. Show him the text and ask him to read it aloud.
  4. Track the time from the moment your child starts reading. Not all children are able to immediately start reading on command, which leads to inaccurate results.
  5. Usually, one minute is noted for checking, but some experts recommend taking 2 minutes for monitoring, since not all children are equally quickly included in the work. Divide the result obtained in 2 minutes in half. nine0016
  6. When reading, do not correct or interrupt. It is better to discuss the mistakes made after the child has finished reading.
  7. Assess the speed, correctness, awareness and expressiveness of reading.
  8. Retest and compare results. Reading technique may differ depending on the child's fatigue, health status and mood.

Which text is suitable for verification?

Both fiction and non-fiction texts appropriate for the child's age are suitable for this purpose. The text should be unfamiliar, but understandable to the child, have educational and educational value. The texts of V. Bianchi, L. Tolstoy, N. Nosov, B. Zhitkov, K. Ushinsky, V. Dragunsky are suitable. The text for verification can be found in special manuals or in a textbook on the Russian language and literature. nine0007

You should find the text that is located on the spread of the book so that the child does not have to waste time turning pages. Choose text without an abundance of punctuation marks and distracting illustrations. It is not desirable that the passage contains common complex sentences and dialogues. The font must be large enough and legible. The text should not have a technical focus and contain terms incomprehensible to the child.

Test score

Speed ​​score

Count how many words the child read in one minute. When counting words, pay attention:

  • prepositions, conjunctions, particles of 1-2 letters are counted as one word;
  • when wrapping, a word counts as 2 words;
  • if the word is written with a hyphen, look at how many letters are on both sides of the hyphen: if there are more than three, we count it as 2 words, for example, “long-long”, if less than three, for example, “somehow”, - as one .

Compare your score with the recommended range and your child's previous performance. nine0007

Comprehension score

Determine how well the child understood what they read. If the student reads slowly and has read only a couple of sentences, let him read the passage to the end. Ask your child a few questions about the text. Ask what or who he read about. Ask the child to identify the main idea of ​​what they read and retell the text.

For a deeper check of the meaning of the reading and learning, use special teaching and methodological kits. nine0007

Correctness assessment

Pay attention to whether the child reads what is written correctly, whether he pronounces words clearly, whether there are hesitations and corrections, whether he alters words, whether he changes endings, whether he places stresses correctly. Discuss the mistakes with the student.

Evaluation of expressiveness

To assess the expressiveness of reading, the child is offered a familiar text. Listen to whether the child observes pauses and other punctuation marks, whether he changes intonation, whether he highlights the main idea. nine0007

Improving reading technique

Poor results in reading technique are not a reason to be upset, but only a signal that additional efforts need to be made to improve the skill. You can work with the child on your own or contact a specialist who will analyze the weak points and select the appropriate exercises. Conduct additional activities with the child in the mode of "sparing reading" without pressure. It is more important to observe the regularity and frequency of classes: 10-20 minutes daily. nine0007

How can you motivate your child to read:

  1. Reward for diligence with stickers, stars.
  2. Mark progress visually - create a success board so your child can visually see their progress
  3. Conduct activities in the form of a game, such as "going to the library" or "reading to your favorite toys. "
  4. Choose books and texts that are interesting for your child.
  5. Let the child read to the pets, they are grateful and accepting listeners. Reading to them, the child is not afraid to make a mistake, he relaxes and overcomes the fear of failure. nine0016
  6. Have a reading competition between peers and siblings.

To improve the speed of reading will help:

  1. Reading by syllabic tables.
  2. Multiple reading. Read the same text several times, increasing the pace. From the second time the child will be able to read faster.
  3. "Tug". An adult leads a finger along the line, setting the pace. The child tries to read at a given pace.
  4. Tops and roots. The child reads the words, covering the upper or lower half of the letters with a ruler. nine0016
  5. Reading in a book turned upside down.
  6. Lightning. Alternating reading at a comfortable pace with reading at the highest possible speed for 20 seconds on the command "Lightning!".
  7. "Sprint". Reading speed competition between classmates.
  8. Work on expanding the field of view according to Schulte tables.
  9. Reading with a window to eliminate "regression" - recurrent eye movements that lead to repeated reading.

For correct reading:

  1. Work on clear diction, do articulatory gymnastics.
  2. Read tongue twisters and tongue twisters.
  3. Invite the child to correct the deformed sentences: "The weather is good on the street."
  4. "Imaginary word". When reading, the wrong word is pronounced, the child must correct it.

Reading comprehension

  1. “Reading in a wave”. First, the child reads aloud, then retells what he read.
  2. nine0013 Drawing up a plan for reading.
  3. The student reads to himself at a comfortable pace, tells what he understood and felt, what he thought about
  4. Discuss unfamiliar words and expressions.
  5. Invite the child to draw a picture of the passage they read.

    Learn more