Multisensory Reading Strategies for Kids Struggling to Read

Is your child struggling to read? Multisensory reading strategies could help.

In our other blog article, What is Multisensory Learning: Benefits for Your Child, we explored the broader advantages of the multisensory teaching method.

Here, I’ll guide you through simple, practical, multisensory reading activities you can easily implement at home.

What is Multisensory Reading?

Multisensory reading is an educational approach that uses multiple senses to aid in the learning process. It combines visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile activities to enhance reading skills.

By incorporating multisensory instruction, it helps children grasp reading concepts more effectively. For example, children might:

See letters or words
Hear words pronounced
Physically manipulate letter tiles
Trace letters with their fingers

This comprehensive learning approach, which includes using more than one of your five senses (see, hear, smell, taste, or touch), can improve reading skills and build confidence, especially for children with reading disabilities such as dyslexia.

Studies show that a multisensory reading approach can significantly boost:

From simply touching and reading letters to manipulating word tiles, incorporating multisensory reading activities at home can support your child’s learning and make reading a more enjoyable learning experience.

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Benefits of Multisensory Reading Instruction

Helping your child learn to read can be a challenging experience. However, multisensory strategies offer a fantastic solution. These methods use multiple senses like sight, hearing, touch, and movement all at once, making reading easier.

This approach is very effective for both beginning and struggling readers. Let’s explore why multisensory reading is so important.

– Enhances Memory and Learning

Multisensory reading engages different parts of the brain through various inputs. Imagine your child not just seeing the word “cat” but also hearing how it’s pronounced, touching letter tiles to spell it out, and even acting out the word with simple gestures. Each sense works together, creating stronger memory connections.

– Engages Different Learning Styles

Children are unique and learn in different ways. One might excel with visual cues, while another might rely more on auditory signals.

Using multisensory reading methods, you can cater to your child’s learning style, ensuring they don’t feel left behind or frustrated.

For example, children who are kinesthetic learners will learn more easily with a kinesthetic activity such as hopping.

– Builds Stronger Neural Pathways

Combining senses helps build and strengthen the neural pathways in the brain. This is incredibly important for children who struggle with reading. The brain’s plasticity continually grows and adapts, and engaging multiple senses accelerates this growth.

– Reduces Learning Anxiety

Reading difficulties often come with a sense of failure and anxiety. Multisensory techniques are more than just effective; they’re fun!

Engaging the senses makes activities playful and less stressful, reducing anxiety and helping children feel more confident and capable.

Multisensory reading can make a world of difference for children struggling to read. It engages all their senses, making learning effective and fun. By incorporating these techniques, you provide your child with a richer, more rewarding reading experience.

Key Components of Multisensory Language Instruction

These techniques engage multiple senses at once, making learning more effective. You can help your child holistically develop their reading skills by involving visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile activities.

– Visual Strategies

Visual techniques can be powerful in enhancing a child’s reading abilities. For instance, colored overlays can reduce visual stress and make text easier to read.

Some children find that a blue or green overlay helps them focus on the words better. Experiment with different colors to see which one works best for your child.

Other strategies include:

Interactive Texts: These books or e-books include images, animations, and clickable elements. They make the reading process more engaging and can help kids better understand the story.
Pictures: Use picture books or flashcards with images to help associate words with their meanings. These visual cues can aid memory and comprehension.
Word Walls: Create a wall in your home dedicated to new words your child is learning. Use colorful sticky notes or cards to make it visually appealing.

– Auditory Strategies

Auditory approaches involve using sound and music to reinforce learning. These methods are especially beneficial for kids who struggle with phonics and decoding.

Some effective auditory strategies include:

Phonics Songs: Numerous phonics songs available online make learning letter sounds fun. Singing letters and their sounds helps children remember them better.
Audiobooks: Listening to audiobooks is an excellent way for children to improve comprehension skills without the pressure of decoding every word. It also introduces them to new vocabulary.
Sound Games: Play games focusing on listening skills, such as identifying sounds or rhyming words. This builds auditory discrimination, an essential skill for reading.

– Kinesthetic-Tactile Strategies

Kinesthetic methods involve physical activities that help children learn by doing. These hands-on approaches can make abstract concepts more concrete.

Activities you can try include:

Finger Writing:

Fill a shallow tray with one of the following. Have your child use their finger to write words or letters, combining tactile and visual learning.

Sand
Shaving cream
Sugar
Salt
Rice

This simple activity allows children to feel the shape of each letter. It combines the sense of touch with movement, which can help reinforce letter recognition and fine motor skills.

Using Letter Tiles:

Manipulating letter tiles to form words engages the mind and the body. You can create a variety of word-building exercises or spelling games using these tiles.

Incorporating these multisensory reading techniques at home can significantly enhance your child’s reading abilities. Each child is unique, so find what combination of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways works best for your child.

At-Home Multisensory Reading Activities

Using multisensory teaching techniques at home can reinforce what your child learns in school. Here are some simple yet effective multisensory reading activities you can try:

Interactive Storytelling

Reading a story can be more than just a quiet, sit-down activity. Involving props and gestures can turn reading time into an exciting and interactive experience.

Parents can use simple household items as props to make characters come alive. For example, a stuffed animal can be a character or a scarf can be used to represent a flowing river.

You can also use gestures to represent actions in the story, like waving arms to show a bird flying or stomping feet to mimic an elephant.

Use Props: Simple items like toys or household objects can help children visualize the story.
Incorporate Gestures: Act out parts of the story. Wave arms to show a character running or use facial expressions to show emotions.

– Story Re-enactment:

After reading a story, have your child act it out with toys or puppets, enhancing comprehension and retention through play.

– DIY Comic Strips:

Encourage your child to create a comic strip with images and dialogue, combining art and language learning.

– Writing Prompts:

Provide creative writing prompts and have your child write their responses. Encourage using descriptive language and drawing illustrations to reflect the story.

– Reading Aloud Together:

Alternate reading paragraphs or pages aloud with your child. Afterward, discuss the content by asking questions to check understanding and promote interaction.

These methods make reading fun and help children remember and understand the story better.

Letter and Word Activities

Games can be a powerful tool to enhance spelling and phonics skills. You can use blocks or cards to create words, which makes learning interactive and tactile.

– Letter Blocks:

Use letter blocks to build words. Ask your child to find and arrange the letters for words. Use their spelling words each week.

– Word Cards:

Create cards with different letters or word patterns. Lay them out on the table and have your child form words.

– Touch and Feel Letters:

Use textured letters your child can touch and feel, helping them connect the tactile sensation with the letter shapes and sounds. You can make one for each letter of the alphabet (for example, use sandpaper for “S” and velvet for “V”).

– Say, Touch, and Spell:

Use letter tiles or magnetic letters to represent each sound in a word. Your child says each sound, touches the corresponding tile and spells the word aloud.

– Read, Create, and Write:

Have your child read a word on a flashcard. Then, have them use letter tiles or magnets to create the word. Finally, have them write that word on paper.

– Gestures for Sounds:

Assign gestures to specific sounds, such as clap for /sh/ or stomp for /ch/. Dictate words and have your child make the corresponding gesture when they hear these sounds.

– Popsicle Stick Clusters:

Write letter clusters (like bl and ing) on cards attached to popsicle sticks. When you say a word (such as bling), your child holds up the correct corresponding sticks to form the word.

– Sight, Sound, and Movement:

Combine visual, auditory, and physical activities. For instance, when teaching the word “jump,“ show the word on a card, say the word aloud, and then have your child jump.

– Alphabet Hopscotch:

Draw a hopscotch grid with letters instead of numbers. Have your child hop to the letters to spell out words.

– Sound Walk:

Go for a walk and identify objects that start with specific sounds. This activity encourages auditory learning and connects words to real-world items.

– Spelling Bingo:

Create bingo cards with words or letters. As you call them out, your child marks each correctly identified word or sound, reinforcing listening and recognition skills.

– Craft Words:

Use crafting supplies like pipe cleaners or cotton balls to spell words.

– Water Painting Letters:

Use a paintbrush and water to “paint“ letters on a chalkboard or pavement.

– Letter Hunt:

Hide letter magnets or flashcards around the house. Have your child find them and then arrange them to form words.

– Ball Toss Reading:

Write words on a beach ball. Toss it back and forth with your child. Whoever catches the ball reads the word nearest to their thumb.

– Clay words:

Have your child spell words by forming clay or playdough into letters.

– Food Letters:

Use small snacks like pretzels or raisins to form letters and words. After reading, your child can eat their creations.

– Air Writing:

Have your child write letters or words in the air with their finger while saying the sounds aloud.

– Using Audiobooks:

Pair audiobooks with physical books, encouraging your child to follow along in the text.

– Using a Whiteboard:

Let your child practice writing and erasing letters or words on a whiteboard, making corrections easy.

– Mirror Reading:

Use a mirror to let your child observe how their mouth moves when pronouncing different sounds. This visual feedback aids in correct articulation.

– Rhyming Activity:

Create a rhyming game where your child matches words that rhyme using cards or objects.

– Using Visual Charts:

Create poster-sized charts for familiar words, complete with pictures. These provide a visual aid to reference later.

– Sound-matching games:

Use objects or pictures to match sounds to letters or words.

– Flashlight tracking:

In a dim room, shine a flashlight on letters or words for your child to read.

These language-building activities will help reinforce phonemic awareness and decoding skills. They also make learning more fun and memorable. Including two or three such activities in your weekly routine can offer significant benefits.

Incorporating Technology

In today’s digital age, many apps and online resources offer multisensory approaches to reading. These tools can provide audio, visual, and interactive elements to make reading more accessible and fun.

Helpful Online Resources:

Reading Apps: Apps like ABCmouse or Starfall offer interactive lessons incorporating sounds, visuals, and games.
Online Phonics Programs: Websites like Reading Rockets offer various resources and activities that use a multisensory approach.
Special Ed Tutoring: We offer one-on-one special education tutoring that can be done from anywhere your child is! Our special education experts conduct their sessions online! Get started with a free consultation today!

Technology can provide additional support and resources that make reading more accessible, especially for children with learning difficulties.

Creating a Supportive Reading Environment

Creating a supportive reading environment is key to helping your child succeed. Let’s explore several ways to set one up in your home.

Choosing the Right Space

The first step in creating a supportive reading environment is choosing the right space. A quiet, well-lit area free from distractions can make a big difference.

Does your child have a favorite cozy corner or nook? Make it their dedicated reading space. Maybe add some comfortable seating, like a beanbag or cushioned chair. Remember, the aim is to create a spot where your child feels relaxed and ready to dive into their reading adventures.

Incorporating Reading into Daily Routine

Incorporating reading into your child’s daily routine helps establish consistency and shows them how important reading is. Here are a few tips:

Set a Regular Reading Time: Choose a time each day dedicated to reading. This could be before bed, after dinner, or following a school activity.
Read Aloud Together: Take turns reading aloud to each other. This not only makes reading enjoyable but also helps improve fluency and comprehension.
Use Visual Aids: Incorporate charts, flashcards, and illustrated books. Visual aids can help with word association and retention.

You can read our blog article: The Surprising Benefits of Reading 20 Minutes a Day.

Encouraging Positive Attitudes Towards Reading

A positive attitude toward reading can significantly impact your child’s progress. Celebrate their successes and praise their efforts, no matter how small.

Here’s how you can encourage positivity:

Reward Progress: Use a sticker chart to track reading milestones. Celebrate with a small reward or a fun activity when they reach a goal.
Stay Enthusiastic: Show excitement about reading. Your enthusiasm can be contagious, so encourage your child to share the same excitement.
Join a Reading Group: Find or form a reading group with other children. This social aspect can make reading fun and provide additional encouragement. Check out our online book club.

Providing Accessible Reading Materials

Having a variety of accessible reading materials caters to different levels and interests. Here are some ways to ensure your child always has something to read:

Library Visits: Regular trips to the library can introduce your child to new books and genres. To boost their enthusiasm, let them choose what interests them.
E-books and Audiobooks: Utilize digital resources. E-books and audiobooks can be especially helpful if your child struggles with traditional reading.
Magazine Subscriptions: Consider subscriptions to children’s magazines. These often contain a mix of storytelling, games, and informative articles that are easy to digest.

Incorporating these strategies creates a supportive reading environment that leverages multisensory teaching approaches.

Monitoring Progress and Adjusting Reading Strategies

It is important to track your child’s progress in reading and make necessary adjustments to the strategies. Sometimes, you need to shift direction to stay on the right path. This will ensure that your reading strategies are effective and cater to your child’s unique needs.

Keep a Reading Log

Just as a scientist keeps notes to document experiments, maintaining a reading log helps track your child’s development. A reading log can include:

Books read: List titles and authors.
Reading time: Note how long your child reads each day.
Challenges faced: Record any difficulties in decoding or comprehension.
Progress made: Document improvements or regressions in fluency and accuracy.

Reflect on these logs regularly to spot patterns or areas needing extra attention.

Regular Assessments and Feedback

Regular assessments provide a structured way to evaluate your child’s reading skills.

These assessments don’t have to be formal tests. They can be as simple as reading aloud sessions or comprehension questions after a story.

You’ll gather invaluable insights by gauging your child’s responses and performance.

Try implementing:

Weekly oral reading passages: Listen to your child read aloud to check for fluency and accuracy.
Comprehensive questions: Ask questions about the text to ensure they understand what they’re reading.
Word lists: Have your child read words they are currently learning to see how well they recognize and pronounce them.

Using this feedback, adjust the multisensory activities.

Adjusting the Strategies

As a gardener prunes plants to foster better growth, tweaking your teaching methods enhances your child’s reading development. Modify or reinforce your strategies based on your observations from logs and assessments.

Consider these steps for adjustment:

Increase multisensory activities: If progress slows, try adding new tactics or more frequent use of existing ones, such as using sandpaper letters or incorporating movement with reading.
Customize difficulty: Adjust the complexity of reading materials and activities to match your child’s level. This includes simplifying texts or introducing more challenging words.
Incorporate interests: If your child loves dinosaurs, include books and word lists related to dinosaurs to make learning more engaging.

Monitoring progress and adjusting strategies ensures your child gets the most out of the reading strategies. Remember, the goal is to keep the journey adaptive and responsive, ensuring their road to reading success is smooth.

Next Steps

Using multisensory reading strategies can significantly boost children’s reading abilities and confidence.

This learning approach fully engages their brain, enhancing retention and understanding. It is particularly beneficial for children with learning difficulties like dyslexia.

Keep the journey fun and stress-free, and watch your child’s reading skills flourish.

Additional Resources

Is your child struggling to read? Try these multisensory reading strategies to boost your child’s reading skills and make learning fun.