How To Improve My Child’s Reading In Spanish

Improving your child’s reading in Spanish will help them to improve in the language and gain an independence in their own learning as their proficiency increases. Reading is a fantastic way for children to learn Spanish and there are lots of things you can do as a parents to help them along the way.

This is assuming that they already have some interest in reading in Spanish, if they don’t then check out our article: how do I introduce reading in Spanish to my child?

Choose Spanish children’s books that are suitable for their age and level

The most important thing that you can do is to be very careful when selecting the right book for your child. If you get a book that is too difficult for your child then they won’t understand and won’t be able to take much in, but if you get a book that’s too easy they’ll probably get bored. Whichever book you choose, make sure that it is suitable for the age and level of Spanish proficiency that your child is at.

Find engaging Spanish children’s books

Remember, it’s not just about level and age of your child. It’s also really important to find books that are interesting and fun for them. If the book is boring they’re not going to engage with what they’re reading and their comprehension levels won’t improve.

Teach them the Spanish alphabet

One of the first things you can do to help them is to teach them the Spanish alphabet. If you do this, then they’ll get used to the sounds quite quickly and will be able to read much quicker. You can teach the alphabet through song or using block letters. There are lots of Spanish alphabet songs available online that you can use to sing along with your child.

Learn the new words first

You could try preparing flash cards with pictures of any new words that are going to come up in the story and teach them to your child first. Then when you read the story they won’t find the comprehension too difficult because they’ll know what the new words are.

Read in Spanish with them every single day

The important thing when learning a new language is consistency. Make sure you read to your child in Spanish every single day, even if it’s just one short story. This will be one of the quickest ways to improve their Spanish reading skills. It’s much more beneficial for a child to interact a little bit with a language every single day than it is for them to read a lot just once a week.

Let them trace along with their fingers

Encourage your child to trace alone with their fingers when you’re reading to them or with them to help them match the sounds to the words they are seeing. It’s a very similar process as to what you would do when you start reading to your children in English for the first time.

Improve their other Spanish skills

Their Spanish reading skills will improve if their other skills are improving as well. Try and watch Spanish cartoons with them, talk to them in Spanish or just play games. All of these things together will increase their Spanish proficiency level.