How long will it take for my child to complete the Right Track Reading Lessons or Back on the Right Track Reading Lessons program? What sort of time commitment does the program require for me to teach my child to read? How long does it take to teach a student to read?
With the Right Track Reading Lessons program most children can be taught to read in a relatively short period of time. If the parent/instructor commits to 30 minute sessions 4 times/week, most children can complete the program within 3 to 6 months. Obviously the more time you spend with your child the faster they will progress through the program. Also, as can be expected, time requirements to complete the program vary with age of the child and individual differences. For example, it will take longer to teach a 5-year old who does not know any letters, is still mastering fine motor skills of writing, and has limited literacy background to complete the program than an 8-year old who has a strong literacy background, knows all his letters, is already writing and just needs to learn to read. Younger children may take 6 to 8 months to complete the program while older children may finish the complete program within 6 to 8 weeks. The direct instruction and systematic format increases not only the effectiveness but also the efficiency of instruction. It doesn’t take much time to make a big difference in your child’s reading ability.
Ideally, instruct younger children (5-6 years old) 20-30 minutes a day at least 4 times a week. Older children 2nd/3rd grade benefit from longer 30-45 minute sessions 4 times/week. Start with these time suggestions and then modify depending on your child. Consistency is important, especially in the beginning stages. If you proceed at a slower pace be sure and include daily practice of sounds and reading skills in some other way.
If you are teaching an older student in a remediation situation, it is best to teach longer sessions condensed into a shorter time period (For example 1 hour sessions 4 or 5 times a week). Not only do these older students have the maturity to benefit from longer sessions but their advanced skills and background knowledge allow then to rapidly progress through the program. An intensive program allows the student to quickly see results. A rapid improvement in reading ability that is most noticeable under an intensive program has incredible motivational and self-esteem benefits. Most remedial readers will rapidly progress through the program. In addition, with older students, you need to quickly get through the teaching ‘how to read’ instruction and advance to higher level skills. While individuals vary, the author has found most older students she has tutored (4th-9th grade) needed approximately 20 to 30 hours of instruction. Ideally, it is best to condense this instruction into 1 hour sessions 4 or 5 times a week for 4 to 6 weeks.
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Additional information, articles and resources on teaching students to read proficiently is located on the Free Reading Information page of the Right Track Reading website.
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This information was written by Miscese Gagen a mother with a passion for teaching children to read proficiently by using effective methods. She is also a successful reading tutor and author of the reading instructional programs Right Track Reading Lessons and Back on the Right Track Reading Lessons. The purpose of this information is to empower parents and teachers with information on teaching children how to read. We CAN improve reading proficiency, one student at a time! More information is located at www.righttrackreading.com ~ Copyright 2005-2007 Miscese R. Gagen