skip to Main Content

A Super Effective Reading Strategy to Engage Children While Reading

Reading with your child just 15 minutes a day can have a positive life-long impact on learning.   Getting your little one engaged is more meaningful than how many books you read in that short amount of time because quality is more important than quantity. There are many reading strategies to engage small children and one of the easiest to remember is OWL: Observe, Wait, Listen. Keep reading for how to implement this strategy with your little kiddo today!

OBSERVE.  

Children won’t always tell you what they are thinking, therefore, face and body language can provide you with a lot of information and be used to check for comprehension. If your child looks confused, stop and talk about what you read. Use the pictures to talk about what’s going on in the story and clarify unknown concepts and vocabulary. If your child is still confused, try saying it a different way and relate what’s going on in the story back to something they are familiar with already. By observing your child, you can see what parts of the story they are interested in and you can make comments and talk about what they found interesting, keeping your child engaged.

WAIT.  

Before turning the page or moving on to the next part of the story, give your child the opportunity to comment on the story. If you’re not sure how long to wait, count to ten. Waiting lets your child have the opportunity to think about what they heard, ask questions, and make comments about the story. Tip: you don’t have to read the entire story in one sitting; remember quality over quantity.

LISTEN.

Be careful to listen to what your child is trying to tell you, even if it’s just a sound. If you’re not sure what your child said, try your best to use context clues to guess what they are trying to communicate. If you’re still unsure, make sure your child knows you’re trying your best to understand them, and what they have to say is important to you. Tip: do not  interrupt your child when they try to spontaneously communicate a message. Let them finish their thoughts.

Remember, even 15 minutes can help build language and literacy skills that last a lifetime. Help make the most of those 15 minutes and Happy OWLing!

Blog post written and submitted by Speech-Language Pathologist Leslie Janezic

Back To Top

Patient Reviews

LLA Therapy

Patient Reviews

Crystal Scheibe

Facebook
Great place, glad we found them. Been going to Medina over 2 months now and he loves Lauryn and Kyler. Wish they had more ABA therapy places available... live in Wooster and long drive everyday.

Karrie Swan LaRock

Facebook
My 11 year old son has dyslexia and has made noticeable gains in working At LLA THERAPY. Katie is strong in her approach toward him and also keeps him comfortable enough to perform well. We will continue visiting both the Fairlawn and Hudson offices and recommend them highly.

Ron Monroe

Facebook
My 9 year old just completed about 9 months of weekly speech sessions (due to his stuttering) with Matt Hagge at LLA and we are thrilled with the experience and results. What I thought might be a negative (what kid really wants to go to speech class?) was made very positive by Matt, and my son never hesitated or complained when we talked about class. He really enjoyed it and really took what Matt taught him to heart. His speech has been greatly improved and we definitely recommend LLA. Thank you so much!

Heather Dougherty-Pantoja

Facebook
My son’s Occupational Therapist, Jess, is an amazing OT! She gives practical tips on working with my son at home and school!

Terri Apgar

Facebook
I cannot say enough good things about LLA Therapy. My daughter was a client of Teal Simmons’ for approximately 2 years and was just released from speech therapy! She was diagnosed with Apraxia in 2015 and worked with Teal twice a week. Through Teal’s application of PROMPT therapy, my daughter had age-appropriate speech after one year. All of the staff we interacted with at LLA were absolutely wonderful. They really care about what they do and making sure your child achieves their goals.

Kelli Geisler Davisson

Facebook
LLA Therapy has been an excellent experience for my son as well as my family! My son always asks, "When can I go see Ms. Jeannine again, is it Monday??" He has also made huge gains in only 5 months! I would highly recommend LLA and have already shared my experience with friends looking for services!

Victoria Hansford-Price

Facebook
We are so grateful for our Speech Therapist Ms.Teal. We have seen a great improvement with our sons confidence and communication abilities since we have started "Prompt" therapy. What we love the most about LLA and Ms. Teal is that Kohl feels comfortable and relaxed which has played a critical role in his progress. Thank you Ms. Teal for all you have done.

Laura Lee Hogsett

Facebook
They have helped in numerous ways. Speech, OT and behavioral. I've had numerous compliments on my son's progress thanks in very large part to LLA. I would recommend LLA before I recommend our local children's hospitals, though they are good, they don't have the staff that LLA does.

Amy Furukawa

Facebook
We had a great experience with Matt Hagge at LLA! Our Middle School age son was becoming very conscious of his voice, which is nasal due to a cleft palate. Matt helped him to better form his sounds and project his voice in a way that makes the unavoidable nasality less noticeable.Our son is more confident and outgoing & even took on a speaking role in the church play. Matt has the perfect personality to relate with our son, and we would recommend him to anyone needing speech therapy services!

Jessica Havalotti

Facebook
LLA Therapy has been an excellent experience for our daughter. I would highly recommend LLA. Miss Grace was so amazing and I can't believe how quickly our daughter showed improvement. Thank you!
Read More