Reading Ranch Blog Articles
Why reading aloud to your child is so critical to their future
While working with several of our youngsters at The Reading Ranch’s Castle Hills location last week, I came across an article titled, Read aloud to your children to boost their vocabulary. What I really liked about this piece – besides that it is chock full of great advice – is that it further validates a conversation we’ve been having for years with our parents.
Phonics and other Key Definitions
If you have a child at The Reading Ranch Tutorial Center, you probably have heard the term phonics thrown around quite a bit in conversations with our instructors, all of whom are eagerly trying to share with you your kiddo’s early literacy success stories. But what about other terms, like phonemes, phonemic awareness, and even phonetics?
Teaching Phonics
Is there anyone else out there old enough to remember the “Hooked on Phonics worked for me” commercial tagline? These educational materials are still popular and do a stellar job giving children a solid foundation of early literacy suppor…
Six Reasons Why Your Child Needs A Literacy Specialist
More and more parents these days are I making the conscientious decision to work with a private tutor to give their children the advantage of year-round literacy support. They recognize that the ability to read, write, and comprehend creates the basis of all education and even career success- and more often than not, they rely on the Reading Ranch…
Powerful and funny quotes about reading
We’ve written time and time again that having the ability to read at a very early age creates the basis of all education moving forward and even career success. But more importantly, reading is fun! I, for one, cannot imagine a world without books…
A Sneak Peek Into The Reading Ranch Writer’s Workshop
It has long been said that the best readers make the best writers, and the best writers are good readers. We couldn’t agree more with that statement. Like a lightbulb needs electricity to work…
Eight reasons why students need to master critical thinking skills
The Reading Ranch® Tutorial Center announced recently that we are expanding our literacy program to include fifth and sixth graders. We are excited to make this transition, as the new approach will allow us to work with these kiddos through the end of elementary school – instead of just up to fourth grade – so they are better prepared for the road ahead.
How Reading & Writing Go Hand-In-Hand
You don’t need fancy statistics to understand the importance of helping a child improve his or her reading skills. The acts of reading and being read to improve a child’s vocabulary, communication and comprehension…
A Partnership With Parents, A Focus On Literacy
Dr. Kim Southwell didn’t come from money or the big city. She was raised in a small rural town, where her dad was a cattle buyer & farmer. Kim spent her free time at cattle sale barns, feedlots, and 4-H livestock fairs showing cattle, riding horses, and driving the tractor through pastures helping with chores.
Why Laser-Focus Tutorials Lead To Literacy Success
It occurred to me recently how rare our focus is here at The Reading Ranch®. Sure, we are like any tutoring center in that we take pride in improving a child’s skills in the classroom and life.
How Reading Bedtime Stories to Your Kids Helps Their Fluency
One of the vivid memories I have from childhood was of me snuggled next to my mom as she read me a bedtime story. After all these years, I still hear that soft voice and imagine her finger sliding across each word on the page. It didn’t matter what she was reading – I was hooked.
Summer is a Critical Time
Summer is a critical time when students leap ahead or fall behind. Don’t be a statistic, build a child’s reading and writing confidence this summer at The Reading Ranch.
Why the Reading Ranch?
The purpose of Reading Ranch is to provide children with enrichment and/or intervention in reading and writing while giving students the confidence and independence to be successful in literacy.
Fluency: How to improve fluency while reading bedtime stories to your kids.
A common question parents ask me is, “how do I help my child read better?” Practice these easy steps to your parent/child story time which will help build fluency with an early reader. The story time book will be read 3 different times:
Literacy Lenses
Are you concerned your child is having problems with reading or writing? If so, speak with the teacher who will be able to tell you if your child is indeed falling behind. An ongoing teacher assessment will give you an idea of your child’s reading level and what is expected at that stage.
Adult /Child Interactive Reading Tutoring Strategies
Reading Ranch provides reading tutoring in the Frisco and Plano Texas areas. We encourage all parents to become a supporter in their child’s early reading development. Below you will find a helpful guide when reading aloud with your child at home:
The Reading Ranch Writer’s Workshop
Reading Ranch provides an interactive writing program Writer’s Workshop model which focuses on building the writing process by developing a students’ ideas and transforming into a polished (publishable) writing piece.