A Guide for Teaching Kids to Read and Write

Teaching your child to read can be an extremely daunting thing. However, you are in luck as there are many amazing resources out there to help your child excel. From curriculum to books to early readers, here is a list of my favorite resources to teach your child to read and write in a natural, creative, and fun way.

For when you are first introducing the letters to your children, I highly recommend Hearth Magic's Adventures Through the Fairy Tales. It's a curriculum that introduces a letter a week through fairy tales. It incorporates stories, art, cooking and play into the weekly "lessons" so that your child can have a well-rounded education.

Currently, Hearth Magic's Adventures Through the Fairy Tales is not complete, so I suggest using the amazing book Working With LMNOP and All the Letters A to Z: Manuel for Parents and Teachers to supplement the letters that have not yet been released. This is the guide to go along with the phenomenal book LMNOP and All the Letters A to Z by Howard Schrager, which I highly recommend if you are currently teaching your child the letters of the alphabet.

Also, on the topic of amazing alphabet books, Living Alphabet by Famke Zonneveld, also known as Waldorf Alphabet Book, is an amazing resource to help children recognize the letters in different words.

Once your child knows the letters of the alphabet and it is time to teach them phonics, Wild Reading level one and level two are the best curriculum out there, that I have found, for teaching them. It uses a very nature-inspired approach and uses art and storytelling to help the children fully comprehend the material. It is a fun and engaging way for kids to learn the basics of how to read and write.

Once your child begins to read, if you so wish to use readers, Miss Rhonda's Readers would be my recommendation. Their readers are inspired by the Montessori method and are very gentle and nature-based. Definitely my personal favorite early readers on the market.

An awesome game to help children learn both their letters and spelling is the game Last Letter by ThinkFun. The game also helps children grow their vocabulary and can be used for review as well as instruction.

Another amazing game is Word on the Street Junior which is slightly more advanced but is still very simple and designed for early readers and spellers. Would highly recommend this game as well.