SUPPORTING READING AT HOME
Learning to read begins at home through everyday interactions with children, long before they attend 
school. Supporting literacy development as children enter elementary school and progress through 
grades positively affects their reading ability. The Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast (REL-SE) 
provides family activities with easy-to-follow instructions to help children practice foundational 
reading skills at home. Foundational skills include oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, 
fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Phonological awareness, alphabetic skills and language skills 
are the best predictors of early reading success (B.E.S.T., Appendix E, p. 206). There are short family 
videos for tips and support on how to use the activities to help children grow as readers. Using the 
family activities at home can help children develop language, link sounds to letters, blend letters and 
word parts to read and write the words and ultimately read for understanding.