Boost Your Child’s Vocabulary at Home to Support Reading Comprehension

At Our Lady of Victories, Shortland, one of our School Improvement Goals for 2025 focuses on implementing consistent practices in all classrooms, with a particular emphasis on reading and comprehension. This goal is essential for our students as strong reading skills are the foundation for success across all subjects. By ensuring a unified approach to teaching literacy, we aim to provide every child with the strategies they need to understand, analyse, and enjoy texts effectively.

Parents play a crucial role in supporting this learning at home, and expanding vocabulary is one of the most impactful ways to do so. Building a strong vocabulary is key to developing reading comprehension skills. When children understand the words they read, they can better engage with texts, infer meaning, and enjoy the reading experience. Here are some simple and effective ways you can help your child expand their vocabulary at home:

Encourage Conversations

Engage in rich conversations with your child about their day, interests, and the world around them. Ask open-ended questions and introduce new words naturally. For example, instead of saying “That’s a big dog,” you could say, “That’s an enormous dog. What other words could we use to describe it?”

Play Word Games
Games like Scrabble, Boggle, crossword puzzles, and online vocabulary games make learning new words fun. Even simple activities like rhyming games or ‘word of the day’ challenges can help expand your child’s vocabulary.

Use Words in Context
Help your child remember new words by using them in different situations. If they learn the word ‘spectacular,’ encourage them to describe a sunset, a movie, or an event using that word throughout the week.

Explore Synonyms and Antonyms
Teach your child how to expand their word choices by learning synonyms (words with similar meanings) and antonyms (opposites). Instead of always saying “happy,” encourage them to use words like “joyful,” “cheerful,” or “ecstatic.”

Make Use of Technology
There are many educational apps and websites that can support vocabulary development. Audiobooks and interactive e-books can also introduce children to new words with proper pronunciation and usage.

Lead by Example
Children learn best by observing adults. Use a rich vocabulary in everyday conversations and model curiosity by looking up words together when you encounter unfamiliar ones.

Expanding your child’s vocabulary takes time and practice, but small efforts each day can lead to big improvements in reading comprehension. By making vocabulary-building an enjoyable and natural part of daily life, you can help set your child up for reading success!