What your child should know
Child's age is … (click an option below)
Younger than 5
5 years old
6 years old
7 years old
8 years old
Children younger than 5 should:
Develop an interest in reading by playing with books, pretending to read, and making-up stories as they turn the pages of books
Speak in simple complete sentences and use a beginning oral vocabulary
Understand that words are made from a combination of sounds and should be able to rhyme words and say words with the same beginning sounds
Position a book and turn the pages correctly
Retell stories that are read to them or to tell stories from picture books
Know and be able to read their name in print
Identify and name most of the letters of the alphabet
5 year old children should:
Use an increasingly expanding oral vocabulary
Understand that written text is read from the left to the right beginning at the top of the page
Know the basic sounds of all of the letters of the alphabet
Find simple words (e.g., cat, dog, boy, or girl) in written text
Know the beginning sounds of simple words in written text
Identify words with similar letter sounds in written text
Read stories with predictable text and picture books with simple text
Retell stories they read or that are read to them
6 year old children should:
Know the sounds of the most common letter combinations
Sound out unknown words using letter sounds and common spelling patterns
Attack longer words by breaking the words into syllables, root words, and common prefixes
Spell common first-grade words
Recall and predict what happens in an orally presented story or in simple text they can read
Use spelling patterns to read new words
Read first-grade vocabulary words with speed and fluency
7 year old children should:
Expands vocabulary by reading increasingly difficult text and incorporating new vocabulary in their speech
Decode words using word forms and patterns
Use word patterns to spell grade-level words, including complex words
Identify and use words that sound the same, mean the same, or are opposite in meaning
Independently read second-grade stories at 90-100 words per minute
Recall details from independently read stories
Form predictions, opinions, and drew conclusions from independently read and orally presented text
8 year old children should:
Transition from reading stories to reading text for information. Begins reading to learn, rather than learning to read
Use a variety of reading skills to read new words and build an increasing understanding of vocabulary from other content areas, including history, mathematics, and science, for example
Develop preferences for specific types of reading literature and authors
Continues to increase word attack skills by combining and strengthening previously learned skills
Read and understand emotion, pace, expression, and dialect in written text
