Decoding in Reading

What is Decoding?

Decoding is the process of changing written words into spoken language. Basically when a child decodes a word, they are sounding it out. This helps them to read unfamiliar words aloud. 

Why is Decoding Important?

When children come across new words, decoding allows them to sound them out. As a child becomes more confident with decoding, they can focus on other skills such as reading with expression and their comprehension of the text. 

How Can You Support Your Child’s Decoding Skills?

Here are some practical strategies that parents can use to support their child’s decoding skills. 

1. Where possible, spend time reading with your child on a daily basis. Encouraging them to sound out words as you go along will support their decoding skills. 

2. Speak to their teacher to see if you can support phonics that they are learning in school at home and how you can do this. 

3. Provide access to a variety of books and texts at different levels. This will encourage your child to choose books that interest them to foster a love for reading. Hopefully they will then want to read more frequently, which will support their decoding skills. 

4. Remember that learning to decode takes time and practice. Celebrate small successes as and when you can. 

Final Thoughts

Decoding is an important skill when children are learning to read. Together with other skills such as reading comprehension, expression and reading rate they contribute to a child’s reading fluency. 

On Pageticker, as a parent you will be able to log a child’s reading accuracy (decoding), comprehension and reading rate and share this with their teacher.