When should kids learn to read?

What is the normal age to learn to read?

In the US, most children start formal reading lessons in kindergarten, at age 5 or 6. By the end of first grade, around age 7, most can read simple books on their own. By the end of third grade, most read well enough to learn from what they read.

That third grade mark matters. In 1998 the National Research Council published a major report, edited by Catherine Snow and colleagues. It set a clear goal: children should read at grade level by the end of third grade. After that, school asks them to read in order to learn.

What does reading look like at each age?

These are typical stages. Your child may be a little ahead or behind on any of them.

Does learning to read early give a lasting advantage?

Not much on its own. In New Zealand, some schools start reading at 5 and others at 7. Sebastian Suggate and colleagues compared the two groups. By age 11, the children who started at 7 read as well as those who started at 5.

Early reading is not harmful if it is playful and your child enjoys it. But there is no need to rush. Time spent at 3 and 4 on talk, play and stories builds the language that makes reading meaningful later.

Many countries start formal reading at 6 or 7. In Finland, for example, school begins at 7, and Finnish children read well. Finnish spelling is also much more regular than English spelling, which makes it faster to learn.

What are the signs a child is ready to learn to read?

• They can tell you the first sound in a spoken word, like /b/ in "bus".
• They know some letter names and sounds.
• They can hear whether two words rhyme.
• They can sit and listen to a story for 10 minutes or more.
• They notice print: they ask what a sign says or pretend to read.
• They try to write letters or their name.

A child does not need all six. If your child shows three or four, short lessons are worth a try. If it goes badly, wait a month and try again.

Why do some children learn to read later?

There are many reasons, and most are not a cause for alarm. Some children are younger than their classmates by almost a year. Some have had fewer books and less talk about sounds. Some have had ear infections that made sounds harder to hear. Some have been taught to guess words from pictures, which hides problems for a while.

A smaller group of children find linking sounds to letters truly hard, even with good teaching. Some of them have dyslexia. These children need extra, direct teaching as early as possible, so it pays to act on the signs.

When is a late start a concern?

Watch the following points. If any applies, talk with your child's teacher or pediatrician and ask about an evaluation by a qualified professional:

• End of kindergarten: knows fewer than half the letter sounds, or can't hear the first sound in words.
• Middle of first grade: can't read simple words like "cat" or "sit" without help.
• End of first grade: reads very slowly, guesses often, and avoids reading.
• Any age: a parent or sibling had serious reading trouble, and your child is falling behind.

Waiting to see if it clears up is a common mistake. Children who are behind at the end of first grade very often stay behind without help. Extra teaching is far easier at 6 than at 10. It also spares your child years of feeling behind.

Do children learning two languages read later?

Learning two languages does not cause reading problems. Bilingual children learn to read on about the same timeline as other children when they get good teaching. Some may need a bit more time to build English vocabulary, which affects understanding more than sounding out.

Keep reading and talking in your home language. Stories, songs and talk in any language build knowledge and a feel for how language works. Those carry over to English. If you teach English phonics at home, teach the English sounds clearly, and point out letters that sound different in your home language, like j in Spanish.

One caution: don't blame every delay on the second language. If a bilingual child struggles with sounds and letters in both languages, ask for help just as you would for any child.

What can you do at each age?