Reading with your child is one of the most important ways you can support your child’s learning. Reading helps a child’s imagination, understanding of words and narrative which in turn can improve their writing skills. But how do you know if your child has understood what they have read? Here we’ve come up with some great gentle questions that you can ask whilst reading with or to your little one.
Questions to ask before you start reading:
- What do you think of the front cover?
- What do you think it might be about?
- What does the blurb (bit on the back of the book) say about the book?
- Do you think this might be happy/exciting/sad book?
Questions to ask to check understanding:
- What has happened so far?
- Who have we met so far in the story?
- What is the main character like?
- What kind of genre is this book (fantasy/adventure/comedy etc…)
- What is happening in the pictures (if the book contains pictures)
Questions to ask on their opinion:
- Do you like the characters?
- Who is your favourite character? Why?
- What do you think might happen at the end?
- How would you like it to end?
- Would you have done anything differently to the character?
- Would you be friends with any of the characters?
- How do you feel when reading this book?
- Would you read another book by the same author?
- If you could give the book another title what would it be?
- Are you enjoying it so far and if so what is your favourite bit?
Questions to ask once you’ve finished reading the book:
- Did you like this book? Why?
- Which bit of the story was your favourite and least favourite?
- Which part of the story was the funniest/saddest/happiest?
- Would this book make a great film?
- Would you recommend this book to one of your friends?