Why Learning New Vocabulary Improves Literacy

Growing your child’s vocabulary is vital to the improvement of their literacy skills. The Literacy Project recognizes this fact; that’s why we’re dedicated to creating school programs like The New Phonics Game™, which helps young readers understand new words by breaking them down phonetically. The Literacy Project knows that each time a child learns a new word, a new door unlocks, allowing them to engage with their reading and writing in a more meaningful way.

Here are some of the most important reasons why learning new vocabulary improves literacy in children.

Learning New Vocabulary Promotes Reading Comprehension

Developing solid reading comprehension skills early in a child’s life can make all the difference when it comes to literacy. When a child learns new words, reading becomes a much easier task because there are fewer unknown words on the page. This is why learning new vocabulary is so important— it can drastically boost your child’s reading comprehension ability.

Learning Vocabulary Will Help Improve Your Child’s Writing

Aside from reading comprehension, learning new vocabulary will also help your child become a better writer. They will have an easier time expressing their thoughts on the page if they have a larger foundation of words to pull from.

As a child grows, they are required to write more frequently at school and often, they are required to use a formal academic tone in their writing. This means that they must rely on more than just the words they’ve absorbed from everyday conversations. In order to grasp more advanced words, children need to be taught either in school or by self-imposed reading.

Help Your Child Learn New Vocabulary At Home

There are plenty of free tools available to help kids learn new vocabulary outside of school. After having a conversation about internet safety, you can supervise your child as you both use a smartphone, tablet, or computer to learn some new words.

Consider a site like FreeRice.com, which can help your child learn new vocabulary while they participate in social service. Each time they define a term correctly, 10 grains of rice are donated to the United Nations World Food Program, who then donate the rice to a country in need. This is a fun way to learn new words and it also serves as a reminder of the positive social impact their knowledge can have on the world.

Free reference tools are also available to download on any device such as Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary and Thesaurus app. These are particularly helpful when your child is reading; if they have a vocabulary question, they can easily check the definition and usage in real time without needing access to a print dictionary.

Learning vocabulary early in your child’s life will benefit them immensely when it comes to improving their literacy skills. Whenever your child learns a new word, they increase their chances for success in school, but also in other aspects of their future lives as well. To read more about the drastic impact literacy can have on your child’s professional future, check out our article on the 30 Key Child Literacy Stats Parents Need To Be Aware Of.

The Literacy Project knows that so much of our 21st-century lives depend on our ability to communicate effectively. That is why we are so passionate about helping your child develop an interest in learning vocabulary. Just working on vocabulary for 5 minutes a day with your child can make all the difference.

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