"I get the most satisfaction from seeing someone who first came to Kumon struggling with maths develop into a capable mathematician with the confidence and study skills to tackle any problem."
Vocabulary development
Q: My child sometimes struggles with the vocabulary in the English programme, how can I help them with this?
A: Vocabulary plays a fundamental role in the reading process and contributes greatly to a reader's comprehension.
Students learn the meanings of most words indirectly, through everyday experiences with oral and written language. Other words are learned through carefully designed instruction. A number of techniques can be used to help a child struggling with vocabulary on the Kumon programme.
- First and foremost is to encourage your child to read on a daily basis, this will help with vocabulary in general. You may be comfortable taking it up a notch and reading stories that are slightly above your child's level, exposing them to new words. Many children are also capable of reading at a higher level than you may assume. Encourage them to give reading at a slightly more difficult level a try.
- When they come across a word they don't know, try and encourage them to look at the whole sentence and see if they can work out the meaning in the context of the sentence. If this is not possible, then ask them to read the paragraph again so that they can build a picture of what is happening and then see if they can work out what is going on. Talk them through it to help them figure it out.
- Parents can give another example of how the word can be used in a different sentence and ask the child to do the same to ensure they have understood the meaning of the word.
- A dictionary/thesaurus is also useful if they are old enough as it can give the meaning of the word and show different ways of using it.
- Encourage your child to keep a vocabulary notebook and once they have understood the meaning of the word, to write down the word and a sentence in which the word is used. This is very good for remembering and reinforcing understanding of the words they may be having difficulty with. This notebook can also be used as a revision aid.
- Ask your children to pay attention while watching television or listening to others talk. Have them write down two or three words that they didn't understand. They may not be able to spell them properly, but you can help to correct that when you introduce the new word to them.