Sparking Curiosity: How to Support Your Early Reader 

At Indiana Digital Learning School (INDLS), we know every student develops their reading skills at their own pace and in their own way, but with the right interventions at school and at home, we can help young readers thrive. 

With over 10,000 Hoosier students struggling with foundational reading skills, understanding how to support and engage young readers is a top priority for Indiana educators and parents. Beyond gaining the basic literacy skills students need to succeed in school, reading regularly helps them develop critical thinking skills, become curious learners, understand new perspectives, and foster imagination.  

A Solid Foundation 

At INDLS, we understand that students develop fundamental reading skills in their own ways depending on their learning styles, which is why we tailor the approach to the individual student. For example, using the Orton-Gillingham Approach, a multi-sensory method that focuses on the connections between letters and sounds, is often effective for struggling readers to learn the core components of reading. For young readers who learn best from discussion formats, our teachers pair students for partner reading or set up breakout rooms for conversations about reading material to encourage comprehension skills. 

In the 2024-25 school year, 20% more INDLS students passed the IREAD foundational reading skills assessment compared to the previous year. This is made possible by our elementary school teachers incorporating proven instructional approaches to teach language comprehension and word recognition, and working with families to engage students in and out of the classroom. 

Encouraging a Love for Reading 

Fostering a love for reading starts with motivating students to prioritize reading and creating opportunities that spark their excitement of discovery. At school, this can include students earning prizes for meeting their reading milestones to incentivize reading. At INDLS, students can earn Boost Bucks for achieving those benchmarks, which can be used within classroom activities, such as choosing extra accessories for a snowman art project. 

Beyond engaging students during class with the right curriculum and incentives, integrating reading for fun in your daily routine at home can play an instrumental role in fostering your child’s love for the activity. 

You can engage your young reader at home by: 

• Having reading time together as a family. 
• Discussing books or stories and encouraging your child to share what piqued their interest. 
• Changing up the environment to make reading time more fun, such as reading in a fort or outside. 

By working together to encourage an excitement for reading in and out of the classroom, teachers and families can shape successful readers and encourage the innate curiosity of each child.  

Help your young reader thrive by enrolling in INDLS today!