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The Active Reader

Strong reading builds confident kids. The Active Reader helps parents and teachers along the way.

10/02/2026

The signs your reader is ahead don't look like you'd expect.

As a literacy specialist, the things that actually tell me a kid is doing great rarely show up on a reading level chart. Here's what I'd look for instead:

✔ She stops mid-word and fixes herself, without you saying a thing. That's self-monitoring, and it's a bigger skill than reading fast.
✔ He reads whatever's in front of him: a cereal box, a street sign, a text on your phone. Nobody assigned that.
✔ She picks a book that's a little too hard, on purpose, and sticks with it. Most kids avoid that. Hers wants it.
✔ He stops to ask what a word means instead of skipping past it. Skipping is the easy move.
✔ She uses a word from a book in regular conversation, completely out of nowhere.

None of this shows up on a level chart. It's worth noticing anyway.

Save this, and start noticing the good stuff.

10/01/2026

She could read "cat." She could read "dog." But the second a word broke the pattern, she froze.

If your child is stuck at this stage, this is so common, and so fixable.

Here's the 5-minute routine I use:

1️⃣ Stop at the tricky word
When you hit a word like "rain," pause. Don't let them guess past it.

2️⃣ Show them the sound
Write "rain" on paper and circle the ai. Say it together: "a-i says 'ay,' like in rain."

3️⃣ Make a mini word list
Add 2 or 3 more words with the same pattern: wait, paint, chain. Read them together.

4️⃣ Put it where you'll both see it
The fridge, the nightstand, anywhere you pass every day.

5️⃣ Read it once a day for a week
Five seconds at breakfast or before bed. That repetition is what makes it stick.

The Reader Pack walks you through this same routine for every tricky pattern: ai, oa, ee, silent e and more.

Here's the link to grab yours today - https://shop.theactivereader.com/products/the-reader-pack?utm_source=copyToPasteBoard&utm_medium=product-links&utm_content=web

09/30/2026

I rated the most common kids' reading habits out of 10, as a literacy specialist and a mom 👇

A few of these might surprise you.

🔴 0/10: Dropping read-alouds once they can read on their own
Kids understand stories far above what they can read alone. Keep reading aloud. That's where vocabulary grows.

🔴 0/10: Telling them, "Look at the picture and guess the word"
It teaches guessing, not reading. Point to the letters instead: "What sound does it start with?"

🔴 2/10: Making them sound out every word with no help
A little struggle builds skill. Too much builds frustration. Sit beside them and give a gentle nudge.

🟡 7/10: Reward charts for reading
Great for kick-starting a habit and celebrating progress. Just keep the focus on the reading, not the sticker.

🟡 7/10: Bedtime-only reading
A lovely routine. Add one more reading time when they're less tired, like after school or at breakfast.

🟢 8/10: Audiobooks counting as reading
They won't teach decoding, but they build vocabulary and a love of stories. Car rides count!

🟢 10/10: Rereading the same book over and over
Repetition builds fluency and confidence. Let them wear that book out.

🟢 10/10: Graphic novels counting as reading
Following dialogue, sequence and clues across every panel is real reading work. It counts.

🟢 12/10: Letting them see you read
Kids copy what they see, not what we say. Let them catch you with a book (not just your phone).

🟢 100/10: Making reading feel special
A cozy corner, a favourite snack, your full attention. The feeling sticks long after the book.

Nobody does every 10/10 habit (me included). Start with one.

Which rating would you change? Tell me in the comments 👇

And share this with a parent friend who needs the reminder 💛

09/25/2026

This week’s library haul 📚

Four books my kids couldn’t put down, from a cozy first chapter book to a spooky October pick 🎃

As a literacy specialist, here’s my secret: graphic novels ARE real reading. They build vocabulary, comprehension and, most importantly, a love of books.

Save this for your next library trip, and tell me: which one would your kid grab first? 👇

09/24/2026

Three weeks into the school year, every kid looks a little rough around the edges: tired, resistant, rusty on things they used to know. That part's normal. What's harder to tell is whether your child is still adjusting or actually struggling.

Here's the quick check I use as a reading specialist. Ask yourself two questions:

Is it happening every time?
Is it only with reading?

If the answer is yes to both, it's worth paying attention to. This isn't a diagnosis, just what I'd look for.

Probably just adjusting:
• Some nights they push back on reading, but most nights they'll do it. Resistance that comes and goes is normal.
• A word they knew back in June trips them up now. That's summer rust, not a step backward, and it usually fades with a little regular practice.
• They're tired and cranky after school about everything, homework included, not just reading. That's back-to-school fatigue.

Worth paying attention to:
• Every reading time comes with a stall: a bathroom trip, a snack, "I forgot my book." Occasional stalling is normal. Every time isn't.
• They guess at words from the first letter or the picture instead of sounding them out, and they do it consistently, not once in a while.
• They can tell you every detail of a story you read to them, but go blank on one they read themselves. That gap is often a sign decoding isn't clicking yet.
• They're still mixing up b and d past about age 7. Worth mentioning at the next teacher check-in.

This isn't about panicking over one hard night. It's about noticing a pattern over a few weeks. If the second list sounds like your house, talk to their teacher, or send me a message. I'm happy to help you sort it out.

Which list sounds more familiar right now? Tell me in the comments, and share this with a parent who's been wondering.

09/22/2026

It’s here. If you’re on our waitlist, keep an eye on your inbox today, Early Access opens at 10am ET with the link and 20% off, already applied, no code needed. Everyone else, The Reader Pack will be available to you next week.

This is the next stage after The Early Reader Pack: pattern cards that walk your child through long vowels, vowel teams, r-controlled vowels, and consonant patterns like ck, tch, and dge. Same hands-on, structured, screen-free routine you already know. Five to ten minutes, no worksheets.

The goal was never another workbook, it’s a kid who can pick up any book and just read it.

09/21/2026

It’s finally here. 🎁

Tomorrow, Tuesday, September 22nd, Early Access opens for The Reader Pack. Waitlist members get 20% off, before anyone else, for one week only.

If you’ve been with us since March, waiting for this exact moment... this is it. Make sure you’re on the list before the doors open tomorrow.

Comment READY and I’ll send you the link to get on the waitlist. 💛

09/20/2026

It’s almost here. 📚✨

The Reader Pack was created for that tricky in-between stage, when your child knows their basic letter sounds, but reading still isn’t quite clicking.

This is Stage 2 of The Active Reader literacy progression, designed to help children move beyond foundational sounds and tackle the patterns they need to become more confident readers.

Inside, we cover:
✨ Long vowels
✨ Vowel teams
✨ R-controlled vowels
✨ Trigraphs
✨ More complex sound patterns

All through the same simple, structured, multisensory approach you know from the Early Reader Pack.

And after months of work, I can finally say…

THE PRESALE LAUNCHES TUESDAY! 🎉

And for one week only, The Reader Pack will be 20% off.

If your child is in that “I know my letters and sounds… now what?” stage, this is the pack I made for you.

Presale starts Tuesday. Save 20% for the first week only. 👀📚

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Barrie, ON
L4N 9H5

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