A young person may manage most of a homework text but start to stumble when they meet unfamiliar names, technical terms or a particularly dense sentence. A brief preview can remove those obstacles without going over the whole text in advance.

Scan selectively

Before reading, look over headings, highlighted terms and the densest paragraph. Choose no more than a few likely barriers.

For a science text, you might check the pronunciation and meaning of mitochondria and respiration, then read one complicated sentence together. An online dictionary such as Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries has a button to hear each word said aloud. Hand the text back promptly so the young person completes the main reading.

Ask the young person which words or sections they expect to find difficult. This develops a more independent preview routine.

Do not explain every idea, summarise the whole text or remove the need to read it. The preview should take a few minutes.

If most paragraphs need preparation or the same difficulties recur across subjects, speak to school. Previewing helps in the short term, but school may also want to look more closely at their reading or offer extra help.

Talamo has no commercial relationship with any of the organisations named here. We suggest them only because we think they could be useful to families.