Any tips on how to teach reading to a preschooler??

Thank you.....I need to know too...mine little one was suppose to go to PK but since I have to pay for my oldest dds lunch they wont let my 4 yr old in..so I need to work with her to get her ready for K in Aug.

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There are several programs like Letter and Sound of the Week which is free, then there are books like How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and of course full fledge phonics programs like Sing, Spell, Read and Write. There are also easy reader books such as Bob Books series which my dd loved.

Whatever you do, don't push it! You want your child to develop a love for reading and writing so don't stress or be impatient. Some children learn early and some it doesn't "click" until they are much older. Either way is fine and normal as long as the child sets the pace!

If your child doesn't know all the letter sounds then I recommend the free letteroftheweek.com, Jen uses this. They have several great programs like Sound of the week, science of the week, etc. I've used several of their ideas. It's really easy to make this program "fun." I've also used the 100 Easy Lessons books, but it's much duller and my dd already knew all the sounds and was already reading 3 letter words, so we skip alot of this! I've always wanted Sing Spell Read and Write, maybe one day I'll stop being cheap and buy it. It comes highly recommended, I might get it for my son in a couple years he's not as much of a bookworm as Julia is. Julia basically taught herself to read, we just do alot of reading on an everyday basis!
If your child already knows the letter sounds then it's just a matter of time before it clicks for them. Alot of the parent reading aloud to the child while pointing under the words works well for this stage!

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We use a program called Frontline Phonics. It was kind of pricey. Around $150 I think. But it's a wonderful kit with flash cards, a cd for the computer, reading books, a parent guide, a child workbook. I have seen other kits from the Hooked on series and they seem OK. They are cheaper but you don't get as many materials in my opinion. The number one thing you can do to prepare you child to read is to read to them every day. I started reading to my 5-year-old when he was under 1. I started the Frontline Phonics program with him at 3 and he could read by 4. He is now 5 and reads to me 4-5 days a week. Most programs begin with letter recognition, proceed to phonics (how the letters sound) and end with blending. It took my son a year to understand blending so each child is different. He also attends a pricate preschool three days a week and they also cover letter recognition and phonics.

I loved the book, "How to Read in 100 Easy Lessons"... great price, great program! Good luck!