Read to a real audience

Goal

Build reading confidence by performing for a listener who isn't there to correct — pets and teddies are wonderfully non-judgmental.

You'll need

• Reading Milestone Certificate
• Bookmark Template

How to do it

Choose an audience — a pet, a younger sibling, a grandparent on a video call, or a row of teddies on the sofa. Let your child pick the book and the listener.

They read aloud while the audience listens. Your job is not to correct — just to watch, listen and respond naturally. "Oh, what happened next?" or "I didn't know that!" goes a long way.

If they stumble, let them keep going. The confidence boost of reading to an engaged audience — even a stuffed one — is real. Award the milestone certificate when they've finished, and let them make a bookmark to give to their audience as a thank you. Yes, even the cat.