I have a friend who is a creative florist. She is adamant that if she had the time she could teach someone to read. She could because she reads herself.
There is no secret about learning to read but it takes time and effort and develops over a lifetime. It is the information in the texts we read that makes us literate. We read for meaning. We read to get the author’s message. As we read we develop our language which in turn develops our ability to think.
Reading to young children is a powerful way to develop language and communication skills.
Reading is based on code. It is a language based whole brain activity and has a number of sub-skills that need to be coordinated.
Letters represent the sounds we speak. Writing is encoding the sounds by giving letters to represent them. Reading is decoding the words on a page so we can get the information from what is being read.
A significant proportion of children start school knowing how to read or begin so within a very short time.
What does an early reader understand?
Firstly they understand the mechanics of reading.
Writing is made up of circles, lines and curves which are used to form letters.
Letters are distinct shapes and are used to represent the sounds in the words we speak. Kindergarten children and babies can recognize the letters of the alphabet. One, two, three and sometimes four letters stand for individual sounds in English. The Alphabet has too few letters to represent around 44 sounds that are used to form words.
A line of print is read from left to right. At the end of the line the reader’s eye sweeps to the left hand side of the text and down to the next line. When the end of the text is reached and if a book is being read a page is turned or the eyes focus on the top of the next page where the process begins again. Sometimes texts contain illustrations that can be used to complement the text and help with understanding what has been written.
Phonics is one of the sub-skills of reading. Phonics is the ability to translate the print on a page into sound. Children with a rich language background often seem to know this instinctively. But most children need phonics lessons.
This is why reading, writing and spelling are integrated.
The secret to learning to read successfully is being read to consistently by one’s parents from birth. Sharing books not only prepares a child for academic success it also bonds parent and child.
The Alphabet is the greatest invention of all time. It has opened up language, knowledge and thought. It is unbelievable that any parent would want their child to miss out on such an inheritance.
Recently I asked a child I was tutoring whether he heard stories at home.
“Sometimes Mum reads us a story,” he said, “But really we have no time for reading as we are so busy doing other things.”
What a shame his parents haven’t realized the true value of literacy and what they are depriving their children.
I urge all parents to read to their children.
Apart from life it is one of the greatest gifts a child can receive.
Marilyn Martyn has been a teacher for over thirty-five years teaching English to five year olds through to adults. Her concern is for the children, teenagers and adults who did not learn the basics of reading in their early years of schooling.
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