Learning to read: How soon is soon enough?<\/p>\n
Simon Marcus Gower, Education Consultant, Jakarta<\/p>\n
It is a consistent concern, if not in fact a worry, that
\nparents and educators alike will have - when should little
\nchildren be exposed to reading and so start to learn to read?
\nSome will say that "later is better". Sometimes the expression
\n"give the children a chance" is used as if to suggest that
\nreading is a burden and a chore that children should not have to
\ndeal with too early on in life.<\/p>\n
Many people would be surprised at the suggestion that even
\nbabies should get exposure to reading. Of course, this is not to
\nsuggest that a baby is going to pick up a book and read it --
\nsimply not possible; but it is to suggest that babies can get
\ngreat benefit from exposure to books and written material.<\/p>\n
A parent that reads to a baby is effectively implanting sights
\nand sounds of words into the baby's brain. Just the act of the
\nbaby trying to focus on pictures in a book gives exercise and
\ndevelopment to the baby's eye muscles and makes connections in
\nthe brain. Those connections in the brain, happening over and
\nover, are a key way in which a baby learns and achieves skill and
\nknowledge.<\/p>\n
The same is true for toddlers. Little children need that
\nexposure to the written word too but a key principle is that any
\nand all such exposure should be done in a fun way. The moment
\nthat a child becomes bored or tired of being exposed to reading
\nis the same moment that it should be put on pause. Negative
\nassociations made in the mind early in life can be deep and
\nlasting, so keeping a sense of fun and enjoyment in reading is
\nvery important.<\/p>\n
But, logically we must ask, how are little children given
\nappropriate exposure to reading? There are three primary theories
\nthat are generally applied and any good school for little
\nchildren should be able to adopt and implement a combination of
\nthe three. If emphasis is too great on any one of them,
\nweaknesses may emerge in the child's reading as there are
\nweaknesses in each theory. Therefore, combination is wise and to
\nbe welcomed.<\/p>\n
* The theory of "Look and Say" (or the "Whole Word" approach) is
\nthat the child learns whole words without breaking them down into
\nsounds. This is a quite natural way to learn words because, after
\nall, the first words that a child really learns are not really
\nbroken down into smaller parts. The child creates a picture of
\nthe shape of the whole word -- letters combined to make up the
\nwhole word. This theory does, though, have the weakness of being
\nquite demanding on the child in the sense that when a new word is
\nmet the child may have no strategies to figure it out. The child
\nmust grope for comprehension from zero. This is where phonics may
\nhelp.<\/p>\n
* The "Phonics" method looks at the different sounds made by
\ndifferent letters and blends of letters and the rules about how
\nthey go together. Words of similar or same patterns are grouped
\n(so you get word groupings like cat, hat, bat, etc.).<\/p>\n
This can quite typically pave the way for children to become
\ngood spellers and it is also a method that is effective for
\nchildren experiencing difficulties such as dyslexia. But, again,
\nthere are weaknesses. Depending too much on sounds alone can lead
\nto difficulties, as English is quite notorious for having words
\nof quite different spelling that have the same sound and also
\nwords of the same spelling that have different sounds. Just think
\nof explaining "said" and "bed", and "tear" (water from the eye)
\nand "tear" (to rip).<\/p>\n
* The third and most challenging theory for little children is
\nthat of "Real Reading" (or the "Whole Language" approach). In
\nthis method the children are quite simply given a book to read
\nand they attempt to read using whatever strategies they can.<\/p>\n
This may mean that they read simply through guesswork or their
\nmemory and existing knowledge of how the language works. It is a
\nmethod that has no real structure and essentially leaves the
\nchildren to attempt to read and try to figure things out for
\nthemselves. Needless to say, this can be very problematic and
\ndaunting for the children, but it is a way that we learn.<\/p>\n
Sometimes we use existing skills and knowledge to create new
\nskills and generate new knowledge, but little children have few
\nskills to work from and little knowledge to add to so it is a
\ntough challenge for them.<\/p>\n
Each one of these theories has its merits and demerits, and so
\ncombining them is both logical and beneficial and all good
\nteachers of toddlers should be equipped with skills to utilize
\neach one of these methods in a balanced approach to introducing
\nlittle children to reading. However, whatever combination of
\nmethods is used it should be remembered that just reading to
\nchildren is essential and hugely beneficial.<\/p>\n
By reading to children they will get experience and exposure
\nto language, words, rhythms and sounds; this helps them to
\nachieve literacy. Likewise, research has shown that preschool
\nchildren that are given a depth and breadth of exposure to
\nlanguage, both written and oral, through conversation do better
\nat school. Also, children that are read to learn of many new
\ntopics that ordinarily in conversation they may not encounter --
\nit adds to their breadth and depth of content exposure.<\/p>\n
But what sort of books make good reading for children? Variety
\nis a keyword here.<\/p>\n
* Giving a child exposure to a variety of types of language is
\nexcellent and so traditional stories, mysteries and fantasy
\ntales, poetry, rhymes and just simple everyday stories create a
\ngood range of diverse language.<\/p>\n
* In addition, a range of easier books with few words and
\nplenty of illustrations are good because they will allow the
\nchild to begin to read independently.<\/p>\n
* Repetition will help also (although it may be boring for
\nadults); a child that returns to a book is reinforcing and
\nimplanting the words from that book.<\/p>\n
Reading with children and making it interactive and fun is
\nexcellent policy too. Reading and letting a child see your finger
\nfollow the text helps the child to hear and simultaneously
\nvisualize the word. Hearing the written word helps reading
\ndevelopment. But activity should not stop once the book has been
\nfinished; asking questions of the child and getting questions
\nfrom the child about the read material is a key way of
\nreinforcing the reading activity.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, a variety of reading methods and reading materials
\nhelp children to become readers but the children must enjoy the
\nreading experience. If it is too difficult or the story is boring
\nfor them, they will lose interest and end up not really learning
\nto read but just letting the adult do the reading for them. They
\nshould be challenged to read but in an enjoyable way that
\nstimulates their interest and energizes and motivates them rather
\nthan tires and bores them.<\/p>",
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