Articles
Worth
Reading
For
Parents of Elementary
Students
Readers are made, not born:
How young children learn to read
Much of what you know as an adult comes from reading
― everything from novels and web pages to cereal boxes and street signs.
Yet what do you remember about how you learned to use this powerful
tool?
Similar to learning to ride a bike or singing a new song, becoming a
competent reader requires lots of practice with a set of specific
skills. Most of these skills are acquired through direct instruction in
the early elementary years.
Reading instruction in schools is likely quite different today from how
it was when you were taught to read. Following is a breakdown by
grade level of some typical activities schools now use to help
build your child’s reading skills.
Kindergarten ― In the kindergarten classroom, you will not be at
a loss where to find things. This is because everything, from the soap
dish to the fish tank, has likely been labeled with its name. This is
not mere coincidence. It is one of the first ways that very young
children learn that written language can help them understand their
world.
At the kindergarten level, the main emphasis is on helping children
learn about the larger world that they have entered and what schooling
is all about. Much of the kindergarten day is focused on helping
children see that reading and writing will play a significant role in
their learning during school.
A major goal of kindergarten is to help children begin to believe in
themselves as readers and writers. To this end, children are given lots
of opportunity to "read" from a vast assortment of books filled with
colorful pictures or illustrations and to be read to by their teacher.
Through this, children begin to understand the parts of a book (title,
the name of the author and illustrator, the connection between the
pictures and words), and their functions. They also learn how formal
reading works (for pleasure, to inform) and to recognize some simple
words by sight (I, the, you, me).
Through socializing and playing, children learn that language (both
spoken and written) can be used not only to communicate with their
friends, but can help them work through problems.
Grades one and two ― At this point, children begin the more
formal instruction of reading. Teachers build on what children may
already know about the basics of reading (that reading is done from left
to right, from the front to the back of a book, that individual letters
are made from single letters). A large part of reading instruction at
this level centers on phonemic awareness, which is the ability to
recognize that our speech can be broken down into small sounds. Teachers
use activities with such tools as nursery rhymes, poetry and songs to
help students identify the sounds that different letters and
combinations of letters make. However, this is not done in isolation. At
each of the elementary grade levels, students are provided access to a
wide variety of books, magazines, multimedia software, newspapers and
other types of literature. These are used for group work (i.e., The Very
Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle might be used as a basis for a unit on
caterpillars), for independent work and pleasure reading.
Grades three, four and five ― Although most children are
considered competent readers by third grade, the process of learning to
read doesn’t stop here. In these upper elementary years, the focus tends
to shift from learning to read to reading to learn. Students are given
the opportunity to use their reading skills to conduct research (with
such reference books as encyclopedias and textbooks, in literature and
on the Internet), to tackle more challenging books (in subject areas and
for pleasure) and to read other forms of written material with an eye
toward expanding their vocabularies and giving them greater confidence
in their skills as readers.
The home/school connection Tips on what you can do at home to support family literacy
Although most of your child’s formal reading skills will be learned
during school hours, the work that you do at home to help support these
skills is as important. Following are some easy ways to make reading a
family affair and to instill a lifelong love of reading in your child.
Use the library often. Encourage your children to
ask the librarian for help finding stories they’ll like. Make
suggestions, but let them check out what they want to read.
Let your children see both mom and dad reading and
using the library. Encourage children to think of the library as a
resource for fun and learning throughout life.
If available, enroll your child in a library
reading club.
As their reading skills improve, have them read to
you, a sibling, visitors, even a favorite stuffed animal. Some stories
that interest them may still be too hard for them to read on their
own. They’ll let you know if they would rather read with you or by
themselves.
Look for ways your children can use their new
reading skills. Ask them to read signs, menus, cereal boxes. Have them
read to you while you do the dishes or fix the pipes. Ask relatives to
write postcards to your children. Put notes in their lunch boxes ("I
hope you have a great day today! Love, Mom.").
Set aside a special read-aloud time for the whole
family. There are many books that all of the members of your family
will enjoy. Ask your librarian for suggestions and remember that many
classics like Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol were intended to be
read aloud. Have family members read different parts. Make a bowl of
popcorn, turn off the TV and enjoy!
Show your children that you support their efforts.
The National Association for the Education of Young Children suggests
that you become the "Great Appreciator," not the "Great Corrector." If
your child makes a mistake while reading aloud to you, don’t
interrupt. If the mistake doesn’t change the meaning, let it go.
Make sure that you read some of the books your
children enjoy, even when they can read well on their own. This is a
great way of ensuring that reading remains a pleasurable activity that
you share with your children.
(Source: The American Library Association and the
National Association for the Education of Young Children)
Choosing Books for Children: A Commonsense Guide
by Betsy Hearne
The New York Times Parent’s Guide to the Best
Books for Children by Eden Ross Lipson
The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease
Hey! Listen to This: Stories to Read Aloud by Jim
Trelease
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Region BOCES Communications Service at (518) 786-3263 or email us at
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