Our second and final entry on chapter 5 was written by Bradlee. Like Alex, she had been familiar with much of the information in this chapter, but also gained new and valuable insight into the young child's emergent literacy. Happy reading!
This chapter was extremely interesting to me. The chapter starts off by making examples of two families. One family would read to their daughter every night but not engage the child; when she asked questions, her mother would keep reading and disregard anything that she said. Her mother would also go over flash cards with the child. The flash cards had the letters of the alphabet on them. The other family read to their son every night as well, but they would talk to the child while they read to him. His parents do worry, though, that they do not do enough. Both these families are prime examples of how many parents struggle with teaching their children to read.
I never knew whether trying to teach a young child to read would be beneficial or not. Even though I do not have a child, it is a question that I have asked myself before. Daily, I see ads on television and in magazines that show children reading because they used a certain product. An example of this is “Hooked on Phonics.” This chapter explains that a child will learn to read when they are ready. Reading to the child is a helpful tool that will help the process. When a child is even 6 months old, they are interested in books, not because of the letters, but because of the colors and pictures that are on the book.
I struggle with reading and I do not fully enjoy it. Even though I do not know how I was taught to read, I always wondered what would have helped. That is the part of the chapter that I enjoyed the most. Making reading FUN is so important when teaching a child to read. Many parents believe that using all types of materials to help their child read is the answer. Yes, it will help the child learn letters and many sounds. The only problem is that it may not appear fun to the child because it is not enjoyable, and it could hinder the child’s reading abilities later on.
When I first started reading this, I had heard of most of the issues being presented to me. I did learn something new while reading this. I had never heard of phonemes before reading this. I know that words are made up of sounds but I never knew that there was a term for that. Phonemes are the reason that just learning the alphabet will not make a child able to read. It is important to know the letters of the alphabet and the sounds each individual letter makes, but there are 26 letters and 40different sounds that can be made by those letters. When a child realizes that, they can start to understand the text being presented to them.
The end of the chapter goes on to say that the second family’s child will more easily learn to read, and they will more than likely enjoy reading more than the child in the first family. Knowing letters is important, but reading is so much more than that. This chapter did give examples of ways to help encourage learning to read, but I still question what other ways there are to teach your child to read without forcing it.
One of your last sentences is so true: "Knowing letters is important, but reading is so much more than that." In American education, we've debated for years about how best to teach children how to read, and the arguments continue. Now, as you know, those arguments have trickled down into the preschool and even infant/toddler years! A 12-month-old could "learn" to recognize letters when flashed on cards...but reading? They need complex symbolic thought, and the ability to truly understand signs rather than just symbols (as we've discussed in class), so actually READING for meaning and enjoyment? Not so much!
ReplyDeleteLike you, I had never really enjoyed reading, especially as a child, both my sister’s loved it and would read for pleasure when they were kids. I remember my mom would read to us at night, and I loved listening to stories, but was never interested in reading them myself. My mom would always ask me if I wanted to read to her, but I never did, I only wanted to listen. I never thought about how I would teach my kids to read, before I read this blog, but after reading it I know that when I do have kids I’ll need to find ways to make reading fun. Because although, I don’t enjoy reading that much, I do believe that it is important, each child should have their own experience with it. Another point that you brought up that I agree with is that a parent cannot force their child to read. I think reading should be presented to a child, but not forced upon them. I think it’s easier for a child to learn to read if they are enjoying what they are doing and it’s fun. I also think it's up to the parent to help make it that way.
ReplyDelete-Caitlin Stiglich
I also really enjoyed this chapter and I learned many new things. I love the example of the two different families, you can clearly see that both families are loving and want the best for their children but they have different methods. I liked the second example about the boy that asked a lot of questions. I think by letting the child ask questions about the story and pictures helps the child grow cognitively.
ReplyDeleteIn the text the authors state that we are supposed to make reading fun not work. I believe that this is what the second family with the boy was doing. They were creating a fun environment for the child to read in.
It is important to stay in your Childs ZPD; when the child ask questions it is important to create time to explain what they are asking you. Maybe the child is not ready to read sentences but at least he is understanding what he is reading and is asking questions to better understand what is happening.
-Ally Baxter (Allyson Loucks)
I totally agree with Bradlee, for a child to enjoy reading it needs to be fun for them. When I was growing up my parents always made reading something that was enjoyable. I remember going to the bookstore for the first time when I was in first grade and being so excited, I thoroughly enjoyed learning to read. Though sometime between fourth and fifth grade reading became something that I dreaded doing. We were tested and put into reading groups by our reading levels. After that reading was more of a competition, which just made it stressful and no longer fun. For children to learn to read, they need to enjoy what they are doing; if they don’t enjoy it when they are first learning, they will never enjoy it.
ReplyDelete-Kasandra Martinson
Bradlee, I like how the 26 letters and 40 sounds stood out to you as well. When I was younger I struggled with reading. And soon reading became a chore. With every book that was read, a book report or chapter questions were assigned. It finally took me until college to enjoy books, but that was because I choose to read a book I wanted to read. Along with reading to your kids and engaging in conversations, having a choice on what book to read can help bring fun to reading.
ReplyDelete~Alex Jensen