Secrets Parents Need to Know About Beginning Reading

Kathy Stemke, the Educationtipster on Blogspot, recently called for an interview which you'll find posted on her blog.  I always appreciate any opportunity to reach out and communicate to parents with children of all ages and certainly do this one.

One of the comments on the blog asked questions that would require too long an answer on the comment segment of Kathy's blog so I'm jumping over here to give it a go.  Her questions were:

What are your views on the various techniques for teaching reading?

How have they changed over the years?

What's most effective with children who have reading difficulties?

I certainly won't offer an entirely comprehensive answer here but enough to get you started and heighten understanding.

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TEACHING READING

One of the wisest people in reading research today (Dr. Richard Allington) tells us that "there are many roads to reading".  One size does not fit all.  Different individuals come to reading through different mechanics.  And reading is a multi-level complex set of skills rather than just one so it takes years to reach true competency.  Part of the importance of partnerships between school and home is decyphering those needs and addressing them as needed with each individual youngster. 

Children need to understand the alphabetic principal early on (knowledge of letters and shapes, their understanding that print has unique meaning and that letters represent sounds in our spoken language).  As they gain the connection between letters and sounds, they now have the beginning tool to figure out the squiggles on the page.  There is an excellent explanation of this part of reading on Reading Rockets in their First Year Teacher segment and it's devoid enough of education lingo to be of value to non-educator parents.

It Starts Long Before . . .

The truth is that the strongest readers are created from day one in a cocoon of language and experience with print.  As I've often said, that doesn't mean creating a structured academic hothouse at home.  It doesn't mean buying workbooks and sitting your 4-7 year old down at the table to work.  It means experiencing literacy in all its forms in our world.  If we could just get that right at the beginning, are consistent (just as we are in giving our children good nutrition or adequate exercise), and combine it with strong phonics instruction, we would virtually eliminate reading difficulties by first or second grade. 

So my message to parents is always, "be the commercial for reading".  Show children how interesting, how much fun reading is and, as Bob Keeshan AKA Captain Kangaroo says (I'm showing my age), "They will follow as the night follows the day."  Read in front of them (not just novels, cereal boxes, street signs, bill boards).  Show them that reading and writing are tools for life and show them that every day.

Again, regardless of the method used to teach reading at the beginning, those with such experiences will have an easier time acquiring beginning skills if they have a strong foundation in oral language and exploration and interaction (not conventional reading) with print. 

Having said that, the best scientific research we have in education today says that most children respond most positively to the instructional "learn to read" components of kindergarten and first grade through an method known as phonics (learning the correlation between letter and letter combos and sounds, then applying those in blending those sounds into words that connect to our spoken vocabulary or become a new term we understand).  The good news is that virtually every school in the U.S. (public or private) teaches children to read that way.   


So phonics instruction is important.  With these numbers, that's the first approach to use.  But it is important for both parents and educators to look beyond phonics if a child isn't getting it after an adequate period of time.  Have a parent-teacher conference to discuss progress, alternatives, and come up with a plan together, teacher and family.

In such occasional instances where phonics truly isn't the best way for your child to learn to read, it's better to encourage alternative approaches (sight word reading or memorizing the "shapes" and "patterns", going back to the foundations needed for phonics, phonological awareness - how the patterns in our oral language work without the connection to print).  For a lot of children, those are not as efficient a means so make sure, along with your child's teacher, that phonics really isn't for your child before moving on to alternatives. 

That could be a whole other topic and, in fact, I give definitions of some of these terms in an earlier posting on my blog.  Listen to the child and find ways that they can be successful at reading, not forcing them into a mold if they are the minority who don't learn to read with phonics.  Some children even develop an "organic" sense of how the patterns and sounds in our language work with no formal instruction in phonics, combine it with other strategies (figuring out words from picture clues, recognizing some words on sight, etc.).

BEGINNING READING IS MORE THAN PHONICS

Now for perhaps the most important message in this blog: 

phonics or any other beginning reading strategy for "figuring out words" is only a tool.  

It is not reading.  

And phonics is something that, once learned, should then serve as a tool to successfully decode words enough times that those words then become automatic, almost a sight word - one we recognize on sight rather than having to dissect it each time it is encountered.  The mistake too many educators make is an over-focus on phonics.  They stay on it too long rather than having the big picture in mind and moving children to that next level.  That's when children get the idea that they must decode each word they encounter, even if they already know it on sight and that actually disables reading growth or at least deters it.  That's also where you see motivation decline because how much fun is "manipulating phonemes"?

Reading is getting the meaning out of print.  So in addition to phonics instruction, children need a steady diet of great stories read aloud to them and shared one on one as well as in small and whole group.  Families can have a great influence here, especially if your child is in a school where the phonics is isolated and overemphasized and no read alouds of delicious stories that are not easily decodable occurs.  What's the benefit?  Children get that big picture:  they are exposed to complex sentence structure, new vocabulary, the sound of a fluent reader sounding like he/she is talking when she reads, they get the meaning because 100% of their little brains are freed to understand the story rather than being divided between decoding (which can take up most of the brain power early one) and comprehension.  Then they get the idea of what really is (and the motivation to do it themselves).

WHAT ABOUT STRUGGLING READERS?

My advice with struggling readers (my new friend, Donalyn Miller calls them "dormant readers") is always - look for the building blocks they are missing.  Just using repetition on too high a level with a child is frustrating for the child and everyone involved. 

Good teachers, whether they are parents or professionally-trained educators, recognize such "holes" and step back to more fundamental skills.  Here's an example.  If a child is having trouble blending sounds, make sure they have a strong, almost automatic recall of letter sounds.  If they have to work at blending and at recalling the sound, it may be a brain overload.  Think more concrete to less concrete, less abstract to more.  Use the concrete to help bridge them to the abstract.

With young children, the emotional support of a positive rather than negative experience, is so critical. Reading researcher, Dorothy Strickland, says, "It is the broader pattern of child-adult activities and interactions that support a child's language and literacy development."  If we do not give children mostly positive experinces with books, they will not choose to be readers.  

If a struggling child does what seems to them to be nonsensical exercises, how do we think that is going to give them the emotional fortitude they need to practice and become competent?  Think games, think tying whatever method you are using to teach to a positive experience, balance that instruction and practice that is necessary in the context of great read aloud experiences so your child sees the end they are working so hard to get to -- being able to read ANYTHING THEY WANT.  I have seen it time and time again that reading difficulties, when paired with appropriate balanced instruction, can be overcome.

CLOSING

This ended up being longer than I expected but I hope I answered the questions raised by my visitor on Kathy's blog AND perhaps some of yours.  Follow-up questions posted will be addressed (blogging is a great forum for that type of dialogue).  I also welcome, as always, your comments.

And today, share this blog with a parent or teacher, just one, that you believe can benefit and we'll spread the revolution!  Check out my book, Anytime Reading Readiness, for more ideas about supporting your young readers.

Calling All Parents: Practical Reading Ideas for Gifted Kids

If you missed the live show with host Audrey Borden and literacy expert, Cathy Puett Miller, now is your chance to hear a podcast of that event.  Lots of practical ideas to match up with our recent post.  You may need to listen to the hookup intro for a few seconds before the show actually starts so settle back, be ready to be inspired about reading with your child and finding the perfect book to share with your gifted child.

This podcast isn't just for parents of gifted children.  It has excellent tips for anyone interested in promoting their child's literacy.  Focusing on helping your child have positive experiences with reading, tons of references to great books and solutions to finding time to encourage reading and writing at home are all included. 

P.S.  Be on the lookout for a revolution starting in just a few weeks with the release of Cathy Puett Miller's two new books - Anytime Reading Readiness and Before They Read.  Never before have two books been so relationship-building between the teacher of 3-6 year olds and the parents of that same age group.  With these tools, parents will learn the three big essentials to getting their children ready to read and preschool and Kindergarten teachers will find fun skill-building activities to integrate into your curriculum with great results.   Stay tuned!

Supporting Families In the Search for Just Right Books and more

This Thursday, October 29, join Cathy Puett Miller and her co-host Audrey Borden of My Gifted Girl, Inc. in a special collaborative FREE Webinar. We'll be discussing choosing the best books for your child (gifted or not)and promoting a love of reading. How important is that!

You can sign up for this FREE event at Audrey's FACEBOOK page. We have limited slots so we hope you'll join early. After the event, we'll be posting more resources on this page.

We can start an incredible wave of influence if you'll share a link to this blog or to Audrey's Facebook signup page with families (and educators) you know.

Don't forget to look for Cathy's new books out in November. These focus on the 3-6 year old and represent a unique collaborative opportunity to promote three big ideas (great conversations/oral language development, reading aloud with children, and playing with the sounds and patterns in our language) with both educators and families. You can preview and pre-order them at Maupin's website.

We are starting a revolution -- outside the ideas of those who know reading is important. This provides an opportunity for any family in America (or the world) to promote literacy learning with their child! Be a part of it!

Helping Independent Readers Think About What They Read

I think this time we are on the "older reader" channel. Those of you with young children, read this too because you'll be here before you know it. I was reading a message from the President of the International Reading Association in Reading Today and was impressed with her comments about comprehension -- understanding what we read in more than just a "can I regurgitate simple facts" approach. She emphasized in her comments that it is most important that our children learn to think logically and deeply about what they read. Elizabeth Drew, an author who has written about Washington personalities in politics, says, "The true test of literature is, I suppose, whether we live more intently for the reading of it."

When was the last time your independent reader was moved by something he or she read? Certainly we don't need to be pressing "heavy-duty classics" on them all the time but reading text that makes us think is important. We need to exercise that "muscle" power in our brains to help our brains reach their potential. That's true for us as adults just as well as children.

How can you help your child learn to think about what he or she reads?

First, be interested. That may mean reading or re-reading the same novel they are in class and talking about it. I remember that when my son was reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, I re-read it myself. In turn, it made me want to read more written related to Harper Lee and Truman Capote (they were neighbors as children), especially since I had just seen a movie about Capote's life. I read his novel, In Cold Blood, for the first time and then Harper Lee's autobiography. All those three books together were a great study for me and I learned a lot about these authors and the period of time in which they wrote.

If you can't take time to read an entire novel, read a little at the first and ask your student to keep you up-to-date on what is going on with the story (a TV guide version, if you will, of each chapter). Don't make this a drill or lesson; just have a conversation about an interesting story.

When your student has trouble understanding assigned reading, there are two things you can do: first, read segments with him, stopping every couple of paragraphs or so to talk about the meaning behind the words (that's helpful sometimes with the antiquated language of Shakespeare). Secondly, find other, easier reading materials that help your student build some background knowledge for understanding the story. Sometimes there are simpler versions of Shakespeare's plays that use modern English. Reading it along with the original text can help. Both of these options mean that you have to make some commitment of time. Believe you me, it will be worth it for your student immediately (and it will be good for your brain too!). Beyond these immediate rewards, it will solidify your relationship with your child, something that is important to every parent. They see you investing time with them and it is meaningful.

Be a poser of questions - why is my favorite. If a simple statement is made, ask "why is that true?" or "why did that happen?" or "why did she do that"? Follow up with "would you have done the same?" Great readers are thinking, active, engaged individuals, experiencing the author's intent and drawing from it ideas that can appeal to, enhance and improve our own lives. Questions help us think about what we read.

And that's the true power behind reading, not what is on the page alone but what we take away from the page.

Where the Radio Shows Left Off

We're breaking the pattern from alternating between the "snuggle and cuddle" stage and older, independent readers. I am visiting a couple of radio shows this week on reading, families and young children and there's just so much to share that we never have time to talk about everything. One is with my friend, Stacey Kannenberg, the Ready to Learn mom.

If you get to this blog tonight (9/22) or in the morning of 9/23, you may be able to listen in live at 11EST at The Get Ready to Learn Mom Radio Show. Otherwise you'll be able to find a podcast after the fact at this same website.

FAMILY FRIENDLY DEFINITIONS OF A FEW TERMS


COMPREHENSION - understanding what you read (and the real reason we read).

DECODING - refers to the various skills we use to decipher text into understandable words. It has more specifically been used to talk about the phonics approach of breaking apart words into different single sounds, then calling those sounds and blending them together to figure out a word. No all words can be decoded strictly in this way, only those that follow regular phonics rules.

DIBELS - a screening used by many schools to determine whether a child has competency in several key early literacy skills including at the beginning of Kindergarten alphabetic knowledge, an ability to attend to single sounds in words and break words apart into single sounds (orally, not by reading). This same screening later (up to 3rd grade usually) is used to evaluate fluency (whether a child sounds like they are talking when they read), comprehension, and decoding abilities.

FLUENCY - as readers move beyond calling out one word at a time and having to decode, sound by sound, most words, they begin to sound more like natural speech when they read aloud. Not only is the pace regular and smooth, but the reader adds expression and phrasing and recognizes most words in that given text easily.

GUIDED READING - in simplest terms, that is the time in class when children read text that is fairly easy for them to "decode", concentrating on understanding and being fluid in what they read (sounding like they are talking). Guided reading or leveled books have a limited number of words in them and the vocabulary is more "controlled".

HIGH FREQUENCY WORDS - these are words that appear most often in real reading text. Drs. Dolch and Frye created age level lists of these words, from the simplest in Kindergarten to higher levels in the upper grades and, if our children practice with reading that contains those (mostly sight words, see definition below) and maybe practice reading them off a list as well, our child will be able to automatically read those words with little mental effort. Knowing the high frequency words helps a child become a more fluent reader who understands more of what he/she reads.

LEVELED Readers - Books that have been carefully written to include a limited number of words (and words from a certain Dolch/Frye grade level list). Teachers carefully select these books for each child so that individual child has a chance to read something that contains lots of words they are already familiar with. If a child can easily read about 95% of the words in a book, they can put more mental power toward understanding what they read and less on recognizing and decoding words.

METACOGNITION - thinking about how you think

ORAL LANGUAGE - This is more than just speaking. It is the complex system that we humans use to relate sounds to meanings. It has three parts: the phonological (how we combine sounds in words to translate/transfer meaning in speech -- not reading, just speaking and listening); semantic (understanding that the smallest units of meaning, whether those be words, prefixes, or suffixes, can be joined together. We deal with semantics when we make single words plural for example) and syntactic (rules that enable us to combine those smallest units of meaning into sentences so meaning is communicated - in the beginning, humans use short syntactic phrases to communicate like "more cookie" which are later expanded as our abilities with language grow to "I would like another cookie, please.") Who knew speaking and listening was so complex. It is amazing that our children develop all this without direct instruction!

SIGHT WORDS - those are words that don't follow the phonics rules so we have to know them "by sight" as soon as we see them. Learning sight words takes seeing them over and over until you immediately recognize them. Think of the word "give". It breaks the rule that when you have two consonants and two vowels, the first vowel most of the time says its name (is a long sound) and the second vowel is silent/quiet. In the word "give" the first vowel is short and the second one silent.

If there are other terms that you need a translation for, add a comment and I'll edit this blog to include them.

Some of my favorite quotes for parents on reading:

If we do not give our children mostly positive reading experiences, they will not choose to be readers . . . Dr. Michael Pressley

If you are reading regularly -- every day -- to your children, taking a reading time of fifteen or twenty minutes, whenever it can occur, before bed or whatever, that shows a respect for books. It shows that you have a reverence for books. That's the only way to reallky get kids interested in reading. Show how interesting it is and how much fun it is. If you read, your child will follow your example, as the night follows the day . . . Bob Keeshan AKA Captain Kangaroo

What we teach our children to love and desire will always outweigh what we teach them to do . . . Jim Trelease, author of The Read Aloud Handbook.

FIVE OF MY FAVORITE PLACES ON THE WEB
FOR PARENTS READING WITH CHILDREN

Reading Rockets and Colorin' Colorado - sponsored by PBS
Just One More Book, a podcast about children's books we love
The Reading Tub, a source for great book reviews for parents
Planet Esme, a website full of great resources about reading with your children
Stories for Children Magazine, an ezine for children ages 3-12, with a great interview with Stacey, complete with stories and advice

News flash - I just saw that Jamie Lee Curtis (one of the few "celebrities" writing quality children's books) has a new book out in October called Jamie Lee Curtis's Books to Grow By Treasury. I can's wait to read it!

That's all for now. Stay tuned next time for answers to the question: My child is beyond the "snuggle and cuddle" stage - what do I do?

Remember, if you have questions or want to share what works in reading with your kids, feel free to add your gems of wisdom.

Delicious, Delightful Read Alouds

Occasionally, I still long for the days when our son, Charlie, was small. He'd come from preschool, snuggle close beside me and we'd dive into a book. Now I get my "little kid fix" from preschoolers in centers where I consult and train teachers and families.

What made those times long ago so special? It is the fact that the reading experience was bigger than the book. It's no different today. There is a danger that, with all the focus on reading skills in school (which is important but not the whole picture), we as parents may forget to tap into the pure joy, suspense, delight and fun of reading aloud with our children.

When you do that, not only is it a relationship-building experience with your child, but it is a guaranteed stress reliever for you (and who doesn't need that in today's face-paced world). It's more positive than forcing your child to practice with the focus on correcting and directing. Besides, the message behind picture books can be meaningful to you, not just your child.

So remind yourself that these sweet days are passing, kick off your shoes, snuggle close, and dive into a book together. Here are a few of my favorites.

I have to squeeze in this tidbit: keep your eyes open for Jane Yolen's latest book due out in October, How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You?.

For more tips on making reading with your child an incredible experience every time, visit The Diva Toolbox. For an extra dose of practice advice, a conversation between two passionate professionals and moms, tune in to Stacey Kannenberg's "Ready to Learn Mom" show at

11AM EST on 9/23.

Cathy and host, Stacey Kannenberg, will be discussing

Parents in the Literacy Loop: Why Families Are The Key To Children's Reading Abilities and Success.

If you can't tune in live tomorrow, there will be a podcast available after the fact that the same website. Be sure to listen!

Last gift today for you . . . take one idea you learn from this blog and share it with one other person (your spouse, your neighbor, the person you want to get to know in your child's class or play group, Grandma or Grandpa). It could start a revolution!

Check Out Activities At Your Local Public Library

Yesterday I was in the tiny town of New Hope, AL and was privileged to see about 85 upper elementary school kids and their parents coming to the library! It was great! They were there as part of the summer reading program and they had dogs at the library!

If you haven't visited a library with your kids recently, you are in for a treat. There are still lots of wonderful books (I'll list a few in a minute) but there are also TONS of activities, morning, noon and night. This year's summer reading theme is "Be Creative @ Your Library". If you are looking for ideas on engaging your children in reading this summer, the librarians are also a great source.

While at the library, let your children see you checking out a book as well. Your example is so strong, even though you might not realize it. You send one of two messages: reading is important and will be a regular part of our lives OR it's not really that important anyway. Which do you want to send?

If your child isn't too excited (YET) about reading, find videos or CDs at the library for them to listen to. Look for themes or corresponding books to read before or after. Talk about the differences between what you saw in the movie and what was in the book. If you read the book first, ask your child to "make a movie in their heads". Teachers call that visualization and it's an important tool for understanding what you read. Try this:

1) Have your child close their eyes while you read a particularly descriptive section or paragraph.

2) Ask them to think about what the room or the scene might look like. What do they smell, hear, think, wonder?

3) If they have trouble with this, do it together. Think out loud and describe beyond the author's words. You'll find that your image and that of your child might be different. That's because each person has unique experiences and "background knowledge" that he or she brings to the "reading table". That colors what we get out of the text.

Keep practicing this. It will engage your child in the reading experience. They can even draw what the words tell them as they listen.

Now, the list I promised - great reads from the public library -- but instead of listing titles, I'm giving you links to my library's suggested reads and those across the country. Enjoy!

http://hpl.lib.al.us/read/ (pick a few for yourself at the top and then scroll down to see the children's books)

http://www.plcmc.org/Bookhive/ - from my home state of North Carolina

http://kids.nypl.org/ - from the New York Public Library

http://www.lapl.org/kidspath/ - LA Public Library

http://www.atyourlibrary.org/familylife - ideas for incorporating reading into family life from the American Library Association.

Until next time, happy reading!

READING WITH CHILDREN: IT'S NOT JUST BOOKS

Sometimes parents get deadened to that prompt we hear so often, "READ WITH YOUR CHILD". In our busy lives, it's a bit difficult to do that and what difference does it make anyway? The answer is, especially in today's educational hothouses, an incredible difference. More than ever, children need to understand that reading isn't about test taking or how fast they can say the words. It's not just something you have to practice at school and forget about otherwise. The amount of interaction each person needs with text in order to become a competent reader varies but it definitely takes practice. Think about playing the piano or learning to ride a bike or playing soccer. All of that takes practice and daily practice routines lead to mastery. In today's word, our children don't just need to "kinda know how to read"; they need to be masters at it.

Whether you grew up yourself with someone reading to you or you don't have a clue about what to do, it's actually the perfect venue for connecting with your child. Sometimes, try it this way:

Start by finding out what your child's passion is (what does he or she LOVE, how does that person focus his/her time, if you ask, "if you could do anything, what would it be?", a passion is the answer).

Next, think about finding not only books but magazines, internet sites and blogs, letters from "experts" that address that passion. You're doing two things: first you are acknowledging that your child's interests are important to you. Secondly, you are tapping into his/her intrinsic motivation, the personal drive to know about a subject or a person or a place. Find those resources and SHARE. Read a little, talk about it, read a little more. Whether your child is 6 or 16, that works!

Sprinkle reading into everyday life and share with your child how you use reading. Think about it: we read in the grocery store, when we drive on errands, in our homes when we make decisions or figure out how to fix or hook up a new appliance or toy. One of the strongest messages we can send is that reading is a tool for life. It's not some artificial thing we do in school to see how many words we can say fast or whether we know how to decode with no errors. Reading is about squeezing the juice of meaning from whatever text we are exploring. Show your child how to do that!

THINKING, WONDERING AND PONDERING over every piece you read helps whether it's a newspaper article or editorial or a picture book. Leave plenty of time for interruptions and conversations. As you and your child interact, you'll both learn about each other and the topic at hand. You'll be surprised, you might even disagree but you are interacting and using oral language to connect to the written word.

The bottom line is that reading can happen anywhere. You don't have to set aside a long time to be quiet with a book with your child. That's certainly a great thing to do and we'll talk more about that later but you can also show your child everyday that reading is an everyday event, not just an academic exercise. And these everyday interactions with words will help pack in the number of practices your child needs at seeing and figuring out words and meaning in order to build competency. No matter what you are reading with your child, remember that main idea is meaning. Squeeze that juice!