Reading
Development
The most powerful
thing you can do to help your child be a lifelong reader is to read
aloud to them. Research indicates that if your child is read to
regularly in your home, and if you have family members who are habitual
readers themselves, your child may be an early reader and will show
a natural interest in books. Story readings with your child are
almost always pleasurables, and the pleasure that is experienced
builds a desire for and interest in reading. A wonderful benefit
of one-to-one storytime is the interaction it involves. It gives
you a chance to talk with your child. It will give you insight into
what the child already knows and wants to know. Children who do
not experience one-to-one readings at home are definately at a disadvantage
in their literacy development.
Right from birth,
children need to be read to. A baby's attention will be erratic
at first, but they will gradually become more involved. At 6-9 months,
babies might try to turn pages and show preferences for books. At
1 year, babies will show strong involvement in being read to. By
15 monts, babies who have been read to can tell which is the front
and back of books and "read" along with the adult a great
deal. By the time a child enters kindergarten, he/she needs to have
had 1,000 book experiences. |
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Writing
Development
Children learn a lot
about literacy through play. They imitate adult models by making
their own pretend play marks on paper. Soon the marks become written
messages, from which chhildren achieve their own sense of identity.
From birth to age three,
children begin to explore the form of writing call scribbling. Our
responses to children's early scribbling are important. We can assist
children in their first attempts to make marks on paper. We can
show them how to hold markers or crayons, but it is better not to
urge children to write particular things. They should make marks
spontaneously and decide for themselves when these marks represent
something. As children progress from 3-6 years, their scribbling
gradually develops into recognizable objects that they name, and
gradually acquires the characteristics of print and letterlike forms. |
