Reading
Students learn to read by knowing the sounds of letters and knowing the meanings of words (vocabulary), word parts, and groups of words (overall meaning, or semantics). To build this foundation, children need effective reading instruction. The two main approaches to teaching reading today are whole language and PHONICS. The whole language approach focuses on comprehension and is based on the understanding that reading is about finding the meaning in written language. Children learn meanings of words by multiple experiences with words, both written and spoken. A whole language approach to teaching reading can include teaching reading and writing throughout the day in the context of the lesson topics and emphasizing storybooks rather than work sheets. Many writing opportunities are also important in the whole language approach.
In contrast, phonics focuses on the sounds of letters and words. A phonics approach focuses instruction on learning to associate printed letters and combinations of letters with their corresponding sounds. Phonics instruction gives students strategies to unlock or decode words.
A phonics approach to teaching reading can include “sounding out” words as a way of figuring out new words. For example, in a phonics lesson, the word “hat” would be sounded out as “hh-aatt.” Practice work sheets or exercises focus on letter sounds, matching pictures with spoken words, short vowel/long vowel, or “letter of the week.”
Many schools combine both approaches because of a decade of research suggesting that there is no one best way to build students’ literacy skills. A balanced approach to teaching reading combines a strong foundation in phonics with whole language methods. Only through more than one kind of instruction can students gain the skills to recognize and manipulate the sounds of letters and words and the skills to understand what they read. Since all children learn differently, only a balanced approach to teaching reading can give all children the skills they need to read well.
Students learn to read in a certain order: First they must understand that words are made up of different sounds, then associate those sounds with written words, and finally decode words and read groups of words. Students who have trouble learning to read need to be specifically taught the relationships of letters, words and sounds, since being aware of letter/sound relationships is the main tool good readers use to decode unfamiliar words.
Each child needs practice to be a fluent reader. Research at the National Institute of Health has found that phonics instruction should be taught as part of a comprehensive, literature-based reading program. Many opportunities for children to read at their own reading level help them to learn to read for meaning and enjoy reading. Highly trained teachers can help children develop good, overall literacy skills, with good vocabularies, knowledge of correct syntax and spelling, reasoning and questioning skills.
Children with language-based learning disabilities have a harder time learning to read because they have a harder time with sounds of letters and words than other children. Research indicates that because phonics instruction focuses on recognizing and manipulating sounds of letters and words, more intense phonics instruction may be helpful for children with learning disabilities.
The ability to read is a fundamental skill for success in life. Reading research has found compelling evidence that children who have a poor start in reading have trouble catching up and develop negative attitudes towards reading, have poor vocabulary growth, and have missed opportunities for development of reading comprehension strategies.
Most children who are poor readers experience early and continuing difficulties in learning how to accurately identify printed words. These students have problems with “sounding out” unfamiliar words, and with developing “sight vocabulary” of words they are able to read fluently and automatically. The ability to develop these skills is necessary for fluent reading and good reading comprehension.
Diagnostic tests can predict with a high degree of accuracy which students in kindergarten and first grade will have difficulty learning to read. These tests can distinguish, with 92 percent accuracy, those children who will read below the 20th percentile at the end of second grade. These tests take as little as ten to fifteen minutes per child, and can be administered by classroom teachers. Prediction of reading disabilities from tests given at the beginning of first grade are more accurate than those administered during the first semester of kindergarten. The results from these objective tests can be supplemented by teacher ratings of behavior and attention.
Identifying reading difficulties early means children have more time to learn to be successful readers. Since reading is learned more easily and effectively during the early years, identifying language-based learning disabilities and providing appropriate interventions will give children more time to learn to read well.
A child identified as needing help will require careful and direct instruction in reading. An effective preventive program may involve several levels of instructional intensity ranging from small groups to one-on-one teaching, depending upon the severity of the difficulties for each child. In this way, a preventive program can be focused on the children who are most in need. Children with a reading disability/dyslexia will have a positive beginning to their education and a much greater chance for success.
Up to 90 percent of poor readers can increase their skills to “average” with prevention and intervention programs that combine instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics spelling, reading fluency, and reading comprehension strategies provided by well-trained teachers.
Early reading development follows the steps listed below:
Kindergarten
In kindergarten, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• recognize some common words
• name uppercase and lowercase letters
• begin to associate letters and sounds
• recognize poetry
• distinguish reality from fantasy
• can match simple words to pictures
• are aware of whether words begin or end with same sound
• are beginning to be able to break words into syllables
• understand that reading goes from left to right, and top to bottom on the page
• are aware of time sequence in a story
First Grade
In first grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• read long and short vowels
• read word families (hat, bat, cat)
• follow simple written directions
• have larger sight vocabulary
• are aware of author, title, and table of contents
• recognize a play
• interpret maps and globes
• identify consonants in words
• can break dictated words into individual sounds
• are aware of root words, endings, compound words, and contractions
• recognize main idea and cause/effect
• draw conclusions
Second Grade
In second grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• sound out unfamiliar words based on individual letter sounds
• identify words from contextual clues
• vary pitch and stress when reading aloud
• recognize character, setting, and motive of story
• use library for research
• interpret graphs
• use dictionary
• master harder phonetic skills
• understand root words and endings
• are aware of syllabication
Third Grade
In third grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• have growing sight vocabulary and word-analysis ability
• understand homophones
• have increased reading speed
• develop silent reading skills
• distinguish fiction and nonfiction, fact versus opinion
• understand synonyms and antonyms
• recognize author’s purpose
• use index
• use encyclopedia
• interpret diagrams
Fourth Grade
In fourth grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• begin to develop different reading styles for different types of reading
• expand vocabulary
• understand plot and main idea
• summarize a book or article
• organize study materials
• understand different genres (biography, folktales, science fiction, and so on)
• understand author’s point of view
• can read a newspaper
In contrast, phonics focuses on the sounds of letters and words. A phonics approach focuses instruction on learning to associate printed letters and combinations of letters with their corresponding sounds. Phonics instruction gives students strategies to unlock or decode words.
A phonics approach to teaching reading can include “sounding out” words as a way of figuring out new words. For example, in a phonics lesson, the word “hat” would be sounded out as “hh-aatt.” Practice work sheets or exercises focus on letter sounds, matching pictures with spoken words, short vowel/long vowel, or “letter of the week.”
Many schools combine both approaches because of a decade of research suggesting that there is no one best way to build students’ literacy skills. A balanced approach to teaching reading combines a strong foundation in phonics with whole language methods. Only through more than one kind of instruction can students gain the skills to recognize and manipulate the sounds of letters and words and the skills to understand what they read. Since all children learn differently, only a balanced approach to teaching reading can give all children the skills they need to read well.
Students learn to read in a certain order: First they must understand that words are made up of different sounds, then associate those sounds with written words, and finally decode words and read groups of words. Students who have trouble learning to read need to be specifically taught the relationships of letters, words and sounds, since being aware of letter/sound relationships is the main tool good readers use to decode unfamiliar words.
Each child needs practice to be a fluent reader. Research at the National Institute of Health has found that phonics instruction should be taught as part of a comprehensive, literature-based reading program. Many opportunities for children to read at their own reading level help them to learn to read for meaning and enjoy reading. Highly trained teachers can help children develop good, overall literacy skills, with good vocabularies, knowledge of correct syntax and spelling, reasoning and questioning skills.
Children with language-based learning disabilities have a harder time learning to read because they have a harder time with sounds of letters and words than other children. Research indicates that because phonics instruction focuses on recognizing and manipulating sounds of letters and words, more intense phonics instruction may be helpful for children with learning disabilities.
The ability to read is a fundamental skill for success in life. Reading research has found compelling evidence that children who have a poor start in reading have trouble catching up and develop negative attitudes towards reading, have poor vocabulary growth, and have missed opportunities for development of reading comprehension strategies.
Most children who are poor readers experience early and continuing difficulties in learning how to accurately identify printed words. These students have problems with “sounding out” unfamiliar words, and with developing “sight vocabulary” of words they are able to read fluently and automatically. The ability to develop these skills is necessary for fluent reading and good reading comprehension.
Diagnostic tests can predict with a high degree of accuracy which students in kindergarten and first grade will have difficulty learning to read. These tests can distinguish, with 92 percent accuracy, those children who will read below the 20th percentile at the end of second grade. These tests take as little as ten to fifteen minutes per child, and can be administered by classroom teachers. Prediction of reading disabilities from tests given at the beginning of first grade are more accurate than those administered during the first semester of kindergarten. The results from these objective tests can be supplemented by teacher ratings of behavior and attention.
Identifying reading difficulties early means children have more time to learn to be successful readers. Since reading is learned more easily and effectively during the early years, identifying language-based learning disabilities and providing appropriate interventions will give children more time to learn to read well.
A child identified as needing help will require careful and direct instruction in reading. An effective preventive program may involve several levels of instructional intensity ranging from small groups to one-on-one teaching, depending upon the severity of the difficulties for each child. In this way, a preventive program can be focused on the children who are most in need. Children with a reading disability/dyslexia will have a positive beginning to their education and a much greater chance for success.
Up to 90 percent of poor readers can increase their skills to “average” with prevention and intervention programs that combine instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics spelling, reading fluency, and reading comprehension strategies provided by well-trained teachers.
Early reading development follows the steps listed below:
Kindergarten
In kindergarten, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• recognize some common words
• name uppercase and lowercase letters
• begin to associate letters and sounds
• recognize poetry
• distinguish reality from fantasy
• can match simple words to pictures
• are aware of whether words begin or end with same sound
• are beginning to be able to break words into syllables
• understand that reading goes from left to right, and top to bottom on the page
• are aware of time sequence in a story
First Grade
In first grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• read long and short vowels
• read word families (hat, bat, cat)
• follow simple written directions
• have larger sight vocabulary
• are aware of author, title, and table of contents
• recognize a play
• interpret maps and globes
• identify consonants in words
• can break dictated words into individual sounds
• are aware of root words, endings, compound words, and contractions
• recognize main idea and cause/effect
• draw conclusions
Second Grade
In second grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• sound out unfamiliar words based on individual letter sounds
• identify words from contextual clues
• vary pitch and stress when reading aloud
• recognize character, setting, and motive of story
• use library for research
• interpret graphs
• use dictionary
• master harder phonetic skills
• understand root words and endings
• are aware of syllabication
Third Grade
In third grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• have growing sight vocabulary and word-analysis ability
• understand homophones
• have increased reading speed
• develop silent reading skills
• distinguish fiction and nonfiction, fact versus opinion
• understand synonyms and antonyms
• recognize author’s purpose
• use index
• use encyclopedia
• interpret diagrams
Fourth Grade
In fourth grade, children are beginning to develop the following reading skills:
• begin to develop different reading styles for different types of reading
• expand vocabulary
• understand plot and main idea
• summarize a book or article
• organize study materials
• understand different genres (biography, folktales, science fiction, and so on)
• understand author’s point of view
• can read a newspaper
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Comments (1)
if I remember it right on my preperatory class years I can’t even seem to read right. Nice article