All parents hope and expect their child will learn to read and most expect this to happen during their child’s first few years at school.

However many parents do not realise or ignore the important part they must take in their child’s literacy development.

Simply stated it is the parent not the teacher who sets a child up for reading success and this needs to begin from birth.

If you do not read to your child and enjoy sharing books with him or her you are short changing you both.

When the important adults in a child’s life share books and model their respect for reading and writing this is passed on subconsciously to a child.

Your child will learn to value reading if you do. When reading aloud is part of an everyday routine, without fail, the time you share together shows the child you care and the books you read tells the child that reading is important and enjoyable.

Mem Fox is one of Australia’s most successful children’s authors.

Her picture story books have a worldwide audience.

Mem is also an internationally respected literacy consultant who has had a long career as a trainer of teachers.

In the forward to her passionate book, ‘Reading Magic’, she points out that reading aloud to children should no longer be viewed as a mildly pleasant educational activity. It should be seen as a win-win situation for all concerned in the raising of children.

Many people including paediatricians, speech pathologists, child psychologists, social workers, bookstore owners, politicians, teachers and researchers, carers, media personalities, parents and other passionate individuals all support the importance of reading aloud to young children.

The benefits are well recorded.

Governments now realise that the money spent on promoting early literacy will save money spent on illiteracy, crime, depression, unemployment and welfare benefits. Research results show this to be money well spent.

If you would like to hear an example of Mem Fox reading aloud go to http://www.memfox.net and go to the link ‘Reading  Aloud’.

I also recommend her book

Reading Magic-How your child can learn to read before school-

and other read aloud miracles

Published by Pan Macmillan Australia in 2007 this inexpensive little book has a wealth of information for anyone who wants to know how children learn to read.

Teaching children to read through a phonics only program is never successful.

However an understanding of the letter/ sound relationships is a skill needed by successful readers and writers.

I have written an ebook that discusses how phonics fits into an overall reading and writing program.

If you are interested go to www.superlearner.com.au for more information.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

Tags: kids learning, learn to read, learning phonics, phonics

This entry was posted on October 26, 2009 at 5:48 AM. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted in phonics by Marilyn Martyn No Comments Yet