Reading opens a portal...
- Sparrow Home School
- Nov 13, 2017
- 4 min read
I started speaking to my children before they were even born. I sang too. You Are My Sunshine was my song to them. When they were born and having trouble settling, I would sing that song to them and they would settle very quickly. They also loved it when I read to them. They still love it when I read to them now, sadly not the singing so much (they mention the sound of cats fighting - cheeky)!
My eldest learnt to read early at the Montessori school he used to go to. He practiced at home, it was never a chore, he liked to read and be read to. The only time he would not be so keen was when he was sent home with a book he had no interest in or was what he thought of as 'too easy' for his personal reading level. To combat this, I would read to him books of his choosing, stories that were more adventurous, mythological and full of fantasy. As his reading skills strengthened, he took over that reading. This did not take long, because now he was reading stuff that he enjoyed and got his imagination going.
When I started home schooling my boys, I let them read whatever interested them. My youngest requested to start learning how to read when he was 3 years old. Older brother was reading all the time, he wanted to be like his big brother. I did seek some help with regard to helping him kick start learning how to read. He caught on quickly. I put that down to the fun and interesting program we used, speaking, reading (and singing) to him since before birth, joining in on toddler programs at the local library as well as his older brother and I regularly modelling reading so it was always around him.
Despite them being in middle primary and high school now, they still like it when I read to them. Sometimes I'm reading their chapter to them for history, science or Australian studies, sometimes it's a novel we are sharing.
I love shared reading, it really kicks off some great discussions and helps create and hold a special bond that fills my heart.
Reading opens a portal. Your imagination creates the pictures for you. I love how that happens automatically when you start reading a book, those pictures in your mind just form on their own. Books take you to another place - it can be really exciting.
A big fave has been Harry Potter. Harry has been read over and over again. Percy Jackson, the Narnia series, Spirit Animals and so much more. The eldest loved Roald Dahl while the youngest loved Enid Blyton. Reading from a range of authors in a range of styles is great at developing their vocabulary.
Usually, my boys have their noses stuck in a book. I love that they love to read. At the moment though, they are not reading as much as they usually do. At first I felt a little panicked by that but then I realised there can be many contributing factors. It's getting towards the end of a busy year, they are tired. They want to focus on some other things for a while, get out more (despite how much we go out already) and be with friends. I realised there was nothing to worry about - the love of reading for learning and pleasure is well and truly solidified in them. I believe the joy of reading they have will always be with them, they are just having a little holiday from reading so much to do some other things.
If you have a child not keen on reading, then I personally think don't push it. You don't want to make reading into a chore so that they learn to loathe it. Just read to them, get them to choose the title. Read with inflection so it sounds more interesting. Get them chatting about the story, the characters, what they think the book is about, what they think will happen. Don't think you have to then turn each book finished into a book report. Danger, danger. That will make reading into a chore again. Just talk to them about the book - comprehension skills are not only developed by writing about what they've read.
Let your kids catch you reading regularly, it normalises it for them. Take trips the the library, see what's available - let them have free reign. Listen to audio books as well, they are great. I have to say though for us, we had to put a stop to listening to audio books in the car. I would get so immersed in the story, not a great thing when you are the driver! You can borrow audio books from the library. There are sites that offer free audio books as well like http://www.openculture.com/freeaudiobooks - we got the Narnia series through there, the lady who read the Narnia books has a lovely voice to listen to.
Learning to read is important. It's a skill you need your whole life. Keep in mind though, not everyone enjoys reading for pleasure, snuggling up on the lounge and losing themselves in another world and that's OK. Just keep trying ways to get that reluctant reader to build up their skills. Give them choice for the titles (maybe they are potential book-lovers, maybe they have yet to find the genre that they enjoy), consider e-readers like a Kindle for example. Some kids have sensory issues to consider, pages on a book could be a trigger for them, for example. While we are here, sometimes you need to rule out other things like dyslexia, maybe they need their eyes tested for glasses etc. Don't expect them to sit and read for ages, reading little bits often is good. Maybe you have to start with reading street signs, directing you in the car by reading the GPS directions to you, writing and reading out the shopping list for you, reading the labels while grocery shopping, reading short stories to their younger siblings, there are lots of ways to get a bit of reading in each day.
The key to remember is we are all different, we all learn differently and in different ways, at different paces and not everyone is going to love reading. Always be encouraging and have patience and keep reading time a light and casual, fun affair and you might just end up with a book-worm on your hands.
Comments