Too Young To Read?

As a Speech-Language therapist, I am always on the lookout for materials that can be used in my therapy sessions. One of my favorite materials is children’s books because of the versatility of using books in sessions. But more than that, I want to pique an interest in books, as studies have shown the importance of literacy skills as a known predictor of future competency in academics and in life-skills (Neuman, Copple, & Bredekamp, 2000).

At what age do children begin to read? Is it too early to train my child to read? These are common questions asked by young parents. Children develop knowledge of how written language works and what is it used for before they actually begin decoding print. This pre-literacy foundation for literacy development is termed emergent literacy. Beginning at birth and continuing through the preschool years, emergent literacy comes from a child’s early experience with print and books.

In today’s literate society, print is pervasive, seen in everyday life on billboard signs, newspapers, books, menus, and television. A study done by Heath (1982) has shown that the way a child is able to take information from text and talk about it depend heavily on a child’s home environment and the way parents and children interact in the home. Children who begin school with literacy knowledge have an advantage in learning to read and write over children from environments in which literacy socialization is not a dominant aspect. You as young parents have an important role to play in supporting literacy socialisation before your child goes to school. At home, you can support literacy socialisation by the following:

Read to your child (e.g., establish a bedtime story routine)
Show interest in written text (e.g., point and read text from a cereal box)
Read menu items aloud at restaurants as you move your finger through the text

(Photo Credit: http://www.parenttrainingday.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Teaching-Your-Child-to-Read.jpg)

Reading books to your child, such as during bedtime, is the best way to build your child’s pre-literacy skills. A child learns the language and tone of books simply by listening. Through experience with books, a child learns basic book knowledge such as book handling, locating the cover, title and author’s name, and recognising pictures and words on the pages. Though incomprehensible to them, children learn that written words contain some sort of meaning, for example, when those “squiggly lines” (words) on the page are covered, the adult is unable to see and continue reading the story.

The table below shows pre-literacy skill norms and the age group by which they are typically reached. As the table illustrates, parents and caregivers can foster pre-literacy skills in young children long before children actually learn to read.

Typical Age	Literacy Socialization Skills
0-2 years old	Enjoys joint book-reading Learns to hold book right-side up Learns to turn pages Answers questions about pictures, characters
2-5 years old	Learns the need to turn page to get to next part of story Learns left-right progression of print Learns print is stable; anyone reading a book reads the same words
5-7 years old	Reads picture books for pleasure, with assistance Reads picture books for pleasure, independently

Source: Literacy Socialization Age Norms (Paul & Norbury, 2012)

As your child becomes a toddler, you can engage your child further by encouraging your child to be an active participant in the reading experience. First, encourage your child to point to pictures in the story to build listening skills, as well as attention and focusing skills. Then proceed to ask your child to name characters, objects, and verbs in the book. These pre-literacy activities aid in learning vocabulary, following directions, and increasing attending skills (Diamant, 2002). See a page from from Eric Carle’s book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, below, followed by a table of examples, used to demonstrate the types of interactions a parent can encourage during book reading in the table below.

(Photo Credit: http://image.slidesharecdn.com/cfakepaththeveryhungrycaterpillar-100209090636-phpapp02/95/cfakepaththe-very-hungry-caterpillar-14-728.jpg?cb=1265706495)

Interactions to Foster	Example
Ask ‘What’ questions	You could ask, “What did the caterpillar do on Friday?”
Encourage your child to name	You could point to the orange and say, “Orange!” to encourage your child to the same
Ask for ‘Reason’ explanations	You could ask, “Why did the caterpillar eat the orange?”
Apply knowledge in books to real world contexts	Connect the content of the story to something in your child’s environment. You could ask, “Do you remember the insect we saw at the park yesterday? That is the same bug as the one in this story! It is called a caterpillar.”
Compare similarities/differences	You could highlight similarities/differences between an orange vs. other fruits (e.g., apple). E.g., Both are round fruits, but different in color (red vs. orange) and texture (crispy vs. soft).
Compare two (2) items/events	You could ask, “What you do if you were the caterpillar?” “What would be your favorite fruit to eat?”
Ask prediction/inference questions	You could ask, “What do you think the caterpillar will do next?”
Ask questions about the child’s thoughts and feelings	You could ask, “What did you like about the story?”
Encourage your child to ask questions	Don’t shut your child down when they ask questions. Encourage his/her questions.

“Few parents are fully conscious of what bedtime story reading means as preparation for the kinds of learning and displays of knowledge expected in school” (Heath, 1982).

You may not know it, but you are preparing your child for school especially when your child’s book reading experience involves an opportunity for him/her to engage in extended discussions about the book’s story (Heath, 1982) and involve explicit attention to features of print (Paul & Norbury, 2012). Instead of merely using books as a tool to teach numbers and letters, or as material for drilling your child with questions that come with a fixed correct answer, why not try to lead the above book reading experience the next time you read with your child?

References

Diamant, E. S. (2002). Literacy socialization: the integration of language, phonemic awareness and literacy skills. Advance Healthcare Network, 12 (13), 10. http://speech-languagepathology-audiology.advanceweb.com/Editorial/Content/PrintFriendly.aspx?CC=164071

Heath, S. (1982). What no bedtime story means: Narrative skills at home and school. Language in Society, 11, 49-76.

Neuman, S., Copple, C., & Bredekamp, S. (2000). Learning to read and write: Developmentally appropriate practices for young children. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Paul, R., & Norbury C. F. (2012). Language disorders from infancy through adolescence (4^th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Mosby.