Reading Is Fun!

Reading is Fun!

“Good job, Amanda! You’re such a good little reader!” my mom told me as I read my favorite book If You Give A Mouse A Cookie. Reading was one of my preferred pastimes as a child. My parents had always encouraged my younger brother and I to engage in literacy activities at a very young age. Because of this, we both developed a positive view of reading and writing as we went through elementary school. I viewed reading as a fun activity where you could unfold new stories and tales and use your imagination to represent and tell these stories in your mind. I loved getting my hands on a new book and reading it for the first time, as it provided an opportunity for me to be creative and apply previously learned literacy skills.

I’d like to think that my brother and I were raised in a loving and supportive family when it comes to literacy development. We were read to often, encouraged to write and practice handwriting abilities, given many children’s books to read and were involved in mini-lessons about letters, letter sounds and words that occurred when the situation presented itself. We were extremely lucky in that regard.

But what about those children who didn’t have involved parents or family members? 

There are many families in today’s society that don’t support a child’s growth in literacy. As stated in the chapter, “children must understand that reading is a source of information that is valuable for them to learn to succeed in life.” (page 4). Those young minds that weren’t taught that reading is vital and can also be fun may be at a disadvantage. In cases where a child has a troubled home life, lives in poverty or has a chronic illness or disease, there’s a high chance that they will become illiterate and not perform to the best of their abilities.

Reading and other literacy actions must be supported and encouraged at a very young age. Beginning stages of literacy don’t begin when a child reaches elementary school. In fact, early literacy begins in infancy. As future teachers and parents, it’s important for us to provide literacy experiences and activities both at school and at home to help foster literacy learning and development.

Tips to Provide A Literacy-Rich Environment

1. Teachers should have a specific time in their daily schedules set for reading and writing. This includes literacy centers, independent reading/writing, group reading/writing activities, journaling, interactive read alouds, etc.
2. Go beyond reading books! Have a selection of different reading materials both at home or schools. This includes items like picture books, magazines, brochures, newspapers, chapter books, nonfiction, dictionaries, classroom written books, plays/scripts, poetry, comic books, etc.
3. In connection with tip #2, provide books for children that are of that child’s interest. If a student really loves horses, make sure you have a variety of reading materials involving that.
4. Encourage children to go in depth with their reading and writing. Give them opportunities to think, make predictions and ask questions during their reading. A teacher should also ask questions to his/her students to test for comprehension or to further their thinking.
5. Worksheets to test literacy skills can be useful, but children learn best when they are actively engaged in hands-on activities! Create a variety of literacy games/activities for children to engage in. Some examples include a word wall, journal writing, readers theatre, book reports, group discussions, matching games, letter recognition activities, reading/writing centers, interactive videos and things of that nature.
6. Have plenty of paper, pencils and writing tools on hand to foster positive writing activities.
7. Teachers should be models for his or her students. While reading in front of the class, be sure to demonstrate correct reading procedures. This includes speaking loudly and clearly, reading left to right, turning the pages when necessary, reading with expression, keeping your eyes on your book, etc.
8. Incorporate literacy in all subject areas like math, play, science, history and the arts.
9. Posters and decorations in the classroom should be rich with print. When designing a classroom, include reading and literacy in the posters and bulletin boards you create.
10. Get children motivated to read! If you, the adult, show that you love reading and view it as an exciting activity, children will commonly view it in a positive way as well.