Learning is not a 'natural' process happening on its own, although some people think it is. Learning is a complex process that will involve proper teaching of different skills and strategies, such as phonics (knowing the relationship between sounds and letters) and phonemic awareness. Different children have different paces when it comes to learning, but the most crucial thing, when it comes to this process, is making it enjoyable.
When you read with your child regularly, mix things up when choosing activities, and let them choose books once in a while; you will be able to make them love reading from an early age, and this increases the chances of reading success. There are many skills involved when learning. There are five essential components of reading. The skills below are going to be needed by your child to learn how to read successfully.
1Reading Comprehension
Comprehension is a cognitive process used in understanding what a person has just read. Instruction and vocabulary development are the two things that will play an important role when it comes to comprehension. There are several techniques that young readers are going to need when developing text comprehension, with some examples being answering questions (through quizzes) or summarizing (retelling a story).
The ultimate goal of reading is comprehension or extracting meaning from what you read. Many experienced readers tend to take this for granted because they don't recognize the comprehension skills needed. This process is both strategic and interactive. Instead of being passive when reading, the reader needs to analyze, internalize, then make it their own.
2Phonics
The definition of phonics is the relationship between the individual sounds in spoken language and the letters in written language. Phonics is what teaches the children how to use these relationships when spelling or reading words. Systematic phonics instruction is going to enhance the success of children when learning to read, and it is more effective when compared to teaching without or with little phonics.
For a child to become fluent in reading, they must learn to decode unknown words automatically and accurately. If a child is using all their mental energy trying to sound out a word, there is a good chance that they won't focus enough on the meaning. Phonics doesn't automatically guarantee a child's decoding of the words. A child needs to develop the ability to read quickly and effortlessly.
3Vocabulary
Another thing that is closely related to comprehension is vocabulary development. When a reader has a vast vocabulary (print or oral), they will have an easier time making sense of what they are reading. Some ways of learning vocabulary include reading storybooks and listening to other readers; it is important to teach children vocabulary, directly or indirectly. Children need to be engaged in instruction that will consist of learning words before they read, repeating and exposing them to words multiple times, incidental learning, learning in rich contexts, and using computer technology.
Vocabulary knowledge is crucial because it implies that they know the definition of the word and how to use it in the world. Throughout our lives, we get to develop our vocabulary. Words are compelling. They open a lot of possibilities, and this is what everyone wants for their children.
4Fluency
The three elements that make up a reader's fluency are: reading the connected text accurately and at the same rate as a conversation while using appropriate expression or prosody. Non-fluent readers have a problem with one of these aspects. They tend to make a lot of mistakes, read slowly, or fail to read with appropriate phrasing and expression.
There is a direct relationship between fluency and reading comprehension. This means that when a child is reading fluently, they have a higher chance of comprehending what they are reading. For children to become proficient when it comes to reading, they need to become automatic with text because it allows them to focus more on meaning.
5Phonemic Awareness
The smallest units of spoken language are known as phonemes; this is what is combined when forming syllables and words. The use of phonemic awareness is to describe the ability to focus and manipulate the phonemes in spoken syllables and words. Teaching this to children is going to help them with their reading; it is better than using an instruction that doesn't pay attention to phonemic awareness.
Don't confuse phonics with phonemic awareness because they aren't the same – phonemic awareness deals with individual sounds used in spoken language. When transitioning to phonics, children are going to start learning the relationship between the sound (phoneme) and letters (grapheme) represented by the sound in written language. When a child has great phonological awareness, there is a high chance of them becoming good readers, while poor readers tend to be those with weak phonological skills.
When it comes to reading comprehension for children, oral language skills, grammar, understanding syntax, vocabulary, idioms, and topic-specific background knowledge is essential. The frequency with which adults read with young children and preschoolers tends to predict the reading skills of the children when they are in elementary school. A significant predictor for how well children are going to learn to read is the quality and size of their vocabulary and spoken language.
When children read aloud with adults, they tend to be exposed to new words and their meanings while picking up grammar rules in the process. Children can fall in love with reading when they do it with trusted adults. The connection between feeling loved and hearing the written language equips the child with a solid foundation for literacy.
Nicole S. Ross is passionate about using stories in early childhood education. She wrote our Alphabet Book Series to help children fall in love with reading while learning the alphabet.
