Why should I read?

Reading is the most important educational skill any child can have. Throughout history and across many cultures, to be able to read is to be educated. Furthermore, to access a school curriculum, the child’s functional reading ability should be at least at the same level as their chronological age. “Benefits include an increased breadth of vocabulary, pleasure in reading in later life, a better understanding of other cultures, better general knowledge and even a greater insight into human nature.” (Reading for Pleasure, a research overview, National Literacy Trust 2006)

Good schools have a coherent policy on reading for all pupils, such as ‘drop everything and read’ lessons, support for weaker readers including shared reading and additional individual sessions, and reading aloud by teachers to children as often as possible.  “In successful schools teachers read, talk with enthusiasm and recommend books, the results of which are seen not only in test results but also in an enthusiasm for reading which extends beyond the classroom.” (OFSTED, Excellence in English 2011).

In terms of rankings across the globe, children who read more for pleasure are the ones who achieve significantly better than their peers. Furthermore reading ability in the primary school is the highest indicator of success in public examinations, according to research carried out by the Institute of Education at the University of London.  This is true across all subjects, and true regardless of the social or economic group of the families involved. It is also clear that maths and science cannot be taught effectively if reading ability at the appropriate level is limited. Human beings think using language, and information is generated, stored and communicated in written forms as a matter of course in schools, therefore without good reading ability, managing independently as soon as possible, success in written school subjects will be severely hampered.  

All of this is unequivocal – if children can read well they will do well. Thus at Notre Dame, the focus on reading has been highlighted by a number of regular initiatives reflective of the research findings above, and by occasional events such as World Book Day.

Reading aloud to the child is one strategy that has been demonstrated through research as particularly useful. This should go on for as many years as possible, certainly throughout the prep years, but probably into secondary. The School Library Association, at the cutting edge of reading research, highlights the fact that reading aloud to children at the end of the day goes far beyond entertainment. “It is the most effective means of enabling children to become confident, motivated readers.” (Prue Goodwin, University of Reading).

Much of what children learn is what they experience from us. Therefore we need to be critically aware that we must model reading behaviour as often as possible. Sending a child to bed to read, without your interest or support, will make it appear something unimportant and unworthy of sharing. Additionally, although we all enjoy reading for pleasure at the end of a day, a child may be worn out, and it is not a great time for a learning challenge – reading at the end of the day should be strictly an extra pleasure. For tired children listening to a parent reading is a deeply personal and pleasurable bonding experience, worth fitting in as often as possible.

Do not be fooled by a lively reading expression. Your child will learn to do this very early on, with no regard to the content. Words may be skipped, invented or changed, and you will never know because they sound bright and aware. Sharing the text is vital, and so is discussing with the child what they have read. Teachers are all too familiar with competent well expressed decoding from the children, without any apparent understanding of the context, the plot, or the content. On more than one occasion a child has said to me that she didn’t know what was happening in the story, because she wasn’t listening as she was reading.  The Rose Report in 2006 (National Report on success in the curriculum) called it ‘barking at print’ when decoding phonics cannot help the child sufficiently unravel the meaning of a piece of writing.  This lack of understanding of the written word becomes particularly tricky when it relates to school activities such as comprehension, research or maths problem solving. Success is impossible if the child cannot read, interpret, internalise and respond. Unfortunately it is very common for children to be pushed too fast through reading schemes in a competitive way, which means they are never allowed to develop skills and vocabulary at their own pace. This is the same as building without foundations. Most children will flounder if they are not encouraged to make reading part of a daily routine. Similarly they may well be mystified why they are doing badly in class when they are working as hard as they can, without realising that the tools they have at their disposal simply aren’t fit for the job.

What schools are doing to help:

• ·         Weekly lessons of reading in class
• ·         Weekly visits to the library
• ·         Library at lunchtime club
• ·         Class readers for shared reading aloud
• ·         Teachers reading to the classes weekly
• ·         Accelerated reader programme to motivate and support most and least able readers in the Juniors
• ·         Regular testing and monitoring to ensure reading progress
• ·         Personal encouragement by teachers and the librarian, to develop reading choices and interest in different genres
• ·         Individual reading sessions at least weekly throughout Pre-prep and lower juniors
• ·         Reading for pleasure promotional activities such as theme days and author visits
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What you can do to help:

• ·         Promote and highlight reading through modelling your own reading behaviour
• ·         Read aloud to your child as often as possible
• ·         Share the reading books that your child brings home without distraction
• ·         Place the focus on reading for pleasure, not on attaining the next level
• ·         Try to choose books of the right interest level, avoiding anything that will put your child off (use retold classics, not originals)
• ·         Visit the local library regularly and make use of their holiday activities
• ·         Let your child choose her own books alongside ones she is given or recommended
• ·         Don’t be afraid of big print books, picture books and comics – these are all valid reading materials and all extend ability (for reluctant readers these are particularly useful)
• ·         Make reading a regular part of daily life, not an extended session once a week
• ·         Use the holidays as a focus time for more reading activities
• ·         E-readers, iPads and Kindles are great for presenting books for some children, but try to mix and match. Handling beautiful books is a pleasure to be shared.

 Happy reading!