Conversation
Posted by bookend on March 26, 2007
While I will never say “don’t read to a child”, I would like to expand the directive to include “talk to your child.” I work with students from age 4 to 14. I am always brought up short in their inability to carry on a conversation on a topic or in an interactive exchange. They listen, rarely question, and move on. Hence my word of encouragement to parents and teachers is to converse with the child. Listen to what they say, how they say it, and what they don’t say. Then prod and encourage their framing of a question about something not clear in their thinking.
I am convinced from my observations that some of the so called phonics difficulties lie in the child never having heard the word or not having the word in his active vocabulary. It is almost impossible for me to read a word I haven’t heard and have no idea of meaning. There is no peg of previous knowledge or experience to hang this new idea on. The advice is to talk with your child in a two-way conversation and find out what they are thinking. Have the child struggle a bit with putting their thoughts into words. It is through this struggle that they grow in understanding. Asking questions can help them think in new directions. But even greater gain can be acheived if the child hears a great variety of words (vocabulary) in many different contexts and accents. Children will speak and read words which they have heard. If you hear your child speaking in ways that are unfamiliar to you, find out who they have been listening to. If your child has difficulty decoding a particular word, ask yourself when was the last time that word was used in conversation with the child. When the student brings home a list of sight words to learn, spelling words to practice, or vocabulary words for word study, take a couple of the words and try to weave them into your conversation with the child. Your help is priceless.
I am particularly aware of this when I read with the K4’s or K5’s. We examine such words as “liar,” “rotten,” “trust,” “plow,” and many many more. I am truly amazed at how much the little ones do know and equally amazed at how they can express their understanding.
Turn off the TV and have a conversation between family memebers. You will be undergirding the reading writing ability of your student.
