Showing posts with label Reading Magic. Show all posts
Reading Aloud: Start From Birth
 |
| image source |
Fox points out that the subject matter does not matter for babies. Just read. She also says children will sit still better for books if read to from a young age (34).
I have read to all of my children from birth. I really, really believe in it. My three oldest children (7, 5, and 3) are old enough I can see some benefit from my efforts. I can especially see it in my 7 year old who can read independently and absolutely loves it. He loves to read chapter books, and I love for him to read chapter books. I love when he asks me for just a few more minutes of reading time. Love it. This love of reading has always been my goal.
I also believe in reading to children from baby stage because my parents did it to me and I love to read. That is why I did it with my children even though I didn't read a book on reading to children aloud until Brayden was 3-4 years old. I believe the ability to read gives you so much power in life. I can learn whatever I want to learn.
As for sitting still, my children do sit still, but I know I have heard from some of you who report reading from birth and still having a wiggly child who doesn't want to sit still during reading time. Hang in there! The difficulty with parenting is that it isn't done in a vacuum. You can't know how your child would be if you didn't read consistently. My sincere guess is your child does sit still better than he would otherwise, just like Fox says. Keep up your efforts and you will see progress over time.
Related Posts/Blog Labels:
Related Posts/Blog Labels:
Reading Problems: Prevention is Key
 |
| Mem Fox reading to children |
The idea of prevention being ideal makes sense to me. That is a trend we see common in everything from parenting, to dog training, to weeds. The natural question is then how do you prevent?
You read to your children. Fox recommends three books a day--one favorite, one familiar, and one new (but that the same story three times in a row is okay, too). She says a child needs to have been read 1000 books before he/she can learn to read. That might sound like a lot, but if you do the math, that is three books a day for just over 333 days, so you could easily say a year of reading three books a day to your child and your child will be ready to learn to read.
Fox also cautions against using television as a replacement for books.
So it is pretty simple, just like she said. Easy to prevent. Read to your child daily and don't let television replace reading time. I think we can all manage that!
Related Posts/Blog Labels:
Related Posts/Blog Labels:
Reading to Children: What and When
Mem Fox feels strongly about the power of reading. She even believes many (if not all) children can learn to read simply by being read to--no training necessary. Her own daughter learned to read without being taught, and Fox attributes that to reading aloud to her (see chapter one).
Something great about Fox is she gives parents many specific guidelines for reading to children.
What to Read
As you saw in the beginning quote, Fox advocates reading three books a day to a child. She says ideally, you will read one favorite story, one familiar story, and one new story--although the same story three times in a row is okay, too (page 17). You of course don't need to limit yourself nor your child to three stories a day--three is your minimum.
When to Read
She also encourages parents to read anytime and all the time (page 34), but she also highly advocates having reading happen before bedtime. She goes so far as to say reading MUST happen at bedtime (page 36). The things learned just before bedtime are processed over and over again in the night, so any new vocabulary words or lessons learned from the stories read will solidify in your child's brain best if read just before bedtime.
Conclusion
I have commented before, but Reading Magic is a great, fast read for parents who want to get more information on why reading is important and is full of ideas on how to read to children (that post coming). Mem Fox is great at giving specific ideas to work with.
Related Blog Labels:
Related Blog Labels:
How to Make Reading Enjoyable {And Why You Should}
Let's be real here. Sometimes we would rather just put our child in bed than spend 30 minutes reading stories to our child first. That means we are anxious through the reading rather than happy. We might even get grumpy when our children ask for stories to read at bedtime. It takes time and effort to read. I think a key here is to make sure we start our bedtime routine with plenty of time to read our books so we don't feel rushed or stressed about it.
Another idea, if you really hate reading at bedtime, is to have a time of day earlier in the day when you do reading.
Another idea, if you really hate reading at bedtime, is to have a time of day earlier in the day when you do reading.
Just how do we make it something we love as much as [insert guilty pleasure here]? One idea I have is to have books in your home you are interested in reading. Another idea is to really take a moment to think about how quickly this time will pass that your child will love to cuddle up with you to read a book. Another idea is to have a nice, comfortable spot for you to read together. Think about what you like about this reading time and really grasp that and treasure it.
How do you choose books? Fox points out that important elements to reading to your young child are rhyme, rhythm, and repetition (page 7). Choose books with these elements to make sure it is something the young child will be interested in.
Fox suggests reading very expressively. Cuddle up with your child in the reading spot. Be engaging and praise your child for her participation (pages 8-9). You might feel silly doing voices, but your child will only delight in it. Children are fantastic audiences! Make reading fun for both of you and it can be a time you both treasure!
Related Posts/Blog Labels:
Related Posts/Blog Labels:
Book Recommendation: Reading Magic
Reading Magic
by Mem Fox is another book dedicated to helping parents instill literacy in our children. Mem Fox is from Australia. She is currently a literacy consultant in several countries.
by Mem Fox is another book dedicated to helping parents instill literacy in our children. Mem Fox is from Australia. She is currently a literacy consultant in several countries. This book is similar in purpose to The Read Aloud Handbook
. Fox even references The Read Aloud Handbook in Reading Magic (Reading Magic is actually dedicated to Jim Trelease). The point of Reading Magic is to teach parents why and how to read aloud to their children. I would call this a "light" version of The Read Aloud Handbook. Fox does not include the studies behind her information. It is a fast and easy read. It is lighthearted and fun. She has information on why you read aloud, and then lots of information on how (how often, when, getting the most out of it, how to read out loud effectively, etc.).
. Fox even references The Read Aloud Handbook in Reading Magic (Reading Magic is actually dedicated to Jim Trelease). The point of Reading Magic is to teach parents why and how to read aloud to their children. I would call this a "light" version of The Read Aloud Handbook. Fox does not include the studies behind her information. It is a fast and easy read. It is lighthearted and fun. She has information on why you read aloud, and then lots of information on how (how often, when, getting the most out of it, how to read out loud effectively, etc.). This is a great read that won't take you long at all. It has some extra ideas on reading aloud. One focus of Fox is how to make it really fun and enjoyable for parent and child. Fox studied drama in school and also taught drama for 28 years, so part of her coaching in this book is how to be an interesting out-loud reader.
Pick this one up. I think you will find it enjoyable.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
