Childrens Reading Habits and Skill

If you are categorized in Generation Xennials, then you will know the differences in habits when you are a child or adolescent with the habits of today’s children and adolescents known as Millennials and Generation Z. These differences are indeed comprehensive and more complex at a level of environment smaller than what we can think, perhaps because global cultural spread and exchange can occur in a relatively short period with ease social technology that is advancing rapidly.

One of them is reading habits, especially in children and adolescents. When we childs, and adolescence, the word “reading” was always related to texts printed on various types of books, magazines, newspapers, comics, and other physical print media, then the word “reading” today does not always have to be related to all these things. When we are a child I, and probably some of you, used to read a wide variety of fabled fairy tales or short stories from magazines and books that we encountered either at home, school, or in bookstores.

But our children now know the content of the same fairy tale they don’t always have to open books in libraries or bookstores, they just need less effort than we used to, either by hearing (audio-book) or equipped with visuals (video-book) or reading text but in digital format (e-book). What’s the difference? There is no difference in terms of the content of the story that can be known but there are big differences in the culture and methods that can be done.

Reading requires the process of interaction of the senses mainly of sight with the object being read then the memory of the brain processes and infers the object, as is commonly known the blind person can be said to read the object by reading written in braille letters through the help of the sense of touch. This means that this process of reading is a deliberate and conscious process such as determining the object of reading and focusing our senses to process it in the memory of the brain, such as seeing or palpation. Unlike audio, our ears are constantly interacting with sound waves coming from different directions both consciously and unconsciously. Then we may need to think about the difference between “HEAR” and “LISTENING” to be able to align with our discussion “READING”.

Writing Skill Beside Reading Skill

Writing in question is writing letters or numbers on physical media, not writing in the sense of compiling writing into books or scientific papers, right? Writing is the output of the verbal process of the brain that writes on papers or any medium. Normally writing today can be done in various ways, conventionally using ink or pencil on paper, typing with fingers on a typewriter, laptop/computer for later printing, or even through the help of “speech to text” technology where you only need to talk to a computer and they automatically compose the text, so even people with disabilities can write/type on a computer or laptop.

Write first or reading first which is more urgent for children?

If asked about the ability to write or read first, which is more important to teach for children? The answer is both writing and reading must be at the same time, even though writing can be taught later because writing like drawing requires habituation of the muscles and fine motor nerves of the fingers while teaching reading can be done more easily and earlier because, at the age of under 6 years, children are very interested in the various objects they see, and therefore reading is the main and initial ability that is taught first when writing It can be taught after children have muscles and nerves that are accustomed to holding a pencil/pen.

Developing Good Reading Habit Among Young Learners

Reading among kids, and young learners nowadays is rare sights, unlike before learners had enough time to be occupied with a storybook, magazine or pocketbook, and the like.

Today, our youngsters are busy with their gadgets, games or whatever app they have on their cellphones. Even though their gadget may be use as a private library that contains books and electronic reading material, rarely do parents who do what applications need to be guided by their children.

Theses, of course, reflects the kind of readers we have in school and at home. Slow readers and poor comprehenders are just worse effects of not having the habit of reading among kids developed at a younger age. Add to that the difficulty they encounter in spelling out the word correctly, the inability to make a complete sentence, and so on.

With these myriad problems or say challenges our kids are facing, there is always a time-tested strategy that is, of course, doable. Developing the good habit of reading among our kids is timely and vital to their learning successes. Parents must do something toward encouraging their kids the habit of reading.

Developing Reading Habit Earlier

For any child to become a good learner and develop a healthy learning attitude, he or she must be able to develop an interest in reading from an early age. This is when the role of the parents becomes crucial. Parents should embark on the task of encouraging their children to read more in more creative ways from an early age.

Promote Reading Habits at Home

A few tips for parents to Promote reading habits at home:

1. Choose a specific and convenient time to read to your child. This could be just before a meal or at bedtime.

2. Instill a habit of the whole family reading together.

3. Make the spot for reading a comfortable one, for example, you could pile up a few pillows on the floor.

4. Let the child select the book for reading.

5. Hold the book in such a manner that the child can see the pictures and let the child take the initiative in turning the pages.

6. Make sure to discuss and explain the pictures and characters from the book.

7. Prompt your child to point out letters, shapes, colors, and animals.

8. Encourage your child to read to you and read out loud. If the child is a preschooler, initiate a method wherein the child is allowed to interpret the story using his imagination.

And here are some activities that can be tried to Make children learn reading skill and in the same time tightening relationships with parents

Benefits of Reading Aloud

Reading aloud to the children and letting them see the parents actively involved in reading is perhaps the best way to get the children interested. Most children love being read to. Beyond reading, the children feel that the parents care for them and feel appreciated and cared for. This helps them to associate reading with ‘happy’ moments. Parents could use ‘read-along’ format-based audio cassettes.

Using Playtime to Encourage Reading

Most children react best to learning when they are playing. They look upon this approach more positively rather than being ‘instructed’.Parents can involve the child in lots of daily activities and conversations which help to develop his literary and reading skills.

Talk to the child while playing

This could be about the spellings of things he loves to pay with. Later on, the child should be encouraged to read about that particular thing from a children’s encyclopedia. These days, encyclopedias for children as young as four are available.

Using Daily Activities for Learning

Ordinary daily activities can also be an occasion for learning. For example, recognizing commercial signs and logos while out walking or driving is one of the first steps in learning to read.

A common trip to the nearby mall or a grocery store can be used to this effect. Encourage the child to talk about the things he observes there. Ask him to make simple, small sentences about these things. Discuss the various colors and shapes of the various goods on display.

Introduce them to reading skills.

Here are tips so that kids can have a chance to learn some reading skills.

1. Make sure there is a reading book at home. Varied books, magazines, newspapers, etc must be there on shelves, and let kids read them. Encyclopedia, a big dictionary, if you have some, must be used by kids; not just display materials. Books are meant to be read, and not to be a bragging thing in your house.

2. Show them you are into reading. Yes, actions speak louder than words. If kids see you read, they would be encouraged to read.

3. Have a reading time together. Family reading together is a sight to behold. Instead of watching television, why not have reading time once or twice a week? Yes, let this be a pearl of wisdom for parents out there to make time reading together with their kids.

4. Buy books for them, er bring them with you to a bookstore. Yes, a trip to a bookstore once a month is a good reading boost for your kids. Not only they will have more fascination with books, but also they will be curious to see different kinds of books.

5. When you read newspapers, make sure they also know the latest news, trends, and so on. A little conversation with them about what’s new in science, politics, etc could boost their reading habit to maximum learning. Yes, having this kind of bonding moment will be a fun and meaningful learning experience for them.

6. Read to them. Having these kinds of bonding moments could establish a positive relationship with your kids. Yes, this becomes moments to remember when they are old and you are no longer with them.

7. Invite a guest reader to your house. Yes, relatives or what could be a fun and meaningful experience for kids. Developing social and personal skills could be had through this simple yet impactful learning experience for young learners.

8. If kids have reading difficulties, there are lots of learning resources around: YouTube, websites and school portals for learning are within reach. What one needs is time and creativity to have these learning hubs, portals or what be instruments for effective learning quests.

So there you have it. With these, your kid’s reading journey would be fun and meaningful, and someday they will be writers and speakers – with substance.

Let our young learners be more curious about books, stories, and all things around them. Curiosity is the beginning of learning. Make curiosity your ally to encourage them toward self-learning through reading. Yes, it is more fun and meaningful when done right, at home.