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‘Reading is the gateway for children that makes all other learning possible.’ – Barack Obama
Multiple studies have shown that reading - and being read to - supports children’s academic and emotional development. It is one of the best activities you can do at home.
Earlier this week, our Primary English Team hosted a webinar entitled ‘Reading at Home’. We explored ways in which parents can support their children’s reading journey. You can view a recording of the webinar and slides here. In this article, we will summarise the webinar and give our top ten tips for nurturing a love of reading in your child.
A child who is read to for only 20 minutes a day is exposed to around two million additional words per year. If they read or hear just one book a day, they will have explored around 4,000 books by the end of primary school. Imagine the knowledge and insight your child will have gained from reading!
Reading is both a window and a mirror. A child in a busy city can experience the life of a family in an African village or in Ancient Rome. Additionally, stories help children understand and accept their own emotions. Simply put, exploring, sharing and discussing books benefits children’s development at any age and in every way.
For very young children, five minutes spent sharing a story may be enough. However, as your child moves up the primary school, building towards 20 minutes of reading a day is the goal. Some children, once they develop a love of books, may read for much longer! Reading at home can take three forms: reading to your child, reading with your child, and independent reading. Each provides numerous benefits.
In the early years, you will mostly be reading to your child as they begin to explore books, point to pictures they recognise, and repeat words and phrases from the story. As well as being a wonderful bonding experience, reading to your child builds listening skills, memory, vocabulary and understanding of concepts. However, it is important not to stop reading to your child once they can read independently. Older children love listening to stories just as much as younger ones do.
Once your child begins to decode words and phrases (and even before), they can read to you. The process of reading with your child involves listening to them read aloud and asking them questions. Getting children to describe pictures, make predictions, and remember details from the text are all proven strategies for helping your children understand texts. For older children, asking them to summarise information and answer ‘How’ and ‘Why’ questions help to develop deeper comprehension. Remember that reading with your child should not be a test. Patience and encouragement will make it a positive experience.
As your child develops as a reader, they are likely to spend more time reading silently by themselves. At this stage, they may still ask you for support with understanding difficult words and concepts, and independent reading still provides an excellent opportunity for discussion.
In school, our teachers and librarians support your children in choosing suitable and engaging books. To assist parents with selecting books, The Book Trust in the UK has compiled a list of the 100 best books for children aged 0 - 14, which you can view on this website. The availability of English language books in Vietnam has improved over recent years, with many titles available in bookshops such as FAHASA, or through online retailers like TIKI. Furthermore, difficult-to-find books can be downloaded in e-book format to the Kindle app through the Amazon website.
Mr John Lee and Ms Carli Holbrook, Primary English Leader
Joining BIS HCMC in Foundation Stage 2 (F2) is a fantastic age to begin a lifetime love for learning, encouraged and nurtured by our experienced and committed class and specialist teachers, who personalise learning unique to every child. We look back at what our F2s have experienced in less than one term already at BIS HCMC.