Early reading is the basis for children to love reading and become lifelong learners. The interviewee, Dr., is an expert in child development. He said that the earlier you start reading, the better. Parents play an important role in cultivating children's reading habits. The choice of reading materials should be based on children's age, interests and their own characteristics, with diverse themes, lively and interesting content and moderate difficulty.
Early reading is not the same as literacy. The interviewee, Ph.D., a researcher at the Child Development Research Center of the National Institute of Education of Nanyang Technological University, said that the concept of early reading first appeared in the 1960s.
Respondents suggested that books should be shared with the baby from birth, and adults should strive to read with the baby every day.
Respondents said: "Another name for morning reading is reading bud. It refers to some abilities and knowledge related to reading and writing, such as the concept of printed words, sensitivity to pronunciation, etc. Before children formally learn to read and write independently, they sprout like buds. These abilities are the predecessors of literacy, so early reading is not the same as literacy, but reading to children and reading with them. "
Parents often ask, how old does the so-called "early reading" mean to start reading? Respondents said: "In fact, it is never too late to start reading with children.
However, the interviewee also pointed out: "The research on developing cognitive neuroscience has long shown that it is a very good prenatal education for parents to read to their pregnant babies during pregnancy. After the baby is born, adults can often interact with children through books, which can subtly cultivate children's good reading habits. However, if you can't start early reading in these stages, parents don't have to worry too much about their children losing at the starting line. As long as you realize the importance of reading with your children, it is never too late to put it into action in a planned way and persevere. "
The Importance and Benefits of Early Reading
When talking about the importance and benefits of early reading, the interviewee said: "A lot of scientific research shows that children's reading and writing ability did not begin to develop until they entered primary school, but began to sprout in early childhood. If in early childhood, adults can introduce reading into children's lives and let children enjoy reading, which will help children develop vocabulary, oral expression and understanding. Many follow-up surveys show that these early interests and abilities are closely related to children's future reading ability and learning ability. In the long run, it will also promote children's development in employment and physical and mental health. It is no exaggeration to say that reading is the basis of learning, and early reading is the basis for children to fall in love with reading and become lifelong learners. "
Respondents also analyzed that early reading has many benefits. First, reading with children often can help children establish reading habits. Secondly, by reading with adults, children will gradually understand the relationship between the pictures and symbols in the book and the real world, thus opening the door to the outside world with the help of books. This process can be said to be a preliminary learning process.
In addition, the interviewee said: "Reading with children is a kind of high-quality parent-child interaction. Talking about the world in the book can make parents and children have more exchanges in language, knowledge and feelings. Children will feel the care of their parents, which is very conducive to stimulating children's love for reading and their desire to learn languages, thus developing children's language skills. "
Create a reading environment for infants and young children
In order for children to achieve the effect of early reading, parents should create a reading environment from their infancy. Respondents pointed out: "Simply put, it is to make reading a part of their lives."
She suggested sharing books with the baby from the moment he/she was born, and striving for adults to accompany the baby to study every day. She said: "Find a quiet place, hold the baby in your arms and read some books or pictures together. It should be noted that the position of the book is as high as the baby's eyes, not too far away. When the children are older, you can take them to the library or bookstore every week. Of course, it is also necessary to create a book corner for children at home, so that children can easily contact books and establish feelings with them more easily. Equally important, if the adults around the children also love reading, the children will also be exposed. "
Respondents also pointed out that the most common reading material for early reading is picture books. But the common misunderstanding is that adults think that picture books are very simple, and children can just flip through them themselves.
She said: "Although children can understand the meaning of pictures through vision, it is not easy to read the content expressed by pictures independently and accurately. If parents can read picture books with their children, they can use dialogue and other reading methods to gamify the contents of the books and help children understand them, which will greatly improve their reading quality. "
Choose different reading materials at different ages.
Experts believe that parents are the best teachers to guide children to read. However, some surveys also found that most parents think that they lack correct guidance methods. Respondents believe that when choosing early reading materials, it is necessary to focus on children's age, interests and their own characteristics, with diverse themes, lively and interesting content and moderate difficulty, in order to attract children to read.
For example, the interviewee said, "For example, babies as young as three or four months old are suitable for reading picture books or pictures with black and white as the main color and specific patterns such as stripes and chessboards, because they can't distinguish color from black and white. After half a year old, you can get in touch with some color picture books that are close to life, such as toys, food, people and animals. The pictures on each page should not be too complicated, or too many details will make the baby at a loss. 1 After 2 years old, you can introduce simple story books, natural science picture books, children's songs and nursery rhymes to expose your baby to various themes. Materials should be durable materials, such as cloth books and hard books, which can withstand biting, pulling and shaking. Babies aged 2 ~ 3 can start to contact some story books with simple plots but clear beginning, middle and end. If you are older, you can choose a series of books to let your baby compare the stories of the same person in different situations.
When it comes to reading, parents may also think of listening to audio. So, can listening to audio take the place of reading?
Respondents said: "Listening to audio and parent-child reading are two different reading activities. The advantage of listening to audio is standard pronunciation and easy operation. When parents are not around, or for some familiar books, listening to audio is a useful supplement. "
However, respondents also pointed out the disadvantages of listening to audio: "Listening to audio is passive, lacking opportunities for interaction, and the reading rhythm is difficult to control. When parents and children are reading, the baby can not only enjoy the company of parents, but also control the pace of reading by turning pages and asking questions, and can stop to discuss with parents at any time. For this, listening to audio has certain limitations. "
Respondents also suggested: "For babies, parents' voices are the most beautiful. You can record the sound of parents and children reading and make a unique audio. "