I Before E, Except After C: Easy Language Tips for Kids

As much as mathematics is a universal language, reading is a universal key that opens limitless doors. If a child can read and comprehend the material their life will be safer, richer, and filled with countless opportunities. An easy way for you to demonstrate the value of reading to your child is to allow your child see you read. Read the story on a cereal box, actually read the instruction sheet on the gizmo you just bought, or read street signs aloud as you walk with your child.

In my high school level Visual Production course, we covered advertising and news production during one semester of a communications class. In advertising we used the letters AIDCA to express the concept that first you must get a viewers Attention, then get their Interest, create a Desire for the product, provide product Credibility, then Activate the buyer to make the purchase. This AIDC is almost the same process an educator follows in order to reach students.

In broadcast news production we used the 5Ws and 1H that most people already know. Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How. The ability to read is fundamental to finding answers to questions and making the world larger than the local neighborhood. Unfortunately, far too many of my students not only had low reading and comprehension skills but low desire to look out the 'window' at what was happening throughout the rest of the world. Of course, the Middle East conflict and high gasoline prices were the exceptions to the rule. But, if an event wasn't on their iPods or favorite television shows, or affect their income it simply didn't matter to the student. Even my school's Knowledge Bowl competitions showed an alarming lack of world or even national awareness on the part of contestants. Early in my broadcast news course I had to focus the students' attention on the odd or 'groaner' type news stories such as stupid criminals or a tragedy to introduce them to the larger picture. Half of the problem is simple lack of curiosity and the other half is low reading skills. Or, more accurately, public embarrassment over their low reading skills. If you, as a parent, nurture your child's introduction to reading, then reading proficiency often grows as the reader's world grows.

Early language development and foundational pre-reading skills are extremely important in learning how to read, and again, like in math, you don't have to be a great reader to influence your child. Reading anything from cereal boxes to the television guide to instruction sheets are all great examples for your child to see. Reading is a learned skill and young child learn what they see. Your interaction with your very young child is a critical time for developing the language, word recognition, and beginning reading skills they will need after they leave your full time involvement. Don't stop reading once you stop reading them to sleep!

Educators have developed all manner of data, theories, and teaching styles to cope with the diversity in today's classrooms. Educators like to use very technical and professional sounding words when explaining educational concepts and teaching styles. A major research university in my home state has a Department of Education Reform. The people in this department pour over data wondering how to reform education. After all these years my overwhelming question is how have we, as a nation, allowed public education to become so inefficient that universities have entire departments committed to studying education reform and reducing remediation rates. After the years I have spent in the classroom, I see the simplest and surest road to systemic education reform as a return to meaningful and unpleasant consequences for discipline problems and teaching relevance in every subject area. Real reform should be based on classroom teachers' suggestions considered by policy makers without fear of litigation from entities who have absolutely no idea what goes on in the classroom.

Basic reading skills include oral language consisting of expressive and receptive language and related vocabulary development; phonological awareness, which is rhyming, blending, and segmenting; print awareness; and alphabetic knowledge.

Researchers suggest that with daily exposure and repeated opportunities to develop these foundational skills during early childhood, as few as five percent of children may suffer reading difficulties that hold them back in the classroom.

Once again, incorporating teachable moments that involve reading shouldn't be viewed as stressful and can often be a part of your daily routine. You are not only enriching your child's life you are building that parent-child bond.

You can easily create a written language and print-rich environments in which your child can learn by using the refrigerator as an art or story gallery. Use alphabet magnets to put one word a week on the door and have your child learn the individual letters as well as the word. Cold. Door. Drink. Food. Soda. Milk.

Be an example! Read something daily! When your child sees you reading, or better yet, read to them, he or she will likely become interested in wanting to read too. Children need to see that adults in their lives still has a love for reading even if it is only a comic book, sports magazine, cooking magazine, or book of the month club selection. Make reading relevant to the child by showing them we all have to read something everyday whether it is instructions to do our jobs correctly or deciding which TV show to watch. Explain the importance of reading safety instructions. Explain the importance of reading cooking instructions so the food comes out tasting like it should. Explain why reading the washing machine instructions lets your favorite shirt last longer.

Read aloud any chance you have while around your child. Read dramatically even if it something as 'Cook at 350 degrees for sixty minutes'! Read the same line again in a different tone of voice. Children love to hear their parents use funny or dramatic voices. Different kinds of voices bring words to life, especially when acting out characters in a favorite book. Encourage your child to use their own silly voices as they read. Together you can act out a story together. Get your young child involved in the story even if they can't identify the words yet. Allow them to turn pages. Have them point to different images or words on the page and say what the images or words are. Take your finger away from the page and see if they find the word on their own.

An inexpensive pressboard bookcase is a great addition to a child's room. It becomes a special place for his or her books. A personal bookcase shows your child that books are treasured in your home. Establish a special 'reading spot' in the child's room where he or she can only read books or magazines. In this special reading place there can be no ear buds for listening to music nor any electronic games. A beanbag chair, a stand light, and a tray for milk and cookies can make a fantastic special reading spot for your child.

Young children generally learn to read by putting together recognized letters that match the sounds that they remember hearing. Soon they learn how the letters and sounds work together to make words. When the two of you read together help your child learn new words by breaking up the word up then sounding it out. Always remember to praise your child when he or she works out a new word by himself or herself. You must not keep your child waiting for too long if they can't get a word by themselves. This only makes the child frustrated and frustration causes disinterest in the learning process. In the classroom, frustration causes disruptions affecting every other child in the class.

As your young learner grows, begin taking him or her to the library before you begin the habit of renting videos or games. If you begin filling those rainy days or nights with books, even audio books, instead of renting a video or a game you are giving your child a valuable head start toward thriving in the classroom.

When your child is old enough, allow them to get their own library card. Children thrill at the feeling of ownership and a library card is a great place to start. If you don't know the latest popular children's book, ask the librarian for age appropriate books so your child benefits from the experience with becoming frustrated by the material. As their parent, you know your child's likes and dislikes so guide the librarian to the topic but allow your child to choose the book.

If your child decides to read a story to you be patient and let him or her read aloud at their own pace, even if they're only pretending to read and are only looking at the pictures while making up the story. They are using their imagination and the words they already know. Children do this in the beginning when they have a limited vocabulary. Remember, you have made an impression on your child; they are mimicking you reading to them so be proud!

I know we can't escape the presence of the ubiquitous computer, which can be a useful aid in expanding a child's reading skills. I'm reluctant to urge using a computer because I see the results of too many parents leaving young children alone to fend for themselves playing on a computer. It is important that you remain in the same room while your child is on the computer, even a non-internet connected computer. The availability of the parent to share the reading experience or answer questions is a key element of learning, no matter how great the educational software is.

Please, never use the computer as an electronic babysitter. Television was the last generation's electronic babysitter; the computer should not become this generation's babysitter. And, never leave a child unattended with the internet if they are under thirteen. Once your child is web search savvy you can help them find internet sites with content that appeal to their personal interests.

As a teacher, I cannot tell you how often students will read an entire news story or chapter from the textbook yet have absolutely no clue as to what they just read or what information they should have retained. Even with detailed study guides they profess cluelessness! Often I find the students weren't using comprehension strategies because fundamental skills were never fully developed.

A great way to check and make sure that your child is comprehending what he or she has read is by stopping every few paragraphs and asking them key questions about the just finished passage. This will tell you what they are retaining and understanding. If they miss a plot point, go back and reread that section to show them what they missed or misunderstood. Be kind about their error, let the story demonstrate the correction rather than you embarrassing them for not catching it. If you have any extra time read the books your children read so you know the story inside and out.

Try to keep an open seat at the kitchen table where the child is welcome to work on projects while you tend to cooking or cleaning. Any room is good for this, but the kitchen seems to be the universal gathering place. So, let us focus on the kitchen for a moment. Whenever you and your child are working on a meal or dessert together have him or her read the directions. When cooking, read the ingredients or directions aloud together. If you've got the table cleared and are making a craft, have your young learner read the steps aloud as the two of you make the project.

Show your child that reading is a part of daily life. Subscribe to the daily newspaper and read at least one story from it aloud each day. A newspaper has comics, coupons, quips, puzzles, and so much more. Moreover, a newspaper can be held or passed around to share a puzzle or cartoon. Older children may enjoy the crossword puzzle or number games available in most dailies. The point is to make reading relevant to your child and a newspaper provides a new source of reading material everyday. A newspaper covers stories that are both relevant and curiosity builders. If your young learner likes to cook, discuss how reading the newspaper's weekly recipes section helps you discover new dishes to try out. If he or she likes sports, read the sports page and look for inspirational stories or quotes from famous coaches or players.

Use audio books on tape for long car rides. I know the License Plate Game, I Spy, the Sing-A-Long Game, and similar games have limited life spans on long road trips. Electronic diversions are great time passers but you are missing an opportunity to interact with a captive audience. But, as we too often allow, much of the trip is spent with the child self-absorbed in an electronic distraction that doesn't advance their learning skills.

Audio books can be paused for discussions or bathroom breaks. Have a rule that anyone can break in and stop the tape to tell how he or she would have done something differently, or how they would have escaped from the bad guys, or how they would have defeated the evil wizard or robot. Children and adults get to use their imagination while listening to a story on tape that has sound effects and different character voices. Have several stories available to choose from and be open to having a good time doing nothing but listening.

Numerous studies show that children who read at home are generally much more successful in the classroom than those who do not read before entering school. The easiest way to raise a child's grades, self-esteem, reading level, and his or her chance of success is to simply read with them a little bit every day. Not only will your child begin to feel like a better reader, he or she will become one. The extra benefit is that you have given your child the edge of self-sufficiency required for the typical classroom; or better yet, your child will be placed in a less chaotic Advanced Placement class.

The path to reading success begins with simply talking to your child. By the way, please don't do the baby talk thing. It is useless gibberish to both you and the baby and it confuses the infant delaying their recognition of real words. Speak softly using real words even if the words are poop or stinky diaper. Point at the baby and say their name. Point at the crib's mobile designs while saying their names aloud. Say the word bottle when feeding the infant. Softly and slowly tell your baby your dreams for their life as you wait for them to drift back to sleep.

As your infant becomes a toddler, and a reader, you will need to give your child a chance to choose his or her own books. A sense of ownership goes a long way toward allowing a child to put his or her full, heartfelt effort into any task. If your toddler chooses a book that is too long to hold his or her attention, read some, then stop to discuss how the pictures show part of the story. Just be prepared to read certain passages or whole stories again and again. Your very young learner enjoys repetition. Repetition helps a child become familiar with the way stories are organized. Stories have a beginning, middle, and end; just like movies and television shows. Stories are often a child's first exposure to this concept of structure.

As stated earlier, a parent's responsibility goes beyond merely providing food, clothing, and shelter. It is up to the parent to provide a variety of life enriching experiences.

You can take your child to the local zoo and read the exhibit names and species information. At the city park you can read the story on the local monument. Teach your child the names of animals, flowers, trees, rocks, playground equipment, anything that captures your child's attention. To show the relevance of reading your child must understand the words encountered during reading and connect the words with the objects they stand for.

I need to emphasize that most of the reading we've talked about is aloud. I know we often tell a bothersome child, "Read it to yourself while I work. You can tell me about it after my show. Mommy's on the phone, read silently." Reading time should be out loud and shared. Just a few adjustments in your routine will benefit your child in so many ways. Reading isn't quite as high as math is on most adult's aversion scale but how often does an average adult read out loud anymore? Skilled reading requires the integration of several skills and abilities and these skills will be very important in the classroom. For the young learner speaking or sounding out words is critical.

A person cannot learn to read an alphabetic language like English, unless they understand that the words you hear contain smaller sounds within called phonemes. Phonemes cannot actually be "heard" by the ear because when we speak the sounds each syllable of the whole word are folded into one sound allowing rapid communication. So, for example, when speaking the word /cat/, the ear hears one sound, not three as in /c/ /a/ /t/. Problem readers must be taught phoneme awareness if it does not come easily to them. I know this is too technical for the average non-teacher. This is where the professional teacher takes over from the parent. This is what teachers have been trained to do.

Understanding that spoken words are made up of phonemes is critical because in beginning reading, new words are reasoned out by sounding phonemes to the letter symbols. After children learn how to apply the correct sounds to specific letter symbols reading becomes easier and more enjoyable. As a parent you don't really need to understand that the process of reading requires phoneme awareness, phonics, reading fluency, and comprehension skills. These are core principles teachers are trained in so they may teach their pupils. All you need to know is that each of these skills is necessary and not one skill alone can present the whole essence of the written word. Each of these skills can be easily integrated into daily life, and made relevant to the young learner through consistent and daily usage.

Starting your child reading early also will allow you to discover any reading problems early enough to address the problems before your child enters the classroom. Reading problems do not magically disappear with time, it takes work and commitment to correct reading problems. The earlier a poor reader receives help, the more likely he or she will become a proficient reader. Make sure your children receive necessary help from teachers, tutors, or professional learning centers as soon as you discover a problem. To help your children improve their reading, use used books, computer programs, books-on-tape, and other materials available in learning supply stores. Games are especially good choices because they let children have fun as they work on their skills. Show enthusiasm for your children's reading. Your reaction has a great influence on how hard they will try to become good readers. Be sure to give them genuine praise for their efforts.

The bottom line is that reading is fundamental to success in so many areas in and out of the classroom. If your child has reading and comprehension skills by the time they enter Pre-school or the First Grade your child has an advantage so many other children do not have. If your child enjoys reading then they can continue reading, and learning, while the classroom teacher deals with issues of student misbehavior and other common interruptions. I can assure you, it is a joy to hear your young student come home and tell you what they learned in class today rather than tell you what the class clown or class thug did in class today.