What is the Science of Reading?
Reading is one of the most important skills for academic success and it is a skill that doesn’t come naturally. It must be taught to children directly and explicitly. What is the best way to teach reading? The consensus has changed over the years, with various thoughts and opinions on the matter. However, the science of reading includes decades of research that has identified the most effective approach for teaching children to read, which includes five components: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Let’s examine each component:
Phonemic Awareness
Phonemic awareness is the ability to notice and manipulate sounds in words. It includes identifying individual sounds, blending sounds to form words, removing sounds within words, and otherwise manipulating sounds. Phonemic awareness is a key foundation to reading, and it can be explicitly taught to children.
You can help develop your child’s phonemic awareness skills with sound and word games that you can play at home. For example, give your child two words, like cup and cat, and ask them to tell you the first sound they hear in both words. You can also work on ending sounds by presenting two words like sat and mit and ask them to tell you the final sound they hear in the words. Then focus on middle sounds by asking them what the middle sound is that they hear in cup, sit, and leg.
You can also work on blending, another component of phonemic awareness, by giving your child three sounds, like /m/, /a/ and /t/ and asking them what word is formed if they blend those sounds together. Additionally, try working on rhyming by asking them which words rhyme with bat, cut, peg, and so on.
If your child continues to struggle with phonemic awareness, you may want to consider multi-sensory tutoring for this skill, since it is crucial for reading success.
Phonics
Phonics is the relationship between letters and sounds. The science of reading tells us that teaching phonics directly, explicitly, and systematically is key to effective reading instruction. The Orton Gillingham method is an example of this type of systematic, direct approach to teaching phonics.
Children can start by learning individual letters, including the short vowels, and their corresponding sounds - then work on blending those sounds to form words. After practice and repetition with these letters and sounds, they can move onto learning how to read words containing blends, consonant digraphs, vowel digraphs, silent e patterns, r-controlled patterns, multi-syllabic words, and so on, all following a structured, sequential approach.
If your child struggles with phonics, they may benefit from Orton Gillingham tutoring to further develop this important skill.
Read more about Orton Gillingham tutoring at
https://eblcoaching.com/what-is-orton-gillingham-tutoring/
Fluency
Reading fluency involves reading with appropriate speed, accuracy, and expression. Fluent reading is important for comprehending the material a student is reading. Try this choral reading strategy to help your child develop stronger reading fluency skills:
1. Select a passage slightly below your child’s reading level.
2. Have them read the passage aloud to you one time as a cold read.
3. You read the same passage aloud to your child to model good reading fluency.
4. Your child reads the passage aloud with you and tries to keep up with your pace.
5. Your child reads the passage again as a final read. Compliment them on any improvement you note in their fluency!
Vocabulary
Vocabulary is an understanding of the meaning of words. It is an important skill in being able to comprehend material that one reads.
To help develop your child’s vocabulary skills, try integrating vocabulary work into your daily life. If you are grocery shopping with your child, for instance, use words like receipt, groceries, and discount, and explain to them what each term means. You can do the same when driving, watching a sports game, or setting up a bank account. Any excursion can include an opportunity for vocabulary development! Your child may also benefit from explicit tutoring in vocabulary if they continue to struggle with this skill.
Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension is the ability to process what one is reading. It involves all of the above skills combined: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, and vocabulary.
To help develop your child’s comprehension skills at home, ask them questions when you read to them. Instead of just reading a book and closing it when you are finished, ask questions as you read about the characters, story, and plot. You can even ask higher level comprehension questions involving making predictions and drawing conclusions. For example, as you read your child a book, ask questions like, “Why do you think that character was happy?”, “Why did he seem sad?”, or “What do you think might happen next in the story?”
The science of reading has identified the most effective way to teach children how to read, which includes the five elements described above. Help your child develop these skills at home, and if they continue to struggle, you may want to consider an Orton Gillingham tutor or multi-sensory tutoring in any of the areas above. With stronger reading skills, your child will be well on their way to school success.
Read more about the science of reading at
https://tntp.org/blog/what-is-the-science-of-reading-and-why-does-it-matter/
