Category Archives: reading readiness.

Sometimes we think vocabulary words are the kinds  found in good literature, words like “evade,” “grandeur” and “prescient.”

But many times the words children must learn are the basic words and phrases of the subjects they learn in school, words like “remainder,” “summarize” and “find the function of.”

When children are in pre-K they are taught words like “thicker than,” “thinner than,” “shorter than,” and “taller than.”  We parents and teachers take the time to instruct about these terms and then to quiz the children informally to be sure they understand.

But as children age, some terms fall through the cracks.  The third grade teacher assumes that the second grade teacher has taught words related to subtraction, such as “difference” and “minus.”  And the second grade teacher probably has.  But what if a child was sick that day, or was distracted, or was moving from one school to another?

I was reminded of this when the mother of a middle schooler told me her son was having trouble figuring out some math terms, including “at most,” “at least,” “no more than,” “no fewer than,” “maximum,” “minimum” and “below.”

Her remarks reminded me of my own trouble learning what “function” meant in my algebra class.  Whatever my teacher said didn’t help me, and for weeks I was confounded by that word.

How can we help our children learn the vocabulary basic to the subjects they are studying in school?

• When a child starts a new learning skill, such a multiplication, or a new unit, such as erosion, teach the vocabulary the child will need to know. Page through the child’s text to see what words are used.  Then quiz the child on the vocabulary, both informally and formally.  Make definitions part of subject matter testing.  Be sure to use domain-specific words, such as “factor” and “water cycle” as well as informal words.

• Regularly review  vocabulary in a field of study. You could offer a “spelling” bee reviewing definitions of volcanic terms, such as lava, molten, intrusive, extrusive, ring of fire and magma.  You could play a BINGO game based on figures of speech, such as simile, metaphor, hyperbole and personification.

• Ask students to create dictionaries of terms they need to know in order to talk about a subject. Instruct students to read their dictionaries for two minutes before each day’s instruction on that topic.

• Give pretests which include definitions.

• Be aware of students who are absent when you teach vocabulary and give them private lessons or ask an advanced student to catch the laggard up.

• In emails home to parents, name new words the child needs to know and ask parents to discuss these words to reinforce them.

One of the key skills in reading well is learning and remembering vocabulary.

Creating mind webs (also called spider webs and concept maps) is a great way to increase comprehension for child readers.  Mind webs should be created while the child is reading.  Details can be added after each paragraph if the paragraph is rich in detail.  Or they can be added after a page or a chapter.  The length of the reading can determine how often the student adds to the mind web.

How does this strategy work?

• First, on a piece of notebook paper, the child writes the topic in the center and encircles it. For a child not used to this strategy, an adult might draw three or four “spokes” from the center, and at the end of each spoke, write an idea that the child should note while reading.  For example, if a child is reading a biography about George Washington, one spoke might be labeled “childhood” or “education.”  Another might be labeled “family.”  Another could be called “soldier” or “general.”  And the last might be called “President.”

• After the ideas are determined, the child begins reading. As he reads about Washington’s family, the child might write down the names of important family members, what happened to them, or how they influenced him.  For example, Washington’s father died when he was a child.  His older brother cared for him, but then Washington had to care for his brother when he became sick.  Next to “President,” the child could write the year Washington became president, people who helped him, why he was an important president.

• Sometimes details in one category connect to details in other categories. Students can show this by drawing lines to connect the details.  For example, when he was a soldier, Washington hired Alexander Hamilton to be his aide.  Later he picked Hamilton to be a helper when he was President.

For reluctant readers, a parent or teacher might need to work one-on-one, helping the child to create the mind web.  For a group, the teacher could model the concept by drawing a mind web on the board or on a computer whose image is projected, and by jotting down suggestions from students.

Sometimes children will write laundry lists of facts on a mind web.  A parent or teacher should probe about those facts and encourage the child to detail why each fact is important.  It is better to have fewer subdivisions but more details for each one than a long list without details.  Why was one of Washington’s helpers Hamilton?  Why was Washington’s work as a soldier when he was 21 important later on?

To reinforce the comprehension, the students could write one or more paragraphs, using the mind web for information.

Mind webs can aid reading comprehension in any subject.  They help children organize information and see connections.  Because they are informally drawn and can be added to at any time, they can enlarge as the child’s knowledge enlarges.

Audio books, also called books on tape, are a great way for busy adults to “read.”  Pop one in your car CD player for a long commute.  Listen while you make dinner or wait through a long soccer practice.

But are they good for your young children?  Yes and No.

• Yes, if you speak English with an accent and want your child read to by native English speakers.
• Yes, if you want to encourage reading but you are too busy making dinner or bathing the baby to read to your preschooler.
• Yes, if you are looking for an educational alternative to video games, electronic games or TV.
• Yes, if your child is a beginning reader or a poor reader who could benefit from hearing the same book read multiple times while reading along.
• Yes, if you need a bedtime ritual for your child which doesn’t involve you or which takes the place of you when you work late or travel.

But sometimes video books are not a good choice.

• No, if you think video books can take the place of your reading to your child on a regular basis.
• No, if your child has questions, or wants to pause to look longer at the pictures.
• No, if the pacing of the book is too fast for the child, or the language too advanced, or the themes too mature.
• No, if you hope your struggling reader will read along rather than merely listen to the voice on the machine.
• No, if the background music, sound effects or dramatic flair of the reader grate on your child’s nerves.

I have been in classrooms where some children listen intently to audio books while others tune out.  If your child is struggling to read or is generally restless, you might need to join him while he listens to audio books to keep him focused.

Audio books isolate a child.  Children learn better when they have a strong positive emotional connection to the learning process.  When a parent reads to a child, cuddling, answering her questions, pausing until she is ready to move on, explaining new words, roaring with wild thing noises or laughing at a cat in a hat, the child engages and learns to a greater degree than is possible with audio books.

Audio books can work well to supplement, but they cannot replace your reading to your child.