The Importance of Early Reading

Your first child is one of the best things to happen to you. You and your spouse have been waiting and waiting, and the newborn is finally here! You have everything ready, the baby’s room, clothes and accessories, all the things that are necessary to keep your baby safe, warm and healthy.

As the baby grows, you take them to the doctor to monitor their health as they grow. You worry about every little cry or change in schedule. Even at this age, you worry about where they are going to go to school or what they are going to grow up to be. But are you also worried about how your child will be able to handle all the obstacles and situations that will confront them as they grow?

One of those obstacles is one that most parents don’t worry about. That obstacle is the ability to read. Surprised? But, you think, all children learn to read, and they will be more proficient once they get into school. Well, more surprises are coming. School is not always the best place for children to learn to read. If they are not reading at a basic level by the time they enter school, then it’s quite possible that they may never get caught up.

Modern schools do not highlight reading skills as times past. They don’t teach reading the way you may have learned the skill. Many teachers expect the child to be able to read and understand the material as it is given to them. However, they may notice that a child is not reading at grade level, and they are also not able to comprehend what they are reading.

While I’m not going to go into the lack of instruction at the public-school level, I will mention that it is of vital importance that each child must be taught how to read and how to comprehend what they read BEFORE they enter school. By introducing reading and reading comprehension to your child at a very young age, you will contribute mightily to your child’s overall school success.

One way to do that is when you read with your child, or have your child read to you, stop for a minute and ask your child about what you just read. If there is a word that you think might be new to them, stop the story and ask them if they know what that word means. By keeping the child really involved in the story and allowing them to learn the meanings of the words as they read the story, this will help them to not only increase their vocabulary, but it also helps with their comprehension and spelling skills.

Reading is the one inexpensive way to assure your child has great success in their academic life. Make sure you invest the time and the effort to give them the tool they need to succeed no matter what career choice they make.

The Importance of Early Reading