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The techniques I am primarily referring to are singing, movement, rhyme, rhythm, call and response, repetition, and predictable patterns. These techniques are fun and engage the reader! The more engaged the reader the more they are learning.
They are also interactive. This helps learning to read be a deeply fulfilling interpersonal experience. Songs and nursery rhymes are wonderfully suited to encourage engagement.
Every Child and Family Deserves
the JOY of Reading!
Every week I receive emails from overjoyed parents and teachers who share with me that their child read for the first time! And, with one of my books! They tell me that the singing, repetition, or call and response drew their child in. Their happiness is indescribable. More than anything in the word I want every child and family to have this joy!
But their children are too young to read! What is happening? It is actually simple to understand. Their children sing some parts of the book, recognize a few words, spell a few words, use the pictures, and remember many repetitive phrases. I call this “predictive” reading. Below is a video of a super bright, happy, two and half year old little boy named Ashton, “predictive” reading my book Pete the Cat, I Love My White Shoes. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if every child and family experienced this joyful learning?
You can watch Ashton “predictive” reading in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRawPY4BqjI
I am convinced that “predictive” reading is natural, necessary, and joyful. I think it comes between “shared” reading and “conventional” reading. It is a stage we have greatly misunderstood and underutilized. It is here children first feel the power of reading. It is here children first fall in love with books and reading. It is here children begin to see themselves as readers.
Songs, nursery rhymes, and poems facilitate this stage. Their repetitive, rhythmic, rhyming characteristics enable a child to successfully engage in “predictive” reading. And the interactive and interpersonal qualities of the songs and poems make the experience deeply fulfilling, joyful, and healthy.
What is Better Cake or Cupcakes?
After a live performance, I often sign books for the audience. They come to a table and hand me their books. Sometimes, I ask the children some fun questions. One of my favorites is, “What is better, cake or cupcakes?” I just love it when the child thinks about it and answers “both.” Great answer!
If you were to ask me “What’s better, books or songs/poems,” I would have to say, “both.” We do not have to choose between songs/poems or books. We can do both. I hope you do.
For me, it goes one step further. I want to have songs and poems and reading woven together. This is why I incorporate singing and poetry directly into my books. This is why my books break out into song. This makes them more engaging! This increases the learning power! This helps them be more fun than iPads!
Let’s Have a Reading Party!
I hope we can all work together as teachers and parents to make sure learning to read is fun. I hope we form an understanding that early language experiences are important and joyful. I hope we can embrace the learning opportunities of songs and poems and make them a daily part of our homes and classrooms. I hope we can see the importance and joy of “predictive” reading. I hope we can see and appreciate the incredible connections between songs, poems, and reading. And, I hope we can stand together in the firm conviction that electronic devices have limited value. But engaging books, rhythmic poems, and joyful songs are boundless sources of joy and learning.
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ERIC AND ON THE NEXT PAGE. HE HAS A LOT OF GREAT RESOURCES FOR PARENTS, TEACHERS AND KIDS!
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