Friday I'm in Love: Literacy Activities

My favorite subject when I was a teacher was reading. There was nothing more fun to me than teaching kids to read and reading aloud to them. I remember fixing one awful, awful day (there'd been vomiting, two fistfights and I was fighting off the flu) by chucking out my lesson plans and spending an hour reading books to my class. Hell, when I have a bad day, a good book is the first thing I want (at least now that I no longer guzzle gin and tonics).

The first time I read to Ironflower, I teared up, I was so happy to finally be reading to my little girl. She was three days old. I think I started reading to the boys even before I got home from the hospital. And even though she and Lovebug now can and do read extremely well on their own, I still read to them most nights. I feel like most parents know they should read to their kids every night, but that doesn't have to be the only way parents can help their kids with literacy.

• Have rich conversations. Even if your little one can't respond verbally yet, s/he is paying attention to what you say. So narrate your day. Use big words. Encourage toddlers and preschoolers to ask what new words mean. 
• Share the alphabet. I'm not a big fan of flashcards for young children (especially babies), but that doesn't mean I don't think they should be introduced to the alphabet. Sing the ABC song, point out letters on signs, read them alphabet books and so on. 
• Rhyme. Rhyming is one part of phonemic awareness, a key component of reading skill. When repeating directions, try rhyming some of the words ("Give me a hug, bug!"). With preschoolers, play "I Spy", but instead of using colors, say, "I spy with my little eye something that rhymes with ____". 
• Label pictures. When your little one proudly points to his scribbles and announces that it's actually a picture of your mother-in-law, carefully write "Grandma" on the page. As your kiddo grows, so will his descriptions. Eventually you'll be writing down entire stories for him! 
• Play with the alphabet. Magnetic letters, alphabet puzzles and board books may not be much fun to step on (though they're all better than Legos, trust me), but they are great for familiarizing kids with the alphabet. 
• Encourage imaginative play. Play pretend with your kiddo - let her be the server, or the doctor, or the super hero princess and join in her story. Alphabet apps and web sites can be great for preschoolers and up (Starfall.com is an excellent free site), but imaginative play will do more for her than any app. 

Resources that back up what I'm saying, but that I did not actually cite in my post because all this information lives in my head (told you I'm obsessed with reading):

Phonemic Awareness in Young Children

The Essentials of Early Literacy Instruction

Teaching Tuesday: Back Off

Since the evil stomach virus came to our house, I have spent more time lying around watching TV than I have in ages - probably since I got my tonsils out the summer before last. But since I was not tripping on painkillers this time, I actually remember some of what I saw during my Law and Order marathons. One commercial that I saw over and over was for ABC Mouse.

Now, I have no idea whether this is a good program or not. I do know it claims to be a "complete curriculum" for preschool through kindergarten. I can't approve of any preschooler or kindergartner doing all of their learning online, for one thing. For another, if your kid is already attending a decent preschool or kindergarten, you don't need a "complete curriculum" for them to do on the computer. I promise. And if you're homeschooling them? Don't rely on some computer program to do your job.

We are pushing our kids too hard, too young. One of the arguments the commercial makes is about how this little girl in pre-kindergarten doesn't like to do worksheets or flashcards and feels like she can't learn. To which I say,

Duh. 

Preschoolers are supposed to be playing, and listening to stories, and learning how to share. They're not supposed to be doing worksheets. Or flashcards. In fact, they shouldn't be trying to memorize anything at all. Should you point out letters and numbers and words, just like you used to point out colors when they were toddlers? Absolutely. Can they do the occasional worksheet that involves matching shapes or tracing or some other skill they've mastered, just so they can prepare for independent work in kindergarten? Sure. But we need to stop trying to force them to read, or subtract, or survive school days structured like they're in first grade. (Read this position statement if you won't take my word for it. Or this one.)

ABC Mouse could be a perfectly educational, fun way for your 5 year old to spend an hour, I don't know  - and I'm not paying to find out. If your 5 year old isn't memorizing sight words or math facts, the problem isn't with your child. It's with you, or the school your kid is going to. Yes, some 5 year olds can read chapter books or do multiplication. Some 5 year olds can also do 3 back flips in a row, or ski or play Mozart on the piano. Which is fabulous - and appropriate - for them. Doesn't mean it's appropriate for your kid. If you push your kid into doing something that isn't developmentally appropriate for him/her, all you're going to get is a kid who feels stupid and/or hates academic activities. Is that really how you want your kid to feel before s/he even hits first grade? 

Talk to your kid. Use big words. Read to your kid. Explain the big words. Try Bedtime Math together. Point out letters and numbers just like you did with colors and shapes. Give your kid lots of time for open-ended play that doesn't involve a computer. Rhyme. Sing. Cook together. 

I guarantee that the kindergarten and first grade teachers your kid will have will thank you for it. And if they're any good? They'll have your kid reading and doing math at or above grade level before the end of the year. 

Totally Going Off the Reservation

Alternative Title: Why They Used to Call Me the Reading Bitch

Alternative Alternative Title: One of the Many Reasons They Used to Call Me the Reading Bitch

This blog is generally about all the ways I fuck up as a parent, or how much I hate something, or television shows I love. I get that. But as most of you know, before I was a blogging mom, I was an elementary school teacher. And while I wasn't the best, I was pretty damn good at teaching reading.

That's the reason my former colleagues used to call me "The Reading Bitch". At least, that's why I like to think they did. There might have been other reasons. Ahem.

Lately I've been writing all these articles for The Bump. Well, for the content corporation that pays me. As of this writing, none of them have actually appeared on The Bump, but they're supposed to at some point in the not-too-distant future. I think. I believe many of them are based on actual questions of Bump readers, which makes me very sad. A lot of these people should not be procreating.

Anyway, one of the more intelligent questions had to do with early literacy skills. I had to answer it the content corporate way to get paid, but I couldn't stop thinking about it. And I remembered that I have a blog where I can say whatever the hell I want. So, even though I don't normally do this, I'm going to go all ex-Reading Bitch on you guys.

Q: How do get your preschooler ready to read?

A. Back away from the flashcards, workbooks and reading curricula. In fact, burn them. Most of them suck. And even if they don't totally suck, your preschooler shouldn't be doing them. It's not developmentally appropriate. Follow these steps instead:

1. Go to the library and get some picture books. Read them to your preschooler every day. Go to back the library and get some more. Repeat until your preschooler is 18 or so.

2. Use big words, and lots of them. Kids who know a lot of words will have an easier time learning to read.

3. Play with language. Make up rhymes. Stretch words out. Say each sound separately and have kids guess the word. Literacy professionals calls this phonological awareness. Or phonemic awareness. Or phonetic awareness. It depends. You don't have to call it anything. And if it freaks you out, pick up a lot of Dr. Seuss at the library.

Sometimes I want to start a blog called, "The Reading Bitch". Thoughts? Aren't there already a million teacher blogs out there?