Parenting 

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Phonics: To read or not to read?

There has been a lot of debate about whether to start teaching pre-schoolers to read. Young children take in a huge amount of new information all the time. If done in the right way, why shouldn't the basics of reading (and writing) be introduced as well?

There is no great fuss if a child is taught to count to 10, or taught colours. In a way, letters are so much easier than colours. When trying to teach colours you point to a variety of objects - Wellington boots, tractor, teddy, the sky and say 'blue' for all of them. The shade of blue will vary from pale blue through to navy, but it is all blue, you assure them. Letters on the other hand, are almost always the same shape and are usually black.

'Follow the child'

Young children are learning and playing with sounds all the time as they learn to speak and learn new words. They learn from their surroundings and by imitation. So why not extend that into listening for sounds in words, and blending sounds together to make words. The Montessori philosophy of 'follow the child' is wholly appropriate.

If they are involved in books from an early age, learning to read, to imitate and give them the skill of reading in a fun and involving way can only be good.

I must stress that the phrase 'in the right way' is very important. Learning anything should be fun and a pleasure to the child. It should also be at a pace that is appropriate to that child. Some will learn quickly, others will take more time. But even those who do not seem to be learning anything are usually taking something in, and will suddenly one day surprise you by what they do know.

Jolly Phonics

The Jolly Phonics programme uses a multi-sensory approach, which means you see a letter, hear the sound it makes, and do an action to go with each sound. By linking all these things together it makes it easier to remember what has been taught.

I started my two children with 'Finger Phonics' books when they were about two years old. My son loved looking at the pictures and finding all the little things, the eyes, ladybirds and spiders in the pictures. To start with, I would say 'Where is the dog?' and he would point to it. This is also a great way to increase their vocabulary.

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