![]() “Although each of the sensory and motor regions is myelinated and functions independently before a person is five years of age, the principal regions of the brain that underlie our ability to integrate visual, verbal, and auditory information rapidly - like the angular gyrus - are not fully myelinated in most humans until five years of age and after. Emerging reading arises out of years of perceptions, increasing conceptual and social development, and cumulative exposures to oral and written language.” (Wolf, 2008, p 115) The major insight in this period is that reading never just happens to anyone. “The emergent pre-reader sits on ‘beloved laps,’ samples and learns from a full range of multiple sounds, words, concepts, images, stories, exposure to print, literacy materials, and just plain talk during the first five years of life. Stage 1: The Emergent Pre-reader (typically between 6 months to 6 years old) ( back to top) For at least a year they worked quietly and determinedly after school ended.” (Wolf, 2008, p 111 - 112) It turned my world topsy-turvy to see this indomitable boy so unsure of himself. looked like a pale version of himself, haltingly coming up with the letter sounds Sister Salesia asked for. I watched her listening patiently to these children’s torturous attempts during the school day, and then all over again after school, one child at a time. “My other vivid memory of those days centres on Sister Salesia, trying her utmost to teach the children who couldn’t seem to learn to read. The natural history of reading begins with simple exercises, practices, and accuracy, and ends, if one is lucky, with the tools and the capacity to ‘leap into transcendence.’” (Wolf, 2008, p 109) “I do not remember that first moment of knowing I could read, but some of my memories - of a tiny, two-room school with eight grades and two teachers - evokes many pieces of what the language expect Anthony Bashir calls the ‘natural history’ of the reading life. There is no better way to exemplify this than in the following anecdote from Maryanne Wolf's book Proust and the squid: the story and science of the reading brain. The one rule that applies equally is as follows: “Experts that readers, no matter which reading philosophy is followed, have to practice, practice, practice.” (You Need /r/ /ee/ /d/ to Read). Preliminary Note #2: Across this lengthy period of development, leaners are required to consolidate certain skills only to encounter new challenges. “Without an affective investment and commitment, our words become unintelligible and empty with that commitment words begin to show other manners of signification beyond the realm of literal meaning and correspondence.” (Krebs, 2010, pg 138) ![]() often needs heartfelt encouragement from teachers, tutors and parents to make a stab at more difficult reading material.” (Wolf, 2008, p 132) An enormously important influence on the development of comprehension in childhood is what happens after we remember, predict, and infer: we feel, we identify, and in the the process we understand more fully and can’t wait to turn the page. Preliminary Note #1: “As every teacher knows, emotional engagement is the tipping point between leaping into the reading life. Before we begin with the stages, there are two preliminary notes to make. Please explore, and also visit the Stages of Literacy Development page for a more detailed discussion. The expert reader (typically from 16 years and older). ![]() The fluent, comprehending reader (typically between 9 - 15 years old) and The decoding reader (typically between 7 - 9 years old) ![]() ![]() The novice reader (typically between 6 to 7 years old) The emerging pre-reader (typically between 6 months to 6 years old) The following notes explore the five stages of reading development as proposed by Maryanne Wolf (2008) in her book Proust and the squid: the story and science of the reading brain. These five stages are: It is not intuited from the environment nor is it simply a matter of physical maturation. Literacy learning requires instruction and practice, and this learning occurs across discrete stages. One does not wake up literate nor does one become literate in the same way that one learns to walk. Literacy is not something that just happens. ![]()
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