A mother went to ask her son’s kindergarten teacher when she was going to start teaching her son to read. The teacher replied, “Oh, we don’t teach children to read until they are in the first grade!”
Now I know what the teacher was trying to say. She was pointing out that children need many skills before they start learning to read and that these skills are what children learn in kindergarten. This teacher believed that her job was to ensure that the children in her class developed the learning skills they needed to learn to read.
The mother, on the other hand, knew that her son was ready to learn to read. She knew that her son was asking what sounds the letters made and what the words she saw around her really said. Her son was eager to learn to read, and the mother hoped that her teacher would teach him to read.
The teacher may not have known that this child was ready to learn to read. (In another article, he’ll learn how kids often hide their abilities so they can do what other kids do and fit in with the class.) She may think that by helping children develop some basic pre-reading skills, she was giving them a solid foundation for later learning. But I am surprised that teachers, and perhaps some parents, think that the ability to read depends on the age of the child.
Now, I don’t want anyone to think that children should be pressured to learn to read before they are ready, but I have known some children who were ready to learn to read when they were three years old, and some who were not until they were seven years old.
So what is the best age to teach children to read? I don’t know. It all depends on the child. I don’t think young children, say between the ages of two and four, really need to be taught to read. If your child sees that you enjoy reading and learns that reading can be fun, she will automatically want to learn to read. When your child wants to learn to read you will know. He or she will ask you about those black scribbles and what they say, and you can start pointing out specific letters and letter sounds.
Then it’s time to start using other fun ways to help your child on their reading journey.
So when is the best time to start helping your child learn to read? As soon as he or she is ready
Prepare a child to read? Ah, that’s another story!