1. Teaching reading

2. Can you read this paragraph?
Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

3. Starting to read and write in English
Oral skills must be established before beginning to read (plenty of listening and speaking before reading and writing).
Realistic objectives for developing literacy skills up to the 3rd class:
enhance positive attitudes to literacy (books, stories, flashcards)
copying and reading words/short sentences that have a personal meaning
learning to read some words by sight
By the age of 10, the first language literacy skills are probably quite firmly established and reading and writing can be introduced as part of FL learning.

4. How to start with reading
Use orally known texts in the initial phases:
children will not have to use the L1 decoding system and read with correct pronunciation, stress and intonation
new words should be introduced before reading (e.g. by using flashcards)
a possible start : “reading” a familiar rhyme or song, written on the board; children are asked to “read” – in fact, they are saying it by heart

5. The “Look and say” approach
Children can learn to read their first words by sight, they can recognize it after seeing it several times (so called sight recognition).
Based on words and phrases and makes a lot of use of flashcards and wordcards. The teacher shows the word and says it while pointing to the object, the children repeat the word.
Word recognition games such as matching words and pictures, guessing which card Teddy has picked, etc.
By learning to read this way children slowly begin to work out the relationship between the written and the spoken form.

6. Reading techniques
skimming: reading a passage quickly to grasp the main idea (one simple question to be answered after reading a text quickly, match pictures to paragraphs)
scanning: reading a passage quickly to find specific information (match a title to a paragraph)
paraphrasing: retelling the context in other words
contextual guessing: guessing the meaning of words from context
correcting mistakes, true/false statements
information transfer:information from the text is transferred into a graph, timeline, etc.
scrambled texts: „jigsaw reading“, re-ordering of mixed up texts
intensive reading: reading for complete and detailed comprehension
extensive reading: reading widely (e.g. a book) to improve comprehension, vocabulary…

7. Reading aloud
rare in real life (bedtime stories to children, give information to sb.), silent reading is what remains with most people for the rest of their lives
in the classroom: popular and valuable especially with beginners - motivates, gives satisfaction, useful for practicing pronunciation
children should not be expected to read aloud material they had not encountered orally!

8. Creating a literate environment in the classroom
labels: on furniture and object around the class and school
posters of a rhyme or a song you are learning
short messages, e.g. on the board (Don’t forget your crayons on Friday!) or more personal messages (written assessment in children’s work Well done!, Good job!)
literacy routines: completing weather/date/classroom duties charts
graded readers: simplified versions of well-known stories, lexically and structurally graded
An English Corner