What is ‘Normal’ For a Child Learning to Read?
by Jeanette McLeod
Parents can often worry about whether their pre-school child is developing ‘at the right level’ for their age. One of the key areas that concerns parents is their child’s preparedness to read. This article highlights many of the commonly exhibited behaviours of pre-school children who are showing age appropriate signs of learning to read. It is important to remember that every child is different and not to push a child beyond what they are developmentally ready for. This list is not exhaustive and is open to challenge however is based on common findings from many years of research studies. It can be a useful benchmark of age appropriate development.
Ages 0-3
A child that has been exposed to books and reading will show an understanding that books are handled in a certain way, such as starting at the left and turning pages over from right to left. You may notice your child will look to the right hand page when they are expecting a page to be turned, or will turn the pages themselves.
A child will recognize specific books by their cover, perhaps making the sounds of characters or stating their name. A child will often demand/request that favourite books are read again and again. When books are part of a routine in the child’s life they will often go and get a book to be read at the same time of day e.g. bedtime. A child will also start to comment on characters in books for example ‘pretty’, ‘funny’, or ‘naughty’.
At this age it is common for children to pretend to read books. They may sit and turn the pages themselves and even vocalise words/sounds that they remember being associated with a particular page or image. This can be most readily seen in picture books that have labels to images e.g. a picture of a cow may elicit a ‘moo-ing’ sound or stating the word ‘cow’. Your child is beginning to make the association between objects in the real world and those images on the page.
Letter recognition can start at this age for example noticing that a characters name starts with the same letter as their own. In their own scribbling you may notice it becomes more purposeful, occasionally distinguishing between drawing and writing or they may produce some letter-like forms.
Ages 3 to 4
At this age it is usual that children will have an awareness of individual alphabet letters that can be individually named. Alphabet books, especially those with pictures of objects starting with that letter can help to develop this. It is common that a child can identify 10 alphabet letters, especially those from their own name.
A child of this age will start to demonstrate that they know that it is the print/words that are read in stories. This can be developed by following along with your finger when reading stories aloud.
A child at this age will pays attention to separate and repeating sounds in language (e.g. Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty …).
Children at this age will also understand and follow oral directions, ‘go and fetch your coat’, ‘let’s put your toys away’.
Your child will show an interest in books and reading and request that you read to them. When being read a story, a child of this age connects information and events to life experiences e.g. ‘we went on a train’, ‘like my teddy’.
Often children will start to ask questions or make comments showing their understanding of the meaning of the story being told, e.g. ‘where has teddy gone?’, ‘Is Little Red Riding Hood scared?’.
At this age a child will often start to “write” (scribble) messages as part of playful activity for example putting an address on an envelop when playing ‘shops’.
These are common developmental stages in young children on the journey towards reading. By exposing your child to books and stories you are helping them to develop the early pre-requisites to literacy.
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