Reading to Learn vs. Learning to Read

What is the difference?  This blog post will not even attempt to completely answer that question!  However, I will comment on just a few things that create some confusion about what reading instruction looks like in the Upper Montessori 4th and 5th grade classroom.

The predominant focus of preschool and the primary elementary years is learning to read.  Students in K-3 are exposed to an environment in which their teacher creates an appreciation of the written word.  Teachers teach the alphabet, they teach students to develop an awareness of printed language and the writing system, they work to develop the students' phonological awareness and subsequently their phonemic awareness.  In doing so students learn the relationship of sounds and letters, they learn to sound out words, they learn to spell words.  At the same time students are learning valuable comprehension strategies.

As students become more fluent readers throughout their primary grades we also want them to become reflective readers.  When students move into the upper elementary grades we spend more time emphasizing comprehension--students are encouraged to apply the comprehension strategies they already know as well as become thinkers about their reading.  We teach multiply strategies for showing their thinking and students are encouraged to not only make the connection/prediction but to also explain their THINKING.

This thinking is a key component of the reading instruction that is going on in the Upper Montessori classroom.  Just because a student "can read" doesn't mean that he or she is a reflective reader.

You may wonder how to go about building reflective reading skills?  Try these tips from the Reading Rockets website:

• Relate information in books to other events of interest to children, such as holidays, pets, siblings, and games. Engage children in discussion of the topics.
• In both stories and informational texts, encourage wondering. For example, "I wonder what Pooh will do now?" "How do you think the father feels ?" or "I wonder what frogs do in the winter? Do you think that's a problem? Why?"
• Point out unfamiliar words and explore their meaning. Revisit these words frequently and encourage students to use them in their own conversations.

These simple tips can help your child to be a reflective reader at home.  I would further encourage you to provide plenty of non-fiction reading material.  National Geographic Explorer is a great source of nonfiction reading material as is Kids Discover.  Of course, literature should not be forgotten; but nonfiction reading or informational text is the primary type of academic reading that your child will be doing for the balance of his or her educational career.  Encourage your reader to balance his/her reading...some material should be fiction, but some should also be nonfiction.  Another step toward providing more nonfiction material is reading the newspaper with your child.

Consider these tips as your student moves closer toward his or her middle school years!

(The following sites were used to create this post:  www.readingrockets.org and penningtonpublishing.com/blog/reading)