Develop an Interest in Reading

Someone once said, "Children are great imitators.  So give them something great to imitate."  I would like to look at this in two parts.  First, it's true, children are great imitators.  That is how they learn so many skills, like speaking or learning to read.  I have recently been developing a greater understanding of Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD).  This basically refers to the space between a what a child can do with an adult's help and what the child can do on his or her own.  The learning process between these two spaces typically begins with imitation; children act based on what they see and hear.

We can't however just expect children to automatically pick up on how to read.  One of Cambourne's Conditions of Learning is immersion.  This means choosing literature that sparks the child's interest.  If the child is interested, he or she will want to learn the new skill, in this particular case, reading!  To become a proficient of any skill requires immersion and the best way to accomplish that is interest.  So if you have a child you are trying to teach how to read or to read at a higher level take the time to find out that child's interests.  If the child is interested in dinosaurs, find dinosaur books!  If the child is interested in the solar system find books on astronomy!  Not only will this help find material the child will want to read, but it can show him or her that you actually care about them personally.  This relates to Cambourne's other condition, expectation.  Your interest in the child can help them have that confidence that he or she can meet your expectation and become a capable reader.  This takes the child from one end to the other of the ZPD where the child can read without help from an adult.

Now going back to the second part of our quote at the beginning, "So give them something great to imitate." Children at such a young age are so easily molded.  They need to be if they are going to learn to speak, read, or learn cultural behaviors and traditions.  As teachers, future teachers, and parents we need to be aware that children will learn through imitation and to use this to our advantage as well as theirs.  We as educated adults all started out just like these children.  They have potential that may far exceed any of our expectations if we give them opportunities.  This is obviously a step by step, day by day process.  So let it begin with engaging their imaginations in ways that make them want to move forward.