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Original poster

Early reading - memorising......

19 replies

QueenOfQuotes · 08/09/2005 20:13

ok so DS1 has just started reception and came home with his first 'story' book yesterday ("I like rice"). Each page starts with "I like rice with" and then there's a picture on the opposite page of what they like with it - to help them work out the last word.

Today he's been "reading" it on his own again. However, I have a very strong suspicion that he's not actually 'reading' the words (although he does point at each one as he says it) - rather that he's just memorised the book.

Is this normal, and how do I encourage him to actually 'learn' the words rather than remembering the entire book????

(I just wish I had his memory skills LOL)

OP posts:
starlover · 08/09/2005 20:15

yes it's completely normal!

starlover · 08/09/2005 20:15

if he has memorised it, and he LOOKS at the words, then he will be learning them

Original poster
QueenOfQuotes · 08/09/2005 20:18

it's just he's read it about 20 times today (possibly more ) but when I point to individual words he doesn't seem to have a clue - unless he reads/points at each one in turn...

This is by far the hardest bit of parenting I've had to do so far! I've just got no idea what is normal with regards to that sort of thing.

(up to and including nursery was easy LOL).

OP posts:
aloha · 08/09/2005 20:22

If you want to help him read you can get the Jolly Phonics books from Amazon, which will also teach you how to teach him iyswim.
Or you could just let the school do it and your job could be to simply encourage his love of books, which IME is a very important part of learning to read.
And yes, memorising is normal and while it's not reading, it can help some children learn to read. Ds is doing it a lot atm

starlover · 08/09/2005 20:23

well he is still young... the more he looks at them the more familiar they will become! that's why they make repetitive books!

the more times he looks at the word "rice" the quicker he will come to recognise it!

debutante · 08/09/2005 20:23

Children learn to read in several ways - some words can be sounded out or decoded phonetically. Other words can't and so you have really to memorise them so memory is an important early reading skill. Your son is also learning about the relationship between spoken words and text i.e pointing at a word to get the concept of a word. Whilst he may be memorising the words in the book, he will probably soon recognise them in a different context as well. He also needs to feel like a reader so there are lots of skills being developed through simple books like his. Lots of school give parents a book explaining their approach to the teaching of reading and how parents can best support their child. There's info on reading on the dfes parentcentre website if you want.
sounds like he's on the right track so far!

Original poster
QueenOfQuotes · 08/09/2005 20:24

actually it's funny you should say that - of all the words I pointed to individually "rice" was the one he did get

I think I'll just let him sit and "read" it himself, and help if he gets stuck - and keep my nose out of it

(I just hope he doesn't have this particular book for too many more days - it's doing my head in LOL).

OP posts:
debutante · 08/09/2005 21:01

Don't stay out of it! Support him, read to him loads- anything at all and make sure if there is a dp dh that he does too. Opening the door to reading for your kids is fab my god daughter refused to learn to read cos she thought it would mean the end of snuggly stories in bed

Original poster
QueenOfQuotes · 08/09/2005 21:05

well I didn't mean completely stay out of it .

Before DH started worked most evenings he was the one reading their bedtime story. Now I do it, and I'll continue telling him what things say when he asks too.

I just meant I won't actually try and help him 'learn' the words - rather continue as I was before he started school

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KBear · 08/09/2005 21:06

I remember this phase - I used to think DD was clever to remember the whole book! I let her believe she was reading and that boosted her confidence as she was DESPERATE to learn to read and in no time at all she was reading for real. Make a big fuss about how clever he is and let him get away with it - he sounds very keen and you obviously want to nurture that.

Original poster
QueenOfQuotes · 08/09/2005 21:08

KB - they say elephants never forget - well I guess my DS must be an elephant - got a very good memory LOL.

He's really really keen, and I know this is such an important time in his education for him I just want to make sure I'm helping him in the right way

OP posts:
debutante · 08/09/2005 21:09

you can be sneaky and open a page at random, cover the pics and show it to ds to see if he can read it without the pictures clues. This sometimes used to stop me dying of boredom in the early stages but it won't be long before he's flying

Angeliz · 08/09/2005 21:11

DD does exactly the same.
She started reception 3 days ago and has read me her book tonight.
I suspect there are 2/3 words she's not sure of and just memorised but as Aloha said, i think just by looking at them she's learning.

I find it MAD that she's nearly reading already when just yesterday she was in tiny-baby grows!

Original poster
QueenOfQuotes · 08/09/2005 21:12

debu - he'd be able to do the "I like rice with" - he knows the book is about 'rice' and there's no 'picture clues' for the first 4 words. It's just the word at the end that the picture helps with.

I just hope he doesn't have this particular book too much longer 20+ times a day of hearing "I LIKE RICE WITH" is enough to put you off rice for good.

Although he was very excited at dinner time when we had "RICE" with our dinner

OP posts:
roisin · 08/09/2005 21:14

QoQ these sort of books are fantastic for building up confidence in children. Giving them the attitude "I can read books" rather than "reading is difficult". Don't worry about whether or not he's memorising.

I'm sure your school will send home core words, and so on, that he can practice reading "blind" - with no pictures or context. But actually there's a great deal more to reading than decoding the letters into sounds.

KBear · 08/09/2005 21:15

DD used to bring home books with no words sometimes when she was in reception. This was to fire their imagination about what they thought was going on and who was saying what.

In the early reading books they are encouraged to use the pictures to help them learn to read - they know what the pictures are and can match it to the word and memorise it that way.

Amazing innit!

debutante · 08/09/2005 21:21

The suspense must be killing you.. what will the next book be.. I like chips with I like beer with I like ?????????????

It's better than Billy Blue Hat but you all won't know who he is.. was

KBear · 08/09/2005 21:29

Wait until you meet Biff and Chip - we've been reading about those kids for two years - ENOUGH! More annoying than thomas the tank engine books.

LIZS · 08/09/2005 21:47

Perfectly normal. You could print off the key words and make individaul word cards so he tries to recognise them out of context or match them to those ont he page. Play snap or bingo with them too.

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