Rhyming, Rhythm, Reading, Success

What is it that we want for our children? That they are smart, creative, that they are exposed to the brilliance of the planet, that they are successful, that they love art, music, and dance, that they love to be physical, and love words, that they can spell like crazy, that they love to read and do it easily?

We, as a society, have been obsessed with getting our children to read earlier and earlier. What we should be focused on, in my opinion, is repetition of rhymes, rhythm, and music. These are the tools by which a child then connects those repeating sounds to the visual. This is how they learn to read. It’s not by seeing first, it’s by hearing first.

The following is a very clear, simple, explanation of phonemic awareness from the Weber County Library in Ogden where the thoughtful librarians have put together a wonderful reading list of rhyming story books that promotes phonemic awareness in the small child.

Phonemic awareness is the understanding that words are made of discrete sounds. If children cannot distinguish individual sounds, or phonemes, within words, they have difficulty learning to read and write. 

The books on this list help pre-readers focus on the sounds in words. They are meant to be read to the child, and caregivers can guide listening by asking questions such as: “What sound do most of those words end with?” or “Where do you hear the /b/ sound?” http://www.weberpl.lib.ut.us/content/booklists/sort/t/24

There are a total of 29 books listed in Phonemic Awareness Books for Children. Check the list out. It is an invaluable resource! Or ask your local librarian for suggestions.

The good news for all of us well meaning parents is that with regular repetition of something as simple as nursery rhymes and rhyming story books we can have a high impact on our children’s future and their ability to read and write. Never mind that it is just plain, silly, fun!