Thursday, May 8, 2008

Reading Aloud to Preschool Children

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Storybook Reading Aloud with Preschool Children

Title: “Home Storybook Reading in Primary or Second Language with Preschool Children: Evidence of Equal Effectiveness for Second-Language Vocabulary Acquisition.” Theresa A. Roberts. Reading Research Quarterly (April/May/June 2008), pp. 103-130. A publication of the International Reading Association.

Summary: Interesting study that paired reading aloud at home with books in Hmong and Spanish and reading aloud in school in English for six-week periods. Both home and school reading aloud “influenced English vocabulary acquisition” in English. Point: Reading books aloud to pre-schoolers, regardless of the primary (Hmong and Spanish) or secondary (English) language improved vocabulary in English.

Comment: The interesting finding in this study is that reading aloud to pre-schoolers in the primary language (Hmong and Spanish) also improves vocabulary in English, the secondary language. It may seem a no-brainer, but I find it important that reading aloud improves vocabulary. RayS.

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