Monfredo: Moving Forward, Make Reading a Priority

Saturday, November 16, 2019

John Monfredo, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

PHOTO: Chris McCorkle/Flickr Commons

The local elections are over. The School Committee race was most interesting where some groups and a few candidates blamed the school administration for what they considered a lack of progress. They failed to mention the improvement within our district, the successes of our students and how parents and the community can do to assist them.

After five debates and a host of questions from many organizations the one area that wasn’t addressed is how we as a community can assist our children to become readers. As a former principal and one who placed a great deal of emphasis on literacy, I firmly believe that reading is “the silver bullet for life-long learners.” Thus, as a retired educator along with my wife Anne-Marie established the organization “Worcester: the City that Reads” fifteen years ago. We have placed within our community over 730,000 books with another 15,000 coming this week. The books have gone to teachers, social agencies and organizations running educational programs. One of the goals of this organization is to alert the public about the importance of making reading a priority in our community.

Going hand in hand with reading is closing the “word gap.” Studies have shown that by age three children from lower-income families hear far fewer words than those from higher incomes. The “word gap” is a problem because a word-rich environment is a key to a foundation of learning, early language acquisition, and future reading skills.

Income doesn’t have to be a determinant in language acquisition. Let’s look at what can take place … talk to babies. Talking helps babies process sounds as does taking the time to read to babies each day. According to research the language gap in words heard by low-income children compared to those in a higher income is around 30 million words by the start of the kindergarten years. Yes, 30 million words!

We all know that reading serves as the major foundational skill for all school-based learning. I strongly recommend the emphasis be placed on early childhood literacy from birth to age eight. Get your child into a Pre-school program. These are critical years for literacy development in linking a child’s success in learning how to read. Parents play a vital role in this undertaking for children are made readers on the laps of their parents.

Parents, be sure that your child reads at home at least 20 -30 minutes a day. Make it an enjoyable time and take the time to read together. Encourage your children to find books that excite them. Don’t overlook graphic novels, comic books, magazines, or other types of reading that may not interest you, but interest them. The point is to keep them reading which in turn promotes school success. Talk to them about what they’re reading on their own and in class, and ask which books they like and what they’re learning. Remember, conversations between parent and child is most important.

As an educator I have been very passionate about the importance of reading in the early grades and did bring this up at many of school committee debates. I know firsthand how important it is for a child to become a reader. In our schools today a child who is not reading at grade level by the end of third grade is in danger of never catching up and may spend years being a frustrated learner. Please keep in mind that falling behind in reading and feeling like a failure can take a large toll on children. They can lose all desire to learn to read and some begin to act out in class or set low expectations.

We need to remember that reading on grade level by the end of grade three is important for it is where students make the transition from learning to read to reading to learn. Thus, it is essential that we put the needed resources into improving our children’s ability to read proficiently by the end of grade three.

There are many factors that interfere with the child’s ability to become a reader by the end of grade three. School readiness… as mentioned, many children from low-income families don’t enroll in a pre-school program or have parents to read to them and develop their vocabulary.

A home that encourages and fosters learning is one that lays the foundation for a child’s success in school, in the workplace and in life. Believing that parents are the child’s first and most influential teachers here are ten ideas for parents to do at home.

As mentioned …Read to your child or have your child read to you for at least 20 minutes a day…every time you read to a child you are making a difference in their life…
Don’t leave reading to the schools only. Children who read outside of school are far more likely to succeed than those who don’t. Need books visit the library or call me at 508 853-3444 and I’ll get you books for the home…
Ask your child to picture what is happening while you read. Ask what sounds and smells might be in the story…
When you finish reading a story, ask your child to make up a new ending to the story…
Be animated when you read for you want to make the story exciting…
Don’t be afraid to read the book over and over for children love repetition and learn from it.
Make reading time special for it’s a great time to bond so cuddle up with the little one…
Take books wherever you go…in the car, on the bus, to the doctor, to the store…
Don’t let your children watch TV unless they have read something that day … (you had to know that suggestion was coming…)
Best bargain in the city… the Worcester Public Library so make sure your children have a library card and teach your children to be at home in the public library. There are plenty more but let’s start with these 10 suggestions.

In summary, being a successful reader is at the heart of all learning. Children, who can’t read well, can’t learn. Let’s all lend a hand to make a difference for the children in this community. Let’s do if FOR THE CHILDREN!