Full article from the Term 1 No 2 2007 Newsletter

Encouraging Your Children to Read at Home: The Importance of Literacy Skills 

The development of skills in both literacy and numeracy are vital for success in education. Literacy skills, in particular, provide us with the keys to understanding, learning, and applying knowledge throughout our lives.
Research tells us that children learn to read at different rates - the maturation of the perceptual processes required for reading varies from child to child.
In particular, the visual perception skills needed for reading may be still maturing in many children up to the age of eight years.

This means that even in your own family, it may be quite normal for one of your children to be ready to read at five years of age, whereas another may not have the perceptual skills necessary for reading until a year or two later.

Research also shows us that, by the time the majority of children have reached ten years of age, there is no significant difference in literacy skills between "early readers" and those who took a little longer for these skills to develop.

It is most important that parents provide support, understanding and guidance for their children as they embark upon this exciting and challenging journey of learning to read.

Many primary schools and junior school teachers provide excellent parent information programs to help you understand the ways you can assist and encourage your beginning readers at home. Be guided by your child's class teacher - their experience and knowledge of your child, and of the reading process is invaluable.

Remember that your assistance and encouragement of your child's literacy development is not just a "one year" commitment to your beginning reader.
With the ever increasing complexities of reading material, and the demands of the various avenues of study throughout primary and secondary school, your assistance with "literacy" will be vital throughout your child's education.

Provide the Model for Reading

Both boys and girls need male and female role models in literacy - it is essential that your children
learn reading, language, and thinking skills from the men in their lives, as well as the women.

Make sure that your children see you, and the other adults in their lives reading - for information,
and for pleasure. Children will learn to value reading from the role model you provide for them.