1-Reading skill
Reading is the third skill in learning English as a foreign language. You
read a text, new sentences and new vocabulary, then your brain can imitate
them, producing similar sentences to express the meaning you want. When
you read a lot, paying attention to useful vocabulary, you will soon start to use
new words and phrases in your speaking and writing. It may seem like you
need more time to learn a language by reading and listening, as opposed to
learning based on grammar rules
"Reading" is the process of looking at a series of written symbols
and getting meaning from them. When we read, we use our eyes to
receive written symbols (letters, punctuation marks and spaces) and we
use our brain to convert them into words, sentences and paragraphs
that communicate something to us.Reading can be silent (in our head)
or aloud (so that other people can hear). Reading is a receptive skill -
through it we receive information. But the complex process of reading
also requires the skill of speaking, so that we can pronounce the words
that we read. In this sense, reading is also a productive skill in that we
are both receiving information and transmitting it (even if only to
ourselves).
Reading is the third language skill we may acquire in our native
language. As with listening, it is a receptive, or passive skill, as it
requires us to use our eyes and our brains to comprehend the written
equivalent of spoken language. It is one of the two artificial language
skills, as not all natural spoken languages have a writing system.
Skimming:
Reading for skimming refers to an extensive reading. It means that you
read a text quickly and generally to get the general ideas of the text. This is
applied when you deal with a long comprehension text. If you have ever
attended English classes, you have probably been asked to skim a text and
then complete a task connected with it. This is one of the activities you have
to do in an exam/test. Most teachers encourage students to read very quickly,
just to get the main points out of the text. Reading in such a way not only isn't
very useful but may even slow down your progress!
Scanning:
Reading for scanning refers to an intensive reading. It means that you
read a text slowly and intensively to get the specific meanings and
information of a text. When you read in your native language, you read for
content. Your brain focuses on key words that convey the meaning of the text.
This way you are able to read faster. But this is wrong to do when reading in a
foreign language. You want to concentrate on the grammar, too.You should
analyze the sentences closely.This is applied when you deal with a close
text. Comprehension, Act of or capacity for grasping with the intellect. The
term is most often used in connection with tests of reading skills and language
abilities, though other abilities (e.g., mathematical reasoning) may also be
examined.
(Techniques for Teaching Reading )
Reading skill:
It is an input receptive skill.
Goal:
Reading for pleasure, getting knowledge through distinguishing the main idea
or the word formation and the contextual clues of the reading text.
Materials and methods:
1. The reading material must be authentic:
It must be the kind of material that students will need and want to be able to
read when traveling, studying abroad, or using the language in other contexts
outside the classroom.
When selecting texts for student assignments, remember that simplifying a
text by changing the language often removes natural redundancy and makes
the organization somewhat easy for students to predict. This actually makes a
text easier to read than if the original was used.
Elicit students' existing knowledge in pre-reading discussion, review new
vocabulary before reading, and ask students to do skimming to get the main
idea or scanning for general ideas, before they begin intensive reading.
2. The reading purpose must be authentic:
To identify relevant reading purposes, ask students how they plan to use the
language they are learning and what topics they are interested in reading and
learning about. Give them opportunities to choose their reading assignments,
and encourage them to use the library, the Internet, and bookstores to find
other things they would like to read.
3. The reading approach must be authentic:
Students should read the text in a way that matches the reading purpose,
the type of text, and the way people normally read. This means that reading
aloud will take place only in situations where it would take place outside the
classroom. The majority of students' reading should be done silently.
Skills needed for active reading:
1. Decoding
Decoding is a vital step in the reading process. Kids use this skill to sound out
words they’ve heard before but haven’t seen written out. The ability to do that
is the foundation for other reading skills.
1-Decoding relies on an early language skill calledphonomic awareness .
(This skill is part of an even broader skill called phonological awareness.)
Phonemic awareness lets kids hear individual sounds in words (known
as phonemes). It also allows them to “play” with sounds at the word and
syllable level.
2-Decoding also relies on connecting individual sounds to letters. For
instance, to read the word sun, kids must know that the letter s makes the /s/
sound. Grasping the connection between a letter (or group of letters) and the
sounds they typically make is an important step toward “sounding out” words.
What can help:
Most kids pick up the broad skil of phonological awarenessl of naturally, by
being exposed to books, songs, and rythmes . But some kids don’t. In fact,
one of the early signs of reading difficulties is trouble with rhyming, counting
syllables, or identifying the first sound in a word.
2. Fluency
To read fluently, kids need to instantly recognize words, including ones they
can't sound out. Fluency speeds up the rate at which they can read and
understand text.
Sounding out or decoding every word can take a lot of effort. Word
recognition is the ability to recognize whole words instantly by sight, without
sounding them out.
When kids can read quickly and without making too many errors, they are
“fluent” readers.
What can help:
Word recognition can be a big obstacle for struggling readers. Average
readers need to see a word four to 14 times before it becomes a"sight word"
they automatically recognize. Kids with dyslexia, for instance, may need to
see it up to 40 times.
3. Vocabulary
To understand what you’re reading, you need to understand most of the
words in the text. Having a strong vocabulary is a key component of reading
comprehension. Students can learn vocabulary through instruction. But they
typically learn the meaning of words through everyday experience and also by
reading.
What can help:
The more words kids are exposed to, the richer their vocabulary becomes.
You can help build your child's vocabulary vocabulary by having frequent
conversations on a variety of topics. Try to include new words and ideas.
Telling jokes and playing word games is a fun way to build this skill.
Reading together every day also helps improve vocabulary. When reading
aloud, stop at new words and define them. But also encourage your child to
read alone. Even without hearing a definition of a new word, your child can
use context to help figure it out.
4. Sentence Construction and Cohesion
Knowing how ideas link up at the sentence level helps kids get meaning from
passages and entire texts. It also leads to something called coherence, or the
ability to connect ideas to other ideas in an overall piece of writing.
What can help:
Explicit instruction can teach kids the basics of sentence construction. For
example, teachers can work with students on connecting two or more
thoughts, through both writing and reading.
5. Reasoning and Background Knowledge
Most readers relate what they’ve read to what they know. So it’s important for
kids to have background or prior knowledge about the world when they read.
They also need to be able to “read between the lines” and pull out meaning
even when it’s not literally spelled out.
What can help: Your child can build knowledge through reading,
conversations, movies and TV shows, and art. Life experience and hands-on
activities also build knowledge.
Expose your child to as much as possible, and talk about what you’ve learned
from experiences you’ve had together and separately. Help your child make
connections between new knowledge and existing knowledge. And ask open-
ended questions that require thinking and explanations.
6. Working Memory and Attention
When kids read, attention allows them to take in information from the text.
Working memory allows them to hold on to that information and use it to gain
meaning and build knowledge from what they’re reading.
The ability to self-monitor while reading is also tied to that. Kids need to be
able to recognize when they don’t understand something. Then they need to
stop, go back, and re-read to clear up any confusion they may have.
What can help:
There are many ways you can help improve your child’s working memory.
Skillbuilders don’t have to feel like work, either. There are a number of games
and everyday activities that can build working memory without kids even
knowing it.
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Kinds of reading:
1-Critical reading
Critical reading means engaging in what you read by asking yourself questions such as,
‘what is the author trying to say?’ or ‘what is the main argument being presented?’
2-Active reading/Comprehensive reading:
It means a comprehensive reading. To do active reading:
1-Do a survey or read for skimming.
2-Ask a question about the reading text to discover the purpose of the reading
text.
3-Start reading the text critical to discover the details.
4-Recall or remember what you have read.
4- Reading for pleasure.
5-Do a review of what you have read.
3-Contemplating reading:
It means reading something with a determination to understand and evaluate
it for its relevance to your needs and desires. It means reading with a
profound thinking about the content of the reading text.
