INTRODUCING A READING SESSION

Very often, educators struggle to get their class hooked on to Reading! And that’s when I say – Anticipation of joy is the key to all learning.
While introducing a reading task, be it a paragraph, a poem or a chapter, build up the anticipation. The reader (the child) must get excited to read further.
Why do children read? It is either to get entertained or to get more information/knowledge. So when the run-up to a Reading Class is like a trailer teaser, children get that urge to open up the text and find the answers.
SUGGESTIONS FOR INTRODUCING A READING TASK:
⦁ For starters, you could just rustle up an instant rhyme or a song before introducing the chapter or book that has to be read. If I am introducing a Reading task based on rhyming words /Animals/ Forest/Wildlife/animal habitats & food, I could just whip up a 6 liner introductory rhyme that goes like this :
A deer I found one day, my dear
Smelling the flowers in my garden, so near
I thought he was grazing on the dark green grass
When I went closer, I think I heard a laugh
I am just sniffing the grass, the deer said with a pout
What I love to chew, is the tender shoots that sprout.

⦁ Ask the reader to simply focus on the word patterns for 5 minutes. The text, spellings, grammar, punctuation etc. And then ask them to begin reading.
⦁ Ask the students to focus on the text & highlight 5 rhyming words. And then begin the reading task
⦁ Ask the children to focus on the text and draw 2 related images by the side of the text. And then begin the reading task
⦁ Ask the students to feel the picture that appears alongside the text, with their hands and eyes. Dwell on the picture for 2 minutes. And then begin to read.
It’s worth sharpening the axe before initiating the reading task. The results are fruitful and engaging.