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Teaching a preschooler to read should be re-phrased to say: how to teach literacy skills to preschoolers. The reason for this is children learn to read at different times in their childhood and it is always appropriate to teach literacy skills such as phonemic awareness, rhythm, rhyme, and the characteristics of books.

Phonemic awareness can be "taught" in ways that are not forcing inappropriate methods on a three or four year old. Songs, fingerplays, and flannelboard stories are all appropriate ways to teach critical skills to preschoolers. Letter recognition is best taught through hand-on ways such as alphabet flannel shapes, large floor puzzles, and having children begin recognizing their names in print. Children will attend to letters that are important to them, and what letters are most important to them? The ones that are in their name! You can design several activities using the letters in their name to encourage learning letter recognition. Memorizing the alphabet in A-Z format has questionable merits. It may even be harmful if the child associates quizzing or memorization related to reading.

Rhythm has as much to do with language and reading as the recognition of letters and sight words. Songs, poems, and nursery rhymes are an often overlooked, and very fun and engaging, way to help preschoolers learn about our language and reading. Recorded songs, stories, and simple plays are very engating to children and they are learning without even knowing it!

I have often heard this expression: There should be so many books in an early childhood classroom that the children will trip over them. This is not meant to be disrespectful to the books but the point is if children find that books are a part of their environment, they will be comfortable with them and will internalize things like text features and the love of books. You would be surprised at how many middle school students cannot identify the title of a book. This shows a child that has not had adequate exposure to a lot of books.

These tips are based in solid research and will enhance any child's literacy skills. Some children will learn to read on their own at an early age, and others will need more time. Some children do not emerge as fluent readers until the age of 8. To expect all children to learn to read in a "forced" way will only make them resent reading and find it boring, which we do not want.

Learn more about this author, Brenda G. Koscelny.
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