Reading books is an important part of a child’s learning and development. Books not only provide entertainment; they are a learning tool that teachers and parents use to help a child develop reading and language skills. Even in the era of smartphones, online games, and apps, teachers and reading experts have emphasized the importance of books.
Dialogic Reading
When it comes to reading and understanding books, how we read it is just as important as how often it is read. In most cases, adults take charge of the reading part while the child listens. It is the adults that are the main storytellers.
In a strategy called dialogic reading, adults encourage children to become storytellers. In this strategy, the adults will start out by reading the story, but over the course of storytelling, they will encourage the child to take charge. The adult will ask questions, make clarifications, and listen as the child tells the story.
Here are some steps to follow to do dialogic reading effectively:
- Provide prompts. Ask the child to say something about the book or story.
- Listen and evaluate the child’s response.
- Expand. The teacher or parent will encourage the child to say more about the response. This can be done by making a clarification, rephrasing the child’s statement, or adding to it.
- To check what the child has learned, the teacher will repeat the prompt.
This strategy is most effective when done on every page or every other page. Each time a book is read, the teacher or parent will consciously do less and less talking. They will only talk to give prompts.
There are different types of prompts when using dialogic reading. Here are some examples: open-ended prompts, recall prompts, completion prompts, distancing prompts (prompts that encourages the child to find connections between the book and real-life experiences), and wh-prompts (who, what, where, when).
Why it Works
Dialogic reading is really just having a conversation about a book–when reading a book, the teacher or parent will give prompts to the child. The child will respond to the prompts while processing the information that has been read. Adults should mix up the prompts used to keep the child engaged.
Practicing dialogic reading lets children get ahead with language development by constantly practicing the skills of reading, speaking, and comprehension. This exercise also allows the child to build confidence in speaking up and engaging in conversations.