Literacy and Higher Order Reading Skills
“Literacy begins in thinking about stories” (Robert Fisher 2006) with reference to a specific children’s novel, discuss how you would develop lower ks2 higher order reading skills to enable them to improve their standard of reading According to www.ibe.unesco.org (2008), “reading is about understanding written texts. It is a complex activity that involves both perception and thought.” Therefore it is my opinion that if a child is going to read then they should first choose a text which is going to be enjoyable and sustain their attention. For this reason I chose the book ‘The Twits’ by Roald Dahl. I feel that from the moment they begin to read this book they will be captivated. This is the first step in developing higher order reading skills.
Before we continue, at this point it is important to define the term higher order reading skills. While many children can read individual words or indeed a string of words to form sentences they may not necessarily understand what it is they are reading about. Even a child who is a fluent reader may have difficulty in comprehending a text. “Fluency is important because it is closely related to comprehension” (www.ibe.unesco.org, 2008). This author continues by saying, “comprehension is the process of deriving meaning from connected text it involves word knowledge as well as thinking and reasoning.” Higher order reading skills help to develop a child’s ability to comprehend a text.
There are several methods in which one could develop higher order reading skills from looking at the book ‘The Twits.’ Initially, I would tell the children the title of the book and ask them to tell me what they think the book is about. I would then begin by asking the children to take turns in reading the first four chapters of the story, which describe features of Mr and Mrs Twit. While the children are reading I will stop them a few times to ask them questions about what they are reading to ensure understanding. For example, after the
Before we continue, at this point it is important to define the term higher order reading skills. While many children can read individual words or indeed a string of words to form sentences they may not necessarily understand what it is they are reading about. Even a child who is a fluent reader may have difficulty in comprehending a text. “Fluency is important because it is closely related to comprehension” (www.ibe.unesco.org, 2008). This author continues by saying, “comprehension is the process of deriving meaning from connected text it involves word knowledge as well as thinking and reasoning.” Higher order reading skills help to develop a child’s ability to comprehend a text.
There are several methods in which one could develop higher order reading skills from looking at the book ‘The Twits.’ Initially, I would tell the children the title of the book and ask them to tell me what they think the book is about. I would then begin by asking the children to take turns in reading the first four chapters of the story, which describe features of Mr and Mrs Twit. While the children are reading I will stop them a few times to ask them questions about what they are reading to ensure understanding. For example, after the