Your 4-Year-Old: Reading: Chapter 1

Reading: Chapter 1

A few precocious children learn to read at 4. But the norm is for an interest to start at 4 and actual reading to begin at age 5 or even 6 or 7. Before your child can start sounding out words, he needs to begin recognizing letters and understanding that words are read from left to right. These things sound basic, and they are — they're the foundation every child needs to become a reader.
說到要讓小朋友自己開始讀書，可能要到5、6或7歲，現在小馨才4歲，雖然偶爾會自己拿書看，但距離要將內容念出來，還是有段時間！不過她的確慢慢學會認字了，我想應該是學校老師教的，這種認字的樂趣以後會愈來愈明顯！
有件有趣事情值得記錄下來：話說小馨已經會任阿拉伯數字了，但她讀數字時是「從左到右」，真的很「另類」！後來才得知原來小朋友都會犯這種錯誤，應該大一點就會更正過來了！
她也會認我們車牌的數字，we are surprised enough!


Your 4-year-old now
Before children start reading, they master certain pre-reading skills. Be sure your child's world is nudging him in the right direction:

Create a word-rich environment. The more you read books to your child and engage him in conversation, the more practice he has with language.
Point to words as you read. This teaches that words are made of a sequence of letters and go from left to right.
Reinforce the makeup of a book. Point out the title and the name of the author. Ask questions about the illustrations and what's happening in the story.
Play matching games. This is good prep since reading also involves matching shapes, letters, and words. Four-year-old favorites: card-matching games like go fish and concentration.
Play with rhyme. Of course, before a child can read, he needs to know his letters and their sounds. But more important, he needs to connect the idea that letters match sounds. At this age, you don't need to hammer the fact that the letter h sounds a certain way. Instead, sing rhymes together when you walk, make up your own rhyming songs, or concoct silly nicknames like Hopalong Holliday. It doesn't matter if they're nonsense. What matters is that your child is manipulating sounds.

Your life now
It might seem premature to think about kindergarten. But if your child has not yet had experience with preschool or daycare away from home, you might want to enroll him in some kind of class or structured playgroup this year. Swimming lessons or a music class will give him practice being away from you, listening to an authority figure, and socializing with other kids.