Why Reading to Your Kids in Your Home Language Will Help Them Become Better Readers
As a parent, you may be wondering whether you should be reading to your children in your native language or English. You may be afraid that reading to them in the native language will confuse them as they try to learn English, and that it will make it harder for them to read in English. You may also be concerned that you shouldn't read to them in English if you don't feel comfortable with your own English skills.
According to website, http://www.colorincolorado.org/, a number of studies have been conducted about the ways in which children learn to read in a second language most effectively. Some of the results of those studies include the following findings:
As a parent, you may be wondering whether you should be reading to your children in your native language or English. You may be afraid that reading to them in the native language will confuse them as they try to learn English, and that it will make it harder for them to read in English. You may also be concerned that you shouldn't read to them in English if you don't feel comfortable with your own English skills.
According to website, http://www.colorincolorado.org/, a number of studies have been conducted about the ways in which children learn to read in a second language most effectively. Some of the results of those studies include the following findings:
- Young children who were exposed to age-appropriate books and literature in their native language developed stronger pre-literacy skills than children who were only exposed to books in their second language (Association for Childhood Education International, 2003)
- Children who learn to read in their native language first will have an easier time learning to read in their second language than children who never learned how to read in their first language (Anstrom, 1999). Children who can read in their native language understand the process of reading, even if they need to learn new letters, sounds, and words to attain reading proficiency in a second language.
- Although children seem to learn new languages very quickly, without a strong cognitive foundation in their first language, children learning a second language "will tend to take much longer to acquire cognitive academic language skills in the second language" (Ramirez et.al, 1991).
- Read books in your native language with your child on a daily basis
- Talk about the stories you have read together
- Play rhyming games and singing songs in your native language together (Example: I'm thinking of an animal that rhymes with hat: cat)
- Encourage your child to write in their native language
- Keep native language print material in your home such as books, greeting cards, magazines, and newspapers
- Expose your child to games, puzzles, and music in the native language
- Encourage your child to use native language to tell stories
- Expand your child’s native language vocabulary by teaching him/her new words, pointing out and naming objects, and helping him/her improve pronunciation