Asynchronous Lecture - Shared Book Reading with Young Children

Shared Book reading and language

• Amount of time spent listening to stories at 1-3 associated with teacher ratings of language skills at 5 years old and reading comprehension at 7 years old

• Significant relationship between the frequency of parent-preschooler reading and children’s reading, spelling, and IQ scores at age 13

• Significant relationship between the reported age of onset of shared reading and children’s language scores at 4 years old 

Socio-economic factors

• Typical middle-class child enters school with 1000-1700 hours of shared book reading vs 25 hours for the average low-income child

• 47% of public-aid parents report no alphabet books in the home vs 3% of professional parents

• Children from low-income homes start 1st grade behind their peers in language ability, phonological sensitivity, and print knowledge

Importance of oral vocab skills

• Strong oral vocab helps children acquire print vocabulary

• NICHD Early Child Care Research Network (2005)

  • 1st grade oral vocab skills were the second most valuable predictor of 3rd grade reading comprehension

• Risk factors for delayed oral vocab

  • Developmental disability

  • Parent with a learning disability

  • Non-native language speaker

  • Household with infrequent exposure to written or spoken language

Dialogic Reading

child becomes the storyteller, while the adult is an active listener and coach

• 3 core techniques

  • Open-ended techniques

  • Expand upon what the child says

  • Provide praise and encouragement

  • Build on children’s interests when selecting stories 

Dialogic Reading Outcomes

• Children whose teachers and parents were trained in dialogic reading gained significantly in emergent writing, print knowledge, and language

• Dialogic reading can be implemented in daycare setting, low-income households, or head start classrooms

Two-Prong Approach

Teacher reads the book with a small group of children (no more than 5) 2-3 times, using special prompts and procedures

• Teacher trains the parents to read the book with the child at home repeatedly, using Dialogic Reading techniques