5 Myths About Learning to Read

Reading is meant to be enjoyable, but the truth is reading can seem intimidating, especially if you were not taught to read properly.

When 80 Gecko Mountain was born, one of our goals was to share what we’ve learned candidly. What we do is inspired by the children we work with.

Myth No. 1: Learning to read is a natural process.

English is complex and seemingly illogical at times. For many children, specific decoding, word-recognition, and reading comprehension skills must be taught directly and systematically. We know from four decades of scientific research that reading is a structured activity that relies on phonics or the ability to manipulate the sound of words. Reading does not develop naturally.

Myth No. 2: Children will eventually learn to read by memorization.

Most children are taught to read by memorizing printed words and connecting one or more of the letters to the sounds they hear when the word is pronounced. Research supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development indicates that children must be aware that spoken words are composed of individual sounds and to be able to link the sounds with the letters to become fluent readers. This means that you cannot learn to read by memorization.

Myth No. 3: Skilled reading involves using picture cues to guess words.

Skilled readers do not need to rely on pictures in word identification because they can read most words automatically. It’s the beginning and struggling readers who are often taught to compensate for weak decoding by guessing an unfamiliar word based on the first letter of the picture. This assumes the picture is clear, unambiguous and actually makes the sound intended by the exercise.

Myth No. 4: Don’t worry, it’s never too late to improve literacy skills and instruction

That is partially correct. Learning to read at any age is possible, but as a high-schooler who has been masking and hiding their struggles, learning to read at a primary level words will feel like a personal attack on their intelligence. It can be very disheartening for the adult who finds reading laboured and exhausting as they struggle with comprehension. Older students can learn to read, improve vocabulary and gain comprehension as long as they are convinced that is a good investment of their time and are motivated.

Myth No. 5: Balanced Literacy curriculum is ideal

Balanced literacy modern redressing of whole language philosophy that assumes learning to read is natural and just needs to be nurtured. Give a kids some good books with some illustrative pictures and the children will learn to read with some minor guidance. It comes from the belief that since humans naturally learn to talk (as supported by research) that humans also naturally learn to read (debunked by research).

Structured Literacy instruction is an umbrella term used by the International Dyslexia Association to encompass evidence-based programs and approaches. Structured Literacy approaches are effective at helping students with learning disabilities in the area of reading, such as dyslexia, learn to read and write. Structured Literacy is explicit, systematic teaching that focuses on phonological awareness, word recognition, phonics and decoding, spelling, and syntax at the sentence and paragraph levels. It turns out that it isn’t just good for those with learning challenges, but for most average students as well.

Ultimately, the ability to read words (word recognition) and understand those words (language comprehension) lead to reading being a more enjoyable activity, which increases the learning potential of the reader.