Reply to Why are we still teaching reading the wrong way?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I find it so interesting that most online reading discussions talk only about decoding.  The iceberg under the ocean's surface is reading comprehension.  Anyone with a brain can teach decoding.  Comprehension is much, much, much harder.  I teach kindergarten and while we use phonics and phonemic awareness instruction (obviously) and sight word memorization to teach decoding, we focus heavily on comprehension.  Heavily.  Our kids have zero trouble with their accuracy (decoding).  But comprehension is a whole different ballgame.[/quote]

Bingo!Some people lose sight of the fact that decoding words does no good if you don't comprehend.

I posted earlier.  I remember one kid who could "call" words pretty well--but, ask him what he just read and there were blank stares.  His parents bragged that he had "learned to read" in preschool.   A background of experience is much more important than identifying sounds and letters.[/quote]

It's not uncommon for comprehension to lag decoding, or for decoding to lag comprehension.  [/quote]

If you cannot understand why the chicken crossed the road, decoding isn't going to help.  I can teach a child to read if he has a rich vocabulary and an understanding of his surroundings.  But, decoding words without understanding the world around you is not helpful.  Kids who struggle with reading comprehension frequently struggle with comprehension in general.  Not always, but usually.  Speaking vocabulary and experience should come before decoding.  Some people don't understand that.[/quote]

Are you saying a child shouldn’t be taught to decode if they don’t have experience? And what if they never gain “experience”?[/quote]

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