Page 97 - Teaching English at Primary Level: From Theory into the Classroom

6

Reading and Writing

Chapter Objectives
• Comparing reading and writing subskills and strategies
• Recognising the characteristics and benefits of extensive reading
programmes
• Understanding why writing is difficult for YLs
• Reflecting on ways of making writing activities communicative
and collaborative

A central question related to developing reading and writing in an FL is
whether we should wait until learners can read and write in their L1. Teach-
ers who have been trained to teach older pupils and adult learners and are
then asked to teach YLs soon find out how difficult it is to teach without the
written word or the reading skill. Writing a list of words is a very demanding
task for a 6 or 7-year-old learner and one that often does not contribute to
their language development. The teacher usually provides other scaffolds,
such as visual or musical support, movement, etc. to help the child learn and
remember new vocabulary.
Researchers in the field of YLs generally agree that listening and speak-
ing should have absolute primacy in the YLs’ classroom. However, we can
expose learners to the written word from the beginning of the learning pro-
cess, usually by including it visually in the classroom. A classroom can have
English posters on the wall and a notice board with different information, e.g.
learners’ timetable, a school lunch or snack menu, date and weather, pupils’
birthdays, phrases of the week or any other messages that the teacher or the
pupils want to communicate to each other. Besides exposing the pupils to
the written word in their classroom environment, the teacher can provide
the learners with the experience of extensive listening (see chapter Listen-
ing and speaking). If the teacher regularly reads stories to the learners, they
will perceive reading as an enjoyable activity. Having a class library or a read-
ing corner also contributes to learners’ reading development. A cosily deco-
rated corner with a sofa, soft cushions, a plush rug, and a bookshelf including
graded readers, authentic books, encyclopaedias, dictionaries, comics, and
magazines is a place where children can relax, read or just browse the read-
ing materials. This can also be the place where the teacher reads stories out
loud so that children associate it with reading.

97