MSAD # 3's SPICE Family Literacy program, a Maine Family LIteracy Initiative Lighthouse grantee, has been listed on the UNESCO database of Effective Literacy Practices.  To read about the program, go to  http://www.unesco.org/uil/litbase/?menu=15&country=US&programme=61

ScienceDaily (May 12, 2009) — Children’s early reading experience is critical to the development of their lifelong reading skills a new study from the University of Leicester has discovered.

It found that the age at which we learn words is key to understanding how people read later in life.

The study addresses a 20-year riddle:  When researchers investigate reading behaviour in children they find different patterns. Some researchers have found children’s reading mimics that of adults, but others have seen a different pattern of reading behaviour. Psychologists have struggled for twenty years to offer a convincing explanation for why different studies looking at the same topic have found such different results.

Now research by Dr Tessa Webb in the School of Psychology at the University of Leicester sheds new light on the subject by taking into account the age at which words are learnt.

She said: “Children read differently from adults, but as they grow older, they develop the same reading patterns. When adults read words they learned when they were younger, they recognise them faster and more accurately than those they learned later in life.”

In her research children from three different school years read aloud common and rarely used words, with half of the words following spelling to sound rules and the other half not obeying them. Unlike previous studies, Dr Webb made sure her research considered word learning age as well.

She found that children in their first few years at school read the words differently from adults. However, by age 10, they were mimicking the reading pattern of adults. This suggests that the different pattern of results found in children compared to adults may be due to the fact that word learning age was not considered.

This led her to conclude that word learning age is a key aspect of reading that should not be left out of research, lest the results are unsound.

The results of this research could have implications in tackling reading-related disabilities, such as dyslexia, said Dr Webb.

ScienceDaily (May 12, 2008) — Young children whose parents read aloud to them have better language and literacy skills when they go to school, according to a review published online ahead of print in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.

Children who have been read aloud to are also more likely to develop a love of reading, which can be even more important than the head start in language and literacy. And the advantages they gain persist, with children who start out as poor readers in their first year of school likely to remain so.

In addition, describing pictures in the book, explaining the meaning of the story, and encouraging the child to talk about what has been read to them and to ask questions can improve their understanding of the world and their social skills.

The review brings together a wide range of published research on the benefits of reading aloud to children. It also includes evidence that middle class parents are more likely to read to their children than poorer families.

The authors explain that the style of reading has more impact on children's early language and literacy development than the frequency of reading aloud. Middle class parents tend to use a more interactive style, making connections to the child's own experience or real world, explaining new words and the motivations of the characters, while working class parents tend to focus more on labelling and describing pictures. These differences in reading styles can impact on children's development of language and literacy-related skills.

The Reach Out and Read programme in Boston has improved the language skills of children in low income families by increasing the proportion of parents reading to their children.

The programme provides books and advice to the parents about the importance of reading aloud. Parents who have been given books were four times more likely to say they had looked at books with their children or that looking at books was one of their child's favourite activities, and twice as likely to read aloud to their children at least three times a week.

Registration for the 2^nd annual Literacy Connections Conference is now open!  Please join literacy providers from across the state of Maine on Friday, March 12, 2010 for a conference at the Augusta Civic Center, which will explore, "Strengthening Families and Communities through Literacy.”

 Last year, over 200 literacy providers met to discuss best practices and to collaborate to improve literacy services for Maine’s families.  The conference was so successful we were asked to hold it again.  The “Agenda for the Day” which may be viewed on www.mainefamilyliteracy.com/conferences  provides detailed information on this opportunity to strengthen connections that will benefit the population you serve. 

 If you register prior to February 12, you will qualify for the early bird discount.  We expect this conference to fill up fast, so do not wait to register!  To register today, please use this link:

http://sanford.maineadulted.org/courses/course/strengthening_families_and_communities_through_literacy 

OR, if you are using a purchase order or check, please open and submit the attached registration form. If you are registering a group, please list everyone's contact information.

We hope that you can join us and will share the news of this upcoming conference within your community.

 Regards,

 Pam Cote

Conference Chair

Family Literacy Coordinator

Sanford Community Adult Education

pam_cote@sanford.org // (207) 490-9712 x11

Sponsored by Maine Family Literacy Lighthouse Projects of the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy