by Dee Tadlock, Ph.D.

Each month we bring you a column by Read Right developer, Dee Tadlock, Ph.D. Read Right empowers kids with the philosophy that, if a child isn’t learning to read, it’s not because there’s something wrong with the child. Rather there’s something “wrong” with the way the child is being taught! Let’s show you what we mean.

Can you understand the meaning of the following sentence?

Accordnig to rseerach, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are prseetend. The olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht frist and lsat ltteres are at the rghit pclae. Th rset cn be a toatl mses nd yu cn sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm.

You probably got the meaning even though you couldn’t have sounded out most of the words! Now try this:

With hocked gems financing him Our hero bravely defied all scornful laughter That tried to prevent his scheme Your eyes deceive he had said An egg not a table correctly typifies this unexplored planet

Now three sturdy sisters sought proof…1

You didn’t get the meaning, did you? Even though you “read” all the words the first time, you probably didn’t understand the author’s meaning. Now read it again and this time think: Christopher Columbus1.

The Read Right system was developed by a mom, Dr. Dee Tadlock, who was determined to help her son, a struggling reader. This required her to discover how the brain learns to read successfully. During her extensive research, she found that reading (whether early reading development or remediation) must be grounded in meaning, not decoding. Since 1991, Dr. Tadlock and Read Right Systems have helped thousands of children, teens, and adults in the United States, Canada, China, and Germany through school-based programs, telephone tutoring, and at-home programs. Read Right’s premise that all children can learn to read, plus their phenomenal success rate, is why NSFM partners with Read Right. Reading empowers the lives of children and, together with Read Right, we are in the business of empowering kids.

1J. Dooling and R. Lachman, 1972, “Effects of Comprehension on Retention of Prose” Journal of Experimental Psychology, Volume 88, pages 216-222.

When I taught special education years ago, I asked a sixth grade student to look carefully at a book I had handed him and tell me if he noticed anything different about it. He flipped through it lackadaisically and said, “No, I don’t.”

“Please turn back to the beginning of the book and read it to me,” I responded.

He opened the book to the first page and prepared to read. Then he said, “There are no words.”

“Oh, so that’s how it’s different!” I exclaimed. Then I used the book as the basis of a writing activity for my sixth-grade student.

You can use wordless picture books and almost-wordless picture books to help your young children develop appropriate concepts about where the focus belongs for reading: on the author’s meaning, not on individual words. Wordless picture books have no words at all and force the “reader” to anticipate the meaning and tell the story. Almost-wordless picture books have only a few words on some pages and no words on others, so the “reader” must also anticipate meaning and tell the story.

Using Wordless Picture Books

For 150 years, most early reading instruction has focused on the naming of words…one…word…at…a…time. On the surface, it seems logical. Reading is all about words, right? Wrong! “Reading” is a highly complex activity requiring every successful reader to figure out how to integrate many forms of knowledge simultaneously: knowledge of a language and how that language works; knowledge of the world around us that helps us make sense of what we’re reading; knowledge of the alphabet and how the alphabet can be used strategically to construct meaning; and more. Fortunately for all of us, the work occurs below the level of conscious awareness. Remarkably, children as young as three, four, and five have actually figured out the complex activity and become excellent readers, but only when they understood that the main event of reading is to anticipate an author’s message (or, to construct meaning). The following activities will help your child understand this essential concept.

Buy several wordless picture books, or check some out from your local library. Let your child choose the one she wants to “read.” First, you “read” the book to her by telling the story as it is revealed by the pictures. As you do, point out to her the key visual information from each page.

Next time the two of you sit down with the book, ask her to tell you the story, using the pictures as appropriate clues. Avoid intervening in how she interprets the story, unless what she says has absolutely nothing to do with the picture on the page she is “reading.”

Put yourself in the shoes of your child and try to make sense of her interpretation. If you can’t because she is completely off track, ask questions rather than correct her. Example:

• If the picture is about the beach and a beach ball, but she begins to tell a story about climbing a mountain, intervene. Say, “I don’t see a mountain in this picture. Can you show me a mountain?”

• When she says no, continue to ask her questions. Say, “What is the picture about?”

• If she doesn’t know, ask another question. Say, “What’s that?” and point to the beach.

• If she says, “I don’t know,” or if she doesn’t immediately answer, tell her what it is. Say, “It’s a beach.” Your story needs to have a beach in it. Do you want to tell me a different story about these pictures, or do you want me to tell you the story about the beach again?” As always, let your child choose the next course of action to take.

“Talking The Story”
In Books That Have Words

Use the “Talking the Story” strategy with standard picture books—those that have words—when your child is too young to follow the narrative by listening to you read each page. Silently read a page at a time in advance, and then summarize for your child what is on the page. Pictures can also be used to involve your child in the story. For example, a picture of a cow jumping over the moon provides you with such an opportunity.

• Point to the picture and say, “Look! There’s the cow. What’s he jumping over?”

• When your child answers correctly, or when you tell him the answer, you could say, “Do you think the cow could really jump over the moon?” [He answers.]

• Say to him, “Could you jump over the moon?” [He answers again.]

• Say to him, “I’ll bet you could jump over other things though. Do you want to show me how you can jump over something?”
Use pictures to help introduce new information. For example:

• Say, “Did you know that milk comes from cows?”

• Then when he answers, point to the picture and ask him, “Did you know that the sack right there is called the udder and it is where the milk comes from?”

Wonderful opportunities to expand your child’s knowledge of the world come from talking through books. Be sure to take advantage of them!

Here is another chance to engage your child in a discussion about meaning. You read (or say), “The elephant walked slowly.” If you suspect that your child does not yet know what it is to walk slowly, it is a perfect time to engage him in a discussion like this one:

• Ask him, “Where’s the elephant?”

• After he points to the animal—or, if he can’t, after you point it out—say, “If we use our fingers to walk like an elephant across the book, can you show me how an elephant would walk ‘slowly’?”

• When he has demonstrated this for you (or, if he doesn’t know, demonstrate for him and then encourage him to do it), ask him, “And what would our fingers do if the elephant walks ‘fast’?”

• Again, give him a moment to demonstrate for you. If he can’t, show him the concept of “fast” with your fingers “walking” quickly across the page.

Follow your child’s lead in deciding whether to read a story or “talk” the story. If you start to read the book and he’s not interested (he walks away, tries to get down, or starts playing with the book), it is a signal that he may not yet have the ability to string narration together. This is when you want to “talk” the story. Talking a story rather than reading it helps get your child personally involved in the story so that his interest remains high. If he is interacting with you as you talk through the story, he will be answering your questions, pointing to the pictures on cue, and often acting gleeful because he is fully engaged and obviously enjoying the process. This is exactly what you want to happen. Without exception, you want early reading experiences to capture your child’s interest.

About the Author:
Dee Tadlock, Ph.D. is the founder of Read Right Systems in Shelton, WA and primary author of the book Read Right! Coaching Your Child to Excellence in Reading. www.ReadRight.com

August 2007