Sunday, November 11, 2007

Stages of Reading Development

I remember learning this in college in my human development class and was reminded of these stages in The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Dyslexia. So to everyone that wants to know the stages of reading development:
Stage 0 (birth-6): Children first gain control of language. Preschoolers learn to recognize the alphabet if exposed to print. They may begin to recognize a few words.
Stage1: (6-7): Children learn to decode by sounding out words
This is where it can be a major barrier for dyslexic children.
Stage 2 (7-8): They recognize whole words by their visual appearance and letter sequence. Familiar patterns are noticed. They read automatically with word recognition. It is at this phase that children with dyslexia often begin to fall seriously behind.
Stage 3 (8-14): Readers have master the "code" and can easily sound out unfamiliar words and read with fluency. They use reading to acquire new knowledge. About 40% of children with reading difficulties have problems that are not apparent until they reach fourth grade. These children often do not have difficulties with tasks such as letter and word recognition. Their problem is that they are unable to read fluently or comprehend what they read.
Stage 4 (14-18): Students are able to analyze what they read and deal with layers of facts and concepts.

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