Essay - The Importance of Learning to Read Learning to Read and...

The Importance of Learning to Read

***** to read and write are complementary skills. While in the younger years, writ*****g depends on reading *****, by middle and high school, they are complementary skills: reading is necessary ***** do writing assignments, while writing about what has read increases comprehension of the *****ing materials. For this reason, separating reading and ***** instruction from content areas is arbitrary ***** will eventually interfere with ***** students' progress in those ***** areas.

From the day children are born, parents are told by doctors, teachers and other experts to read to them, and to ***** ***** them every day. They are told to do ***** because hearing language that contains story lines, rich language and vivid imagery facilitates ***** development and develops a desire to read. From "The Poky Little Puppy" to Rudyard Kipling, children's literature exists that uses language in exciting and colorful ways. Good children's literature doesn't sound the same as the conversations ***** child hears around himself, and thus broadens the child's experiences ***** language.

As a child gets older, he or s***** learn***** ***** read. While adults are still encouraged to read to children at all ages, and good classroom teachers continue to do that, as ***** child learns to ***** he has more ***** ***** ability to increase his exposure ***** the many ways language can be used. He ***** exposed to a wider circle of knowledge than he could collect if his only source was from other people.

This background of ***** and familiarity with written language is a ***** foundation for any writing the child *****es. ***** child who does not read widely will have a markedly sm*****er set of in*****mation to draw from when writing. This link between reading and writing becomes even more important as the child enters ***** ***** ***** school and is expected to read new information, digest it, and organize ***** in a way he (or she) feels demonstrates an underst*****ding of the material. ***** writing poetry and fiction can be valid ***** as well, well-educated students are ***** to be able to produce ***** reports ***** ***** they have read. They ***** expected to be able to gather new information ***** share it in wr*****ten form with others.

***** important ***** ***** develop the skill of reading content information and using it in written form is to teach reading and ***** across the curriculum. Such skills as critical thinking ***** be applied to subject textbooks ***** well as extra ***** assigned to ***** students. Erickson (1998) used the example of girls researching the lives of famous scientists. As ********** put together a timeline, and report, they read critically and realized that women were markedly under-represented. They went back and read their ***** critically, looking for details about women scientists, ***** found in*****ation ***** the struggle ***** early women ***** for the recognition due *****m. By applying reading and writing skills in science, they *****ed skills and ********** in all three subjects. Erickson calls