We propose the following steps during the reading process

1.      Pre-reading

2.      Reading

3.      Post-reading

1. The pre-reading stage: This is the phase that helps raise the reader’s interest in the text they are going to read. It is the right moment to revise previous knowledge and state prerequisites. The former are acquired in the environment students grow in, while the latter give us a formal education, such as: vocabulary, notions of the reality and the use of language. Moreover, this is an opportunity to motivate and generate curiosity.

Specific pre-reading skills are developed through activities such as:

& Denotative and connotative analysis of the images attached to the text. Denotative analysis invites the reader to observe and describe the graphics exactly as they are, while the connotative one implies interpreting them in a creative manner.

& Activation of the previous knowledge: ask yourself what you know about the topic and what you can connect it to.

& Elaboration of predictions about the content, starting from the factors that draw your attention: title, the year the text was published, author, graphical elements, keywords, prologue, bibliography etc.

& Defining the purpose of reading: recreation, practical application, finding information, critical evaluation.

2. The reading stage: This is the stage when you perform the actual reading of the text, which involves the mechanical aspects as well as text comprehension. The level of comprehension that you will reach depends a lot on the skills you demonstrate during the stage. This is the moment to put the emphasis on the global image that words, phrases and sentences create, avoiding syllabic reading and reading aloud.

Activities for this stage depend on the type of text you are reading.

3. The post-reading stage: For this stage, we propose activities that show how much the reader understood from the text. The type of questions that will be asked determine the target level of comprehension.

The post-reading stage is ideal for group work, since this way, students can compare their interpretations with their classmates’, and build the meaning of the read texts from different points of view.

The activities proposed for this stage must be varied and creative, to stimulate a positive attitude on the students’ side.

Reviewing books

Reading activities to do at home

The objective of each family who wishes to help develop their young members’ reading abilities must try, above everything, to generate curiosity for reading and interest and attraction for books and the written language. You can achieve this by using different activities.

• Read them a little each day. Choose a quiet time, like the moments before bedtime, and start reading your little ones stories appropriate for their age. This exercise will allow them to see reading as a pleasant activity and will start associating sounds with letters.
• Help them see the usefulness of reading. The written word does not only appear in books, but also on various objects and spaces we use every day. Parents can start teaching the children to make associations between the written and the spoken language, if they involve the little ones in these reading situations. You can read the street and shop signs or the labels on food together. Another option is to place labels written in large font on different objects in the house.
• Letter games: there are games that help children learn and recognize the letters of the alphabet, and associate them with complete words. Some interesting games that you can play with your child are “I spy…”, “Word chain”, or spelling names and words.
• Reading with pictures: stories with pictures include images that are easy to understand for children, and that can be easily replaced by an appropriate word. This type of reading is very motivating, as the children, though still unable to read properly, become more than mere spectators of the process of reading.
• Be an example yourself: growing up in an environment that encourages reading is one of the most influential background factors with direct implications on the child’s future reading skills. Parents must allow their children to join them when they read, talk to them about the text they are reading, help them create their own bookcase and introduce to them the public spaces where they can get books from – that is, libraries and bookstores.

Book Metaphors