Reading aloud and facilitating responses: links to browsing and viewing (3-7 year olds)

Facilitated by Jo Fahey

Regardless of their age or whether they are emergent or fluent readers, reading aloud to children is an important educational experience. Debbie Miller writes, “Reading aloud is one of the most important things I do. I can’t believe I used to feel so guilty about it that I’d shut the classroom door!” 1

While reading fiction to children is commonplace in early childhood settings, information texts are frequently under-utilized. If educators read more information texts to children, children are more likely to engage with such texts when reading or browsing independently.

In this workshop Jo will focus on:

  • Children’s responses to read-alouds
  • Engaging children in dialogue during and after read-alouds
  • Explicit links between reading aloud to children and them browsing and reading texts independently
  • The value of re-reading stories
  • Browsing as a very direct way for young children to engage in texts
  • Promoting and fostering intercultural understanding through stories and non-fiction texts

Please bring along any documentation, photos and favourite texts – fiction and non-fiction – and one text with an intercultural flavour that you have read and children have enjoyed!

Contact Jo Fahey for further information: [email protected]
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1 Fahey, J (2012, p. 26) Ways to Learn Through Inquiry: Guiding Children to Deeper Understanding, International Baccalaureate, Cardiff