I hadn't previously considered the daunting task of reading from this angle. I was blessed, from an early age, to be able to read with ease and enjoyment. I have always found it hard to relate to those who struggle with reading (insert shocked face here). Despite being a Resource teacher, I often find myself growing impatient with kids who have difficulty in literacy. A recent interaction with a struggling student in grade 3, who was working on his "L" sounds, went something like this:
Me: "Ladder. L-L-L-Ladder. LLLLLL. Ladder
Him: "Wadder"
Me: "No J*****. Try it again. L-L-L-Ladder"
Him: "Das what I said! W-W-W-Wadderrrrrrr!!"
The article is enlightening. My frustration with this particular situation may have been lessened had I simply tried to gain a different perspective. The article points out that "reading is the most difficult task we can ask the young brain to undertake" (p83). We are asking kids to reorganize what they have come to know as language. This reorganization takes place in the form of "abstract symbols" known as the alphabet.
The article also points out that, unlike language, reading is not a survival skill. A person can communicate, function and otherwise 'get-by' in the world while still having major reading difficulties. The student mentioned above also suffers from language impairment so it was reassuring to read that, "children with language impairments are at risk for problems when learning to read" (p 84).
For someone who takes the ability to read for granted, it is eye-opening to be reminded that breaking down reading into phomenic awareness, graphemes and various neural interactions, it is surprising that more people don't show weakness in reading. Teaching a student how to read is a daunting task; but teaching a student with a reading disability how to read is beyond daunting.
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