Forging connections
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash
In the UK, the end of the academic year is fast approaching. My daughters are eagerly awaiting the start of the long summer holidays and the prospect of new teachers and fresh challenges in the autumn. For me, it’s also an opportunity to look back.
My youngest started school last September, so has spent much of her time learning to read and write. The approach used to teach her is known as phonics, and - I’ll admit – I’ve found it baffling. Phonics has a whole language of its own, but essentially children start by learning what sounds correspond to which letters. She then moved on to ‘blending’ sounds so, for example, 'c/a/t' becomes 'cat.' This led to some mind-boggling conversations where she sounded out the component letters, but then took a wild guess at the resulting word. ‘r/e/d… errr… pineapple!!!’ was probably my favourite attempt.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t really remember learning to read and write. I must have gone through a similar process though, even if we didn’t have phonics in the 1980s. My older daughter received the first Harry Potter book for Christmas and is now steadily working her way through the series. Looking back, it’s remarkable to think that it is only three years since she herself was learning how to blend isounds, like her sister. It’s even more amazing when we consider how children actually acquire language skills.
When we read something, we first need to detect (see) the words and then interpret them. This process involves nerves connecting multiple regions of the brain. Although babies are born with a basic network of connections, learning only becomes possible as their brains develop. More and more connections form during infancy and childhood to facilitate this. As a result, if you compare the brain of a newborn baby and a 7-year-old, like my older daughter, the structural differences between them are so marked you can clearly see them on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. (See images here).
As a writer, I often get bogged down with technicalities: word counts; grammar; eliminating anything unnecessary. It is easy to forget what a precious gift those words are. All animals communicate with each other, but none have such an elaborate system of language as us. We alone are made in the image of the God who communicates (Gen 2:15-24).
Proverbs reminds us of the value of language, but also shows how it can be misused and abused. Wise words are compared to gold and silver. The tongue of the just is like choice silver (Prov. 10:20) and the lips of the righteous feed many (Prov. 10:21). However, whilst the pen that brings health is a tree of life, a deceitful pen crushes the spirit (Prov. 15:4). We only have to glance at social media to see how that pans out.
We use language every day. However, observing my daughters’ learning has reminded me what a responsibility we have to use this gift well.
Lovely post, Helen. My word, those teaching methods change so fast. One daughter did letter land at school. I taught all four to read using classic Peter and Jane books, full of 'high frequency' words. Phonics is very 'in' (love your pineapple illustration – lol!). Back in the day my infant school had a bash at the now discredited 'ita'. Fortunately I could already read so it didn't tie me in knots but messed up others. At the end of the day, we just want to encourage ur kids to read, don't we, and so open the door to years of pleasure and magic in all its genres?
ReplyDeleteThank you. Like you, I don't remember learning to read, but I vividly remember sitting on my son's bed watching him form his first reading words (The Magic Key, I think it was in those days) and being completely astonished by how that could possibly happen.
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