Evening star., 1939-11-20

Development
OF Reading
In Child
Learning Ability Is
Often Mistaken
For Genius
BY ANGELO PATRI.


Parents seem to me to be un-
reasonably proud of children who
learn quickly from books, or who
show liking for books. Rarely do
they seem to pride themselves on a
child who uses his hands very well.
That is an ordinary to-be-expected,
II not deplored, fact, while liking
for words is something worth while.
That would not matter so much if
this notion did not so often bring
about forced growth, something that
never does anybody much good. The
children, if left more to their own
impulses toward development, would
soon show their real trends, but
forced development of word acti-
vlties holds real characteristics
back until they become too strong
to be held. Then the trouble begins.
Many young children memorize
easily. They are at the stage where
language power is developing. Their
language-learning ability is at it's
height. Parents often mistake this
for genius and begin teaching the
child poems, hymns, bits of fine
prose, little plays, and having the
child perform for the visitors. After
this step it is short one to teach
ing child to read. 1--WE never
forced him. He just asked what
the word was and we told him"
True enough. And read to him, and
kept asking, What word is this,
Junius? Read what the Red Fox
said to the Hen"
With some children this does no
real harm. They shake off the
pressure and forget about it. They
assume an air of disinterest and
the teaching stops. But there are
other children who are harmed by
1t. These are the quick learning,
easily impressed children who are
called sensitive, high strung, and
the like. These children feel that
something is expected of them in
this reading and reciting and
strain to produce it. That makes
for the nervous, f1dgety, easily up
set child. He needed to be let
alone to develop his language
power, the use of his eyes, hands.
and the rest of his mental and
physical equipment against the day
when it would be needed.
Our experience points to the first
grade in school as the time and
place for learning to read. The
children learn easily and quickly,
and with pleasure under the ad-
ministration of well-trained
teacher. Those children who were
taught before that time rarely do
as we'll.
Along with the word recognition
that many people think is reading,
must go the power to interpret the
words, to get the ideas. Along with
reading ability must go the ability
to read new words and that re-
quires careful instruction in phonic
elements. All this needs practice
and application, and the trained
teacher is the best person to direct
that work. Why take the time and
trouble to do painfully what can pe
done easily, and better at the right
time, in school?
Word-learning is not the only
field of such endeavor. The child
who has sharp memory for num-
bers, the one who has a gift for
dramatics, or music, any kind of
ability, is marked out for forcing,
quite innocently, in the pride of
the parents. Genius cannot be hid
den. If a child has it,> no power
on earth can deprive him of it. If
he has it not, no power on this earth
can bestow it upon him. Let the
children grow naturally. Give them
the full time nature ordained, and
their abilities will be developed in
full strength. Force them, and you
lose them.
Use kindness and intelligence in
checking bad habits that your
youngsters fall into Be guided
by Angelo Patri's booklet, Annoying
Habits" Send for it, inclosing 10
cents in coin. Address in care of
this paper.