The Reading Wars. Synthetic Phonics vs Reading for Pleasure.

Synthetic phonics is a technique that teachers use to help children learn how to make connections between the letters of a written text and the sound of spoken language by breaking words up into the smallest units of sound otherwise known as phonemes (Reading Eggs, no date). This is a great method to teach children as it breaks the English language down into just 44 sounds which makes it a lot easier for children to understand (Read with phonics, no date). In addition, synthetic phonics allows children an opportunity to learn all the phonemes in each individual word and connect them to a letter so that they are able to spell words correctly, for example with the word ‘hot’ children will learn to identify three separate phonemes using synthetic phonics as follows:

 /h/ /o/ /t/

this can then be blended back together and produces a whole word (hot). 

When new sounds are presented to the children they are not necessarily introduced in alphabetical order and they are introduced quickly, synthetic phonics allows children to read a wide variety of easily unravel new words meaning that if a child is introduced to the sounds 

/h/ /i/ /s/ /t/

they can quickly read the words it, is, his, hit, hi and so on. (Reading egg, no date). 

With learning phonics being one of the most essential stepping stones for children in the early reading stage, research suggests that when phonics is taught correctly it can be one of the most effective ways of teaching children to learn how to read, children are taught the sounds starting with the easiest such as single letter sounds before progressing onto the harder sounds with two letters making a sound such as ‘ph’, ‘th’ and so on (Read with phonics, no date). 

Synthetic phonics is a foundational literary element that gives young children a basic start to learning how to read and if they do not learn this at a young age there is a risk that the child will never successfully be able to confidently speak and read words fluently (children learning reading, no date).

A disadvantage of synthetic phonics could be that not all words in the English language are spelt the way that they sound which can be confusing for young readers and using the phonetic approach can be misleading for children when they are presented with certain words for example ‘Wednesday’, ‘sugar’, ‘said’ and so on (Pancare, 2019). 

Reading for pleasure is any reading that takes place purely for an individual’s enjoyment whether it be fiction, non-fiction or any other genre (BBC, 2018). Reading is a skill that only gets better with frequent practise and reading for pleasure is vital for making sure that the practise needed to become fluent becomes a part of a child’s everyday life and is not something that only takes place in the classroom (BBC, 2018). 

Benefits include: 

·     An increased sense of achievement

·     Boost in confident, self-esteem and self-awareness

·     Easily accessible 

·     Prevention of boredom 

·     Promotes relaxation

It is essential that children continue to read throughout their childhood as it allows them to access and experience texts that they may not have personally chose themselves, such as more advanced reading that requires higher levels of concentration and a wider range of vocabulary and so on (Atkinson, no date). If done right, story time can be an exciting activity to children and something that they will enjoy sharing with the reader whether it be a parent, teacher or sibling and as well as this, listening to the child read to you can also motivate them to improve their own reading and explore new reading material (Atkinson, no date). 

A disadvantage of reading for pleasure could be that not all children will find enjoyment in reading and many children will label it as “boring” and a “waste of time” (London, 2017). With the rising of technology children would rather spend their spare time playing on a games console, watching their favourite TV programme or chatting to their friends online than sit down and read a book (London, 2017). However, reading activates parts of the brain that would otherwise remain dormant and stimulating the brain by reading contributes to keeping it active which reduces the risk of developing conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and improves concentration and memory, which watching TV and playing video games cannot do (London, 2017). 

During placement, a lot of the children engaged well during story time and enjoyed taking control and reading to the rest of the class. I would sit individually with children who struggled with their reading and go over the stories with them, using synthetic phonics would really benefit them and if they struggled I would take the time to help them voice the words they were trying to read. In Professor Graham Donaldson’s new curriculum, he states that he wants children to be “taught a love of learning and problem solving rather than being drilled through a syllabus for the sake of it. Children should learn not just to read but to love reading for pleasure” (Wightwick, 2017). This sets a good example as to what will happen going forward with the new curriculum and hopefully children will be more engaged with reading and choose to read stories in their spare time rather than using electronic devices. 

References

Atkinson, P (no date)Promoting reading for pleasure. Available at: https://ukla.org/resources/details/promoting-reading-for-pleasure(accessed: 3rd May, 2019).

BBC (2018) Reading for pleasure. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/tutors/using-skillswise-as-a-tutor/reading-for-pleasure(accessed: 3rd May 2019). 

Children Learning Reading (no date) why is phonics so important in teaching your child to read? Available at: http://www.children-learning-reading-review.com/articles/why-is-phonics-so-important-in-teaching-kids-how-to-read/ (accessed: 3^rdMay, 2019). 

London, J (2017) Advantages & Disadvantages of Reading. Available at: https://ourpastimes.com/advantages-disadvantages-reading-8389212.html(accessed: 3rd May 2019). 

Pancare, R (2019) The advantages & disadvantages of the phonetic approach. Available at: https://www.theclassroom.com/advantages-disadvantages-phonetic-approach-8599845.html(accessed: 3rd May, 2019). 

Reading Eggs (no date) Synthetic Phonics. Available at: https://readingeggs.co.uk/articles/2012/06/22/synthetic-phonics/ (accessed: 3^rdMay, 2019). 

Read with Phonics (no date) What are the benefits of phonics? Available at: https://www.readwithphonics.com/what-are-the-benefits-of-phonics(accessed: 3rd May, 2019). 

Wightwick, A (2017) ‘The man behind Wales’ new curriculum on the purpose of education, exams and statistics’. Available at: https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/education/graham-donaldson-interview-wales-curriculum-13812153(accessed: 3rd May, 2019).